Koch brothers declare war on offshore wind

The war over America’s coastal-energy future has officially begun, and the result could determine whether we see wind turbines or catastrophic oil spills along our coastlines in coming years.

The opening salvo came in early July, when everyone’s favorite climate-hating, fossil-fuel-loving industrialist villains, the Koch brothers, released a so-called “cost-benefit analysis” of New Jersey offshore wind development plans through their front group Americans for Prosperity.

The focus on New Jersey is no big surprise. Fresh off their recent success in manipulating the state’s Republican Gov. Chris Christie into backing out of the Northeastern cap-and-trade system known as RGGI, the brothers grim are honing in on what they see as a weak spot in the clean-energy movement’s eastern front. Hoping to score a knockout blow, the duo have packed their offshore wind “analysis” with distortions.

Topping the report’s list of misrepresented facts are the jobs benefits. In fact, forget about misrepresentation; the report actually failed to represent those benefits altogether. Considering the impressive job-creation numbers cited in a range of other studies on offshore wind, it’s hard to imagine how any analysis that wasn’t commissioned as an intentional piece of fiction could have made such a glaring omission. Indeed, a study by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory indicates that the 1,000 megawatts of offshore wind power New Jersey is planning to build could result in nearly 5,000 construction and maintenance jobs. Adding to the imbalance of the Kochs’ equations, their report completely discounts wind power’s benefit as a relief valve against foreign-oil dependence or New Jersey’s need to import electricity from other states.

Of course, this parade of misinformation should come as little surprise considering the track record of the key Koch crony in the Garden State: AFP New Jersey chapter director and Tea Party high priest Steve Lonegan. A longtime extreme-right gadfly of the New Jersey political scene, Lonegan earned his Koch-worthy credentials publishing false accusations about political opponents during his time as mayor of Bogota, N.J., and has been accused of violating state election laws and defrauding taxpayers in a 2008 run for governor. What’s more, as chronicled in the New Jersey Star-Ledger, Lonegan was the local force behind the “dishonest scare-campaign” that led to Christie’s retreat from RGGI.

With Lonegan leading the offensive, it’s clear the Kochs are planning to make the fight over New Jersey’s coasts a particularly ugly and bruising one. The situation also bodes ominously for other states up and down the Mid-Atlantic Bight that are considering wind projects, from Connecticut to North Carolina.

Thankfully, for all the dollars and deceitfulness the Kochs have in their arsenal, their victory is far from assured. As their failed attempt to cut down California’s climate law in 2010 proved, the Kochs can be beaten by a well-organized, grassroots-powered opposition with truth on its side. And that’s exactly what they’re up against in New Jersey and up and down the Mid-Atlantic Bight, where a robust coalition involving everyone from Google to the United Steelworkers to the League of Women Voters is ready to stand up for wind and smack down any BS Lonegan and the Kochs serve up.

Game on, boys. Bring it.

This post has been cross-posted courtesy of Grist
Image credit: Gus Ruelas/Greenpeace

Harry Potter and the Climate Horcrux

What do Jason Alexander who played George on Seinfeld, Bill McKibben who founded 350.org, and Evanna Lynch who stars as Luna Lovegood in the Harry Potter films all have in common?

They are all members of the real-world Order of the Phoenix for the non-profit Harry Potter Alliance’s Climate Change campaign!

If you are like me, then the biggest event of your weekend was the last Harry Potter film: “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2.” And with the highest opening day in U.S. history, I know there are a lot of you like me out there.

Walking home from the movie, which was a cathartic experience for a reader who grew up as the books came out and who has read each one about three times, I found myself thinking as I often have about how we need a real-life Dumbledore’s Army to confront the evil villains of our time and their many horcruxes.

And that’s why I was so excited to uncover this morning: The Harry Potter Alliance (HPA). According to it’s mission statement, HPA “is a 501c3 nonprofit that takes an outside-of-the-box approach to civic engagement by using parallels from the Harry Potter books to educate and mobilize young people across the world toward issues of literacy, equality, and human rights.”

When it comes to mobilizing for human rights, it just so happens that for the HPA, the climate crisis is “our real world Voldemort’s most prized horcrux.”

To mobilize around climate change, HPA is asking people to get creative and encourage their friends to do the same. They call it “The Imagine Better Contest,” and they’ll be taking creative entries until this Wednesday, July 20th at 11:59pm ET (just 3 more days)! In addition to the page on the HPA site, the campaign also has its own website: imaginebetter.org.

So check out this very cool campaign (no pun intended) and take part! Voting on entries will begin after Wednesday and last till the end of the month.

One of the ways they’re encouraging people to take part is to submit a plan for inspiring people to participate in 350.org’s world-wide Moving Planet event on September 24th. The Chesapeake Climate Action Network has Moving Planet events planned in Maryland and Virginia and we’d love to hear your ideas as well!

Just like the Harry Potter books, this is a contest for all ages. Maybe I’ll submit a song. :)

No, not our wine too!

Napa Valley

As a full-time climate activist, I have no illusions about the severity and impacts of global climate change. More than anyone, climate activists bear the heavy burden of this astonishingly vast problem and feel incredibly personally invested in doing everything in our power to halt and reverse global warming. So given my deep moral and professional interest in climate impacts and my fairly decent knowledge base on the subject, it takes a lot to thoroughly depress me.

Napa ValleyNapa Valley, CA

But this is pretty depressing.

As a foodie and wine enthusiast (don’t worry, I go local and organic as much as I can), I was disheartened to hear that climate change could put a big squeeze on the premium wine industry in California. By 2040, the effects of rising temperatures could reduce the amount of land suitable for growing premium grapes by 50 percent. Gasp! No, don’t take our wine!

The effects of climate change on the Australian wine industry are already well-documented, receiving widespread news coverage and concern in one of the world’s most climate-affected countries. Warmer temperatures make grapes mature faster, affecting the quality of the end product. Experts claim that those with the most sophisticated palates may be able to taste the difference in vintages from the past few years. During the devastating drought that affected Australia from 2005 until recently, some grape yields were down as much as 40%. When you’re talking about a A$6 billion industry, that’s a problem.

Now researchers at Stanford University have recognized a similar pattern in California wines, and the California wine industry represents an even more impressive $18.5 billion chunk of the U.S. economy. The study, published in the peer-reviewed journal Environmental Research Letters last month, suggests that climate adaptation strategies could be applied to limit the projected losses. Wine growers could plant in new locations and use more heat tolerant varieties of grapes, alter the design of vineyards, and adjust winery processing procedures.

Just one more reason to keep fighting the good fight. Gotta have my vino!

 

Statement from CCAN on Introduction of the Virginia Outer Continental Shelf Energy Production Act of 2011

Bill would risk coastal tourism and human health for just three weeks worth of U.S. oil demand

RICHMOND — Conservation groups across Virginia are deeply disappointed by the harmful coastal drilling legislation introduced today by Virginia Senators James Webb and Mark Warner. The Virginia Outer Continental Shelf Energy Production Act of 2011 could lead to dangerous oil drilling just a few miles off the coast of Virginia Beach and other fragile coastal communities as soon as 2012.

STATEMENT FROM CCAN EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR MIKE TIDWELL:

“On behalf of our 30,000 supporters across Virginia, CCAN strongly opposes the offshore drilling bill introduced today by Senators Webb and Warner. At best, there may be three weeks worth of U.S. oil off the coast of Virginia at current consumption rates. Why risk damage to the state’s $19 billion tourism industry and critical fishing industry over just three weeks worth of oil? As the Deepwater Horizon spill demonstrated in Louisiana, all it takes is one platform disaster to affect millions of people and destroy thousands of jobs. For a modern solution to our energy woes, Virginia should develop offshore wind power, not oil. Using modern wind turbines of the sort already deployed at 45 offshore wind sites in Europe, Virginia could harness wind power off its own coastline sufficient to power at least 750,000 homes – forever. This same amount of energy could power 3.4 million electric cars, moving vehicles at the astonishing cost equivalent of about $1.30 per gallon! That’s real pump relief. And wind power helps solve the climate change crisis that is triggering sea-level rise worldwide and creating disastrous potential impacts for all of coastal Virginia. Offshore oil drilling in Virginia will create few jobs, fail to lower gas prices, endanger coastal tourism, and accelerate the crisis of climate change. Congress should reject this dangerous legislation introduced by Senators Webb and Warner and turn its attention to wind power instead.”

Local leaders plan White House arrests

Dear Friend,
tar sands devastation

President Barack Obama will decide as early as September whether to light a fuse to the largest carbon bomb in North America. That bomb is the massive tar sands field in Canada’s Alberta province. And the fuse is the 1,700-mile long Keystone XL Pipeline that would transport this dirtiest of petroleum fuels all the way to Texas refineries.

As concerned leaders from Maryland, Virginia, and DC, we’re writing you now because the Keystone XL Pipeline is a climate and pollution horror beyond description. From August 15th to September 5th, thousands of Americans – including Bill McKibben, Danny Glover, and NASA’s Dr. James Hansen – will be protesting at the White House, day after day, demanding Obama reject this tar sands nightmare. Given the high stakes, many protestors will also engage in peaceful civil disobedience, day after day.

Won’t you join us – for at least one day – during this historic protest? Pick a day between Aug. 15 and Sept. 5 and let the world hear your voice. Learn more here.

If built, the Keystone XL Pipeline would lock America into a future of planet-warming energy dependency. Indeed, Dr. Hansen – America’s top climate scientist – has said that full exploitation of Canada’s tar sands would constitute a “game over” scenario for efforts to solve climate change.

This development is doubly tragic for the Maryland, Virginia and DC area. That’s because, as a region, we are right on the cusp of developing our own major new energy resource: offshore wind power. Indeed, there is enough clean, harness-able wind power off the coasts of Maryland and Virginia to power millions of electric cars – forever. With zero pollution.

President Obama alone – without input from Congress – has the power to approve or reject the Keystone XL Pipeline. He will decide as soon as September whether to honor his campaign pledge to create a clean-energy economy – including wind power for the mid-Atlantic and beyond – or to lock us in as a nation that cooks and distills filthy tar sands for much of our energy. Make no mistake: building this pipeline will be an economic and moral setback for clean-energy sources of all types. This is a line in the sand. The tar sand!

So won’t you pick one day between August 15th and September 5th and join us at the White House?

Those of us who live in the greater Washington region have a special opportunity – and responsibility – to act on behalf of Americans everywhere. The goal is to have dozens of people arrested each day. Peacefully. With dignity. We’ll wear professional clothes and many will dig out old “Obama ‘08” campaign buttons as a reminder of promises once embraced.

Learn more and register here. We hope to see you at the White House.

Sincerely,

Mike Tidwell, Director, Chesapeake Climate Action Network

Nora Pouillon, Owner, Restaurant Nora

George Leventhal, Montgomery County Councilmember, Maryland

Anya Schoolman, President, DC Solar United Neighborhoods

Andy Shallal, Owner, Busboys and Poets Bookstore & Restaurant

Gary Skulnik, Clean Energy Executive

E. Ethelbert Miller, Board Chair, Institute for Policy Studies

Lise Van Susteren, Advisory Board Member, Center for Health and the Global Environment

Joelle Novey, Faith Activist for Climate Change

Scott Sklar, President, The Stella Group, Ltd.

Dr. Cindy Parker, Chesapeake Physicians for Social Responsibility

Cap and Dividend Policy Update #27

From the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, Mike Tidwell, director

Compiled and edited by Ted Glick, CCAN National Campaign Coordinator

June 28, 2011

The Chesapeake Climate Action Network produces and distributes this periodic policy update on efforts to advance “cap and dividend” legislation in the U.S. Congress. The fight for this climate policy is currently being led on Capitol Hill by Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Susan Collins (R-ME). In December, 2009 these Senators introduced the Carbon Limits and Energy for America’s Renewal Act, or CLEAR Act. Learn more at http://www.supportclearact.org.

Click here to view past Cap and Dividend Policy Updates.

 

In This Issue:

#1 McClatchy Newspapers story on Maria Cantwell

#2 From the Bangor, Me. Daily News

#3 James Boyce: The Climate Justice Imperative

#4 Center on Budget and Policy Priorities article on deficit reduction negotiations

#5 From the Huffington Post: Cap and Trade Is So 2009

#1 McClatchy Newspapers story on Maria Cantwell

“Cantwell said that Congress should not shy from the task just because it’s controversial. She noted that higher fuel standards were approved by lawmakers and are now accepted, despite the howls of protest that came when Congress acted. Besides, she said, if Congress doesn’t eventually put a price on carbon, consumers will continue to be on the losing end. ‘Or to put it more bluntly, the coal-fired electricity user is getting a free ride at the expense of the kid on asthma, or those who depend on a water source not destroyed by a mountaintop removal, or the fisherman whose catch is filled with bio-accumulated mercury,’ she said in a speech in Washington, D.C., last month.“Cantwell said she plans to introduce a version of her carbon-reducing plan again later this year. The last time, it called for the federal government to auction off carbon shares to 2,000 or so fuel producers; the shares would have expired every two years, and over time the government would have offered fewer shares as a way to reduce carbon consumption. Seventy-five percent of the money raised would have been rebated directly to U.S. citizens, offering an average family of four a total of $1,100 a year in tax-free checks.”For the full article go to: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2011/06/10/115603/cantwell-aims-to-fix-attention.html

#2 From the Bangor, Maine Daily News

“Iran is instituting what amounts to a dividend to compensate for phasing out inefficient gasoline subsidies. A dividend has been under discussion in Iraq. The CLEAR Act, an alternative cap-and-trade bill supported by Maine Republican Sen. Susan Collins and Sen. Maria Cantwell, D- Wash., includes an auction of carbon permits with most of the revenue coming back to American citizens as dividends. Under this bill the vast majority of poor and middle-class American households would be net financial gainers from this approach to reducing our carbon emissions even as the cost of fossil fuel rises”For the full article go to: http://bangordailynews.com/2011/06/20/opinion/contributors/alaska’s-permanent-fund-dividend-a-policy-ripe-for-export/?ref=mostReadBox

#3 James Boyce: The Climate Justice Imperative

“A cap on carbon emissions is essential, but instead of giving free permits to polluters – a central plank in ‘cap-and-trade’ schemes – polluters should pay. Permits are valuable: their holders will receive the fossil fuel price increases triggered by the cap. They should be auctioned, not given away, eliminating any need for permit trading. The revenues should be returned to the people as the rightful owners of the atmosphere’s limited carbon-absorptive capacity (or any country’s share of it). The cap-and-dividend climate bill proposed by Senators Maria Cantwell (D-Wa) and Susan Collins (R-Me) in 2009 would do exactly this, returning 75% of the revenue directly to the public as individual dividends, and devoting the remainder to clean energy investments.For the full article go to: http://triplecrisis.com/the-climate-justice-imperative/#more-3442

#4 Center on Budget and Policy Priorities article on deficit reduction negotiations

“Another approach was the Cantwell-Collins ‘cap-and-dividend’ bill. In each case, the legislation would have put a limit (or ‘cap’) on the overall amount of greenhouse gases — mainly carbon dioxide from the burning of fossil fuels — that could be emitted each year. Electric power plants, oil refineries, and other firms responsible for emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases would be required to hold permits (called ‘allowances’) for the greenhouse gas pollution they emitted. The number of allowances would be capped at an amount below current emissions levels, inducing companies to find ways to reduce their emissions to stay within the established limit.”For the full article go to: http://www.cbpp.org/cms/index.cfm?fa=view&id=3515

#5 From the Huffington Post: Cap and Trade Is So 2009

“Perhaps Sacramento’s revisiting of cap and trade can shine the light on another approach: climate dividends for everyone. If all the permits are sold (auctioned) to the upstream fossil fuel companies, most of the money raised could be sent back to the public as an equal per capita check every month. The monthly dividend would stimulate consumer spending, create jobs and investment in clean technologies, and address the environmental justice concerns about insiders gaming the trading system. The environmental justice plaintiffs may be pleased to know that this type of dividend could flow from a carbon tax as well. Rather than handouts in a smoke-filled room, the majority of funds would flow back to the people in the light of day. In a world of high unemployment, high gas prices and small budgets, even people who dislike Al Gore might like getting a check in the mail.” For the full article go to: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-sandler/cap-trade-is-so-2009-time_b_880176.html

 

CCAN encourages readers of the Cap and Dividend Policy Update to distribute it to others who might be interested. We welcome input on the contents of this publication and ideas for what could be included. Send to Ted Glick at ted@chesapeakeclimate.org..

Governor McDonnell Signs Residential Solar Energy Legislation

CONTACT:
Jamie Nolan
240.396.2022
jamie@chesapeakeclimate.org

Measure will provide low-cost loans for residential solar energy projects

RICHMOND – Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell today signed the Voluntary Resource Fund Bill (HB 2191 and SB 975), which sets up a revolving loan fund for residential solar energy projects. The loan program, which passed through the Virginia Senate and House of Delegates unanimously, will promote economic development and the production of clean, renewable energy at no cost to the state.

Environmentalists touted the bill as a win-win-win for all major parties involved: the citizens of Virginia who will receive the loans, the commonwealth’s solar energy industry, and utilities with an interest in distributed solar power.

Chelsea Harnish, Virginia Policy Coordinator for the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, said: “This program presents an exciting opportunity for Virginians who want to reduce their carbon footprint by powering their homes with renewable energy, but might not be able to afford the up-front costs associated with installing solar panels.”

Virginia possesses some of the mid-Atlantic region’s best solar energy potential as well as exceptionally strong consumer demand. The 2009 federal stimulus package included rebates to Virginia homeowners for renewable energy projects. Demand was so high that this fund was exhausted within a matter of just days and 500 households remained on the rebate list. To date, the Virginia state legislature has done very little to encourage the development of solar energy.

“This is a great start, but we hope that this is just the beginning of a new commitment on Governor McDonnell’s behalf to do whatever he can to support the development of renewable energy sources and make Virginia the CLEAN Energy Capitol of the East Coast,” Harnish said. “Virginia has two extraordinary natural resources – its solar and offshore wind energy potential – and both are vital to the commonwealth’s clean energy future.”

Delegate Adam Ebbin (D-49), patron of the House version of the bill, said: “Virginia has some of the highest solar energy potential in the region, but we’re being outpaced by neighboring states like Maryland, which only has two-thirds of our population but 13 times the number of homes powered by solar energy. This fund will ensure that more Virginians have the opportunity to power their homes with cheap, clean, renewable energy and help our companies stay competitive in the growing solar energy market.”  

The fund will grow over time as consumers repay their loans. If just one percent of Virginians give $5 a month during the fund’s first year, it will generate $1.8 million for loans.

The fund is expected to begin accepting donations in July 2011 and begin accepting loan applications in July 2012. To learn more about applying for a residential solar energy loan, consumers should contact the Virginia Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy.

The Chesapeake Climate Action Network (CCAN) is the first grassroots, nonprofit organization dedicated exclusively to fighting global warming in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. Our mission is to build and mobilize a powerful grassroots movement in this unique region that surrounds our nation’s capital to call for state, national and international policies that will put us on a path to climate stability.

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The Powerful March on Blair Mountain

“There will come a time, I know, when people will take delight in one another, when each will be a star to the other, and when each will listen to his fellow as to music. The free people will walk upon the earth, people great in their freedom. They will walk with open hearts, and the heart of each will be pure of envy and greed, and therefore all humankind will be without malice, and there will be nothing to divorce the heart from reason. Then life will be one great service to humanity! His/her figure will be raised to lofty heights-for to free humanity all heights are attainable. Then we shall live in truth and freedom and in beauty, and those will be accounted the best who will the more widely embrace the world with their hearts, and whose love of it will be the profoundest; those will be the best who will be the freest; for in them is the greatest beauty. Then will life
be great, and the people will be great who live that life.”
-Excerpt from Mother, by Maxim Gorky

Appalachia Rising’s second major event, the March on Blair Mountain, was an event unlike any other that I have ever taken part in. It was a tremendous
success despite tremendous obstacles. And because it overcame those obstacles, the movement to abolish mountaintop removal, as well as the youth-led climate movement and probably the labor movement in West Virginia, is much, much stronger. I am so looking forward to Appalachia Rising’s next big event/campaign!

The March had four demands: preserve Blair Mountain, abolish mountaintop removal, strengthen labor rights, and invest in sustainable job creation for
all Appalachian communities. Blair Mountain is where 10,000 coal miners fought in 1921 against the coal operators and their supporters who were severely repressing them as the miners attempted to organize.

What were the obstacles that the MOBM organizers and participants overcame?

-The heat: High temperatures were in the mid- or upper-90’s for all six days of the march, and it was humid. On Wednesday, while being shuttled back to our Marmet warehouse headquarters at the end of that day’s march, a temperature sign in the town of Madison read “102.” But because of a good team of medics and a well-organized water supply operation that moved with us as we marched, as well as nutritious food prepared by Seeds of Peace, only a handful of marchers over the course of the week had to stop marching for medical reasons.

-No places to camp: As of Friday the 3rd before the march started on Monday the 6th, there were definite or near-certain places for us to camp after each day of marching. As of Sunday evening the 5th, the Wednesday and Thursday locations had been withdrawn. On Monday night, after setting up camp at the John Slack State Park in Racine, we were forced to take our tents down and leave at 10 pm or be arrested. And on Tuesday morning, while on the march and after spending Monday night back in our Marmet warehouse, we received a cancellation call from the private campsite we had lined up for that night. Continue reading

Charged Up After Energize Virginia!

150 Virginia citizens, 5 strategic ways to take action, one purpose: moving Virginia toward a future of clean power and good jobs from offshore wind energy. That was the Energize Virginia summit that CCAN proudly hosted this past Saturday in Richmond!

If you were among the many activists that joined us on Saturday, thank you! We hope you had as much fun and felt as inspired as we did! If you couldn’t be there, hopefully these pictures can begin to capture the day’s palpable excitement!

Energize Virginia was foremost about Virginians coming to the state capitol from as far as Alexandria and Virginia Beach, from the Valley and from the Southside and everywhere in between, to learn and to take action to bring affordable, carbon-free energy online in Virginia. But we did even more than that.

We took a stand demanding that the leaders in our state act faster and more decisively to begin changing where Virginia gets its energy. With help from experts like business leader Terry McAuliffe, Joe Bouchard, Oceana’s Jackie Savitz, and Sierra Club Beyond Coal’s Vanessa Pierce, we made the case for large investment in Virginia’s best renewable, efficient energy source and how our state can become a leader in our region. It’s crucial that we keep it going full blast this year and continue to creatively and clearly demonstrate the need for installing wind power off our coast.

Feeling energized? Share it with the world! You can join our Virginia offshore wind power photo petition right from your home. Saturday produced dozens of great images to help put a face on this issue, like the one on the right, and you can Do-It-Yourself right now!

Check out our photo petition here, then download our signs or write a personal message or draw a picture about why you want an offshore wind farm for Virginia, and add your smiling face to our petition! Please email these pictures directly to us at virginiaoffshorewind@gmail.com. You can find out how to do more by contacting your local CCAN organizer for upcoming summer volunteer opportunities!

Maryland Students Celebrate Going Green

This blog post was written by Emily Saari, a Maryland Intern in the Takoma Park office this summer!

Last Friday, thousands of K-12 students, teachers, parents, and administrators got together on a gorgeous, breezy day for the 2011 Maryland Green Schools Youth Summit at Sandy Point State Park. This annual event of the Maryland Association for Environmental and Outdoor Education commemorates the achievements of the schools that are meeting MAEOE standards for incorporating environmental issues into their curriculums, partnering with green community organizations on local initiatives, and implementing policies to reduce their building’s environmental impact. Mike Tidwell gave the keynote address at the conclusion of the Summit.

Two student volunteers and I represented CCAN at one of the many booths at the Summit working to increase students’ environmental awareness across the broad spectrum of issues. We talked to kids and their mentors about supporting our campaign for offshore wind in the next year. It was fantastic to see such enthusiasm for clean energy initiatives, and I was so impressed with amount of support we got over the course of the afternoon. When speaking about the installation of offshore wind turbines, I heard teachers and parents say to me again and again, “I don’t know why we haven’t done this yet!” Even the elementary school kids were brimming with knowledge about fossil fuels, renewable energy, and restoration of damaged ecological systems like riparian buffers! It’s amazing how easily young kids can grasp this critical information, especially when the facts can be distilled down and taught to them without the complications and blurriness of politics. To them, it just makes sense. We should all take a cue from these inspired green students and remember that at the end of the day, clean energy just makes sense.