Gas Transition Allies

Massachusetts has taken a significant step forward in the fight against climate change. Today, the Massachusetts State House passed a comprehensive climate bill <https://lnkd.in/exsrvQv5> that includes several energy wins. Provisions include expanding the definition of a “gas company” to include serving thermal energy and requiring the consideration of stranded assets and cost to customers when deciding between repairing or retiring pipelines. ? This is an important victory for our climate, our communities, and our future. Thank you to Reps Mariano and Roy, and all the House members who deliberated over the provisions to give us the best bill possible!

Massachusetts Legislature agrees to gas transition! Senate Chair Michael Barrett and House Chair Jeff Roy announced an agreement to pass a comprehensive climate bill that would enable gas utilities to invest in neighborhood-scale clean heating and cooling solutions such as networked geothermal instead of having consumers continue to invest in new, costly methane gas pipelines. The agreement includes provisions that would empower gas utilities to sell renewable non-combustible thermal energy; authorizes the Department of Public Utilities to consider whether proposals to expand gas pipelines serves the public interest; aligns Massachusetts Gas System Enhancement Program (GSEP) with state climate goals; and includes measures sought by environmental justice advocates to require full accounting of pollution in a community when siting new energy projects. Tell your representatives about the climate bill vote!

As Caitlin Peale Sloan points out in a recent Commonwealth article (https://lnkd.in/eVeq88Ss), "Massachusetts ratepayers could be on the hook for massive costs to prop up two energy systems – methane gas and electric – when we only need one to meet our needs." The one we need is electric, and without gas transition, we'll continue to see methane leaks, asthma cases, and skyrocketing bills. We need a fair, managed approach to transitioning the gas companies to thermal utilities, which means we need legislation to support that approach.

Maura Healey's climate bill misses the point. Gas transition is the flip side of building electrification. Without it, the emissions aren't cut dramatically, public health harm continues, and gas bills skyrocket. A comprehensive climate bill must address the methane gas system. It should lower energy bills, improve air quality and reduce climate emissions. ? https://lnkd.in/eEhBjzkT

Over the past five years, the conversation around the “future of gas” has shifted from a niche topic to a central focus in regulatory frameworks across the country. As we navigate this energy transition, it is crucial to examine the evolving policies and economic analyses that are shaping the future of our energy infrastructure and consider what we might learn from proceedings in other states. ? Our friends at Building Decarbonization Coalition are offering a webinar that will provide a comprehensive national perspective on the regulatory proceedings, economic implications, and equity considerations involved in transitioning from the methane gas system to clean energy solutions. This discussion will be invaluable for understanding the broader context of our work and the challenges ahead, and will help inform our work in state regulatory proceedings. ? Learn more and register for the event here. <https://lnkd.in/eFbvHPMP>

We'll continue to fight for the best possible climate bill, even though it means starting over in the new session in January. In the meantime, we'll continue to advocate for a safe, managed transition off gas that avoids situations like the one that shattered a family in Maynard three years ago.

Last week the Massachusetts state house failed to pass much-needed climate legislation. The main sticking point were the provisions in the Senate bill enabling gas utilities to actively transition to thermal utilities. We need to stop methane gas pollution, but we also need the gas utilities to continue as viable businesses. Instead of giving these companies the opportunity to succeed, the legislature is choosing to ignore the problem, a problem that will eventually reach customers.

Listen up Rep Roy, Rep Haggerty, Sen Barrett, and Senate President Spilka. Methane is responsible for HALF OF ALL CLIMATE HEATING. We need to get off methane yesterday! It's simple, here's what you have to do. Keep the following provisions in the climate omnibus that's in front of you: ? Stop gas pipe replacements, just do repairs and decommission the really bad sections. ? Establish clean air policies for environmental justice populations. ? Tie siting and permit approvals to a robust cumulative impact analysis. ? Remove woody biomass from the alternative energy portfolio standard. ? Pave the way for a gas transition to non-emitting technologies like heat pumps and thermal energy systems. Your grandchildren will love you for it! Thank you! ?

Activists all across the state of Massachusetts are calling their state senators this weekend asking them to support the gas transition measures in the senate bill. We can electrify, like our Electrify Brookline friends in the picture below, but an equitable, managed, safe transition off gas goes hand-in-hand with electrification. So call your state senator too!

Our respected house legislators are unsure whether we need gas transition provisions in the 2024 energy bill. Eectric utilities are poised to grow and there is massive governmental support to electrify HVAC and water heating. Gas companies are facing a different future, not just the loss of significant end uses—HVAC and water heating—but the legislated termination of their businesses. The demise of gas utilities could be not just chaotic, but dangerous. * Tens of thousands of jobs are at stake. Gas pipefitters, steelworkers, and nonunionized workers earn family-supporting fair wages, while the jobs they’ve been told to retrain for, for example, solar installers, earn half of a gas workers hourly wage.? * Gas is explosive and there are regular incidents causing injuries, fatalities, and property damage. If gas utilities lose the incentive to maintain the system and workers with on-the-ground insight flee, we risk more incidents. * Gas rates will rise precipitously with fewer people to pay for stranded assets, largely impacting renters and low income. *?Investors will disinvest, accelerating a downward spiral. *?Some buildings on a pipe segment will electrify, while others will stay on gas, meaning that the gas system will remain in place, continuing to pollute, longer than it would with a more thoughtful decommissioning. *?Radon, NOx, and carcinogens will continue to leak and damage human health. Thermal energy networks present a viable option to keep gas distributors in business, but we need legislation to give this new business a boost.