Northeast RGGI Climate Compact Threatened By Possible Denier Pickups

A repost of Think Progress’ Brad Johnson over at Climate Progress has the details.  Here is the big picture:

The Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) is the carbon trading program of Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island and Vermont, which went into effect in 2008. There are governors’ races in all these states except New Jersey and Delaware.

“Overall, there have been nine auctions held by RGGI since 2009, in which electric utilities and some investment firms have bought emissions allowances. And those auctions have raised some $729 million for a range of emissions-reduction and energy-efficiency programs — benefiting both homeowners and industrial users — as well as financing an occasional raid to balance a state’s general budget,” said Stateline’s Rob Gurwitt.

The U.S.’s first carbon trading market has been up and running successfully for a couple of years.  The Republican Teabagger candidates across the northeast are against any such program, of course.  They would much prefer we continue to shovel as much of the public’s hard-earned money into the bottomless pits of profit of private dirty energy corporations while socializing the costs of pollution back onto the public.

Instead of shutting this successful market down, it should be expanded across the country.  Aren’t Republican Teabaggers in favor of letting markets have their freedom?  If this were going to fail, wouldn’t it have done it already?  Hopefully the good citizens of these states don’t agree that we should all wait until global warming’s effects are in full force because if we do, it will be too late to act.

Quick Hit: Colorado’s Energy Efficiency Stimulus Funding

As part of the stimulus spending championed by President Obama and passed by the Democratic-led Congress, Colorado will receive more than $128.7 Million for weatherization funding and energy efficiency grants.

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, Colorado will receive $128,753,213 in weatherization and energy efficiency funding – including $79,531,213 for the Weatherization Assistance Program and $49,222,000 for the State Energy Program.

Weatherization and energy efficiency are two methods of keeping energy costs down.  Here’s how the Obama administration is playing this: weatherization, energy efficiency and other programs go into effect as soon as possible, saving energy consumers money right away.  A carbon cap-and-trade program goes into effect in the next couple of years, which will have the effect of raising energy prices as the program spins up and a price for carbon is settled on.  As Americans continue to use energy efficient programs (power generation, appliances, etc.), the raising energy prices don’t impact their budgets severely enough to disrupt their lifestyles.  These kinds of things are being thought through by Obama and others.  The right-wing reactionaries are desperately trying to tie into populist anger – I don’t think it’s going to get them very far as people do the math at their kitchen tables.

Oh, and as this funding is spent in Colorado, programs are expanded, which requires more employees.  Thus, good paying jobs are created and the economy finds a bottom.  A lot of people win under Obama’s plan.