From NIMBY to YIMBY

The scale of change coming our way over the next 15 years is staggering.?Everything we take for granted about energy, transportation, technology and food will be disrupted.?On a recent Zoom conference with some students from Saybrook University, I shared what an incredible opportunity it is to be alive right now – at this time, on this planet.?I’m both tremendously excited and freaked out.?If you have about 20 minutes to get one perspective on the transformation we will face, check this out.

There has been a persistent myth among Americans that renewable energy is not as economical as fossil fuels.?Nothing could be further from the truth.?Solar energy now costs 3 to 6 cents per kilowatt-hour.?As it scales the price will continue to decline.?Fossil fuels cost 5 to 17 cents per kilowatt-hour.?The good news is that, technically, we can make the transition to clean energy now.?It is already happening.?Various pundits have projected renewables to provide anywhere between 30% - 100% of electricity by 2030.?What is the main factor driving such a wide range of adoption??The speed of deployment.?Let’s look at a couple of recent examples that highlight the challenges.

Chipmunk was a 400-megawatt solar project proposed in rural Ohio.?It was the second largest solar array project in the US submitted for government approval and withdrawn due to local opposition – “not in my back yard! (NIMBY).”?The people opposed to the project considered it not in the character of their community.?It might lower property values, it might cause water and health issues; all unsubstantiated fears.?The fact that the project would boost county tax revenues and provide steady reliable income to farmers who chose to lease their land didn’t sway the opposition.?Unfortunately, renewable energy and climate change concerns in general have now become polarized in the culture wars of this country.?

Perhaps the poster child of the culture wars is a recent proposal in the Wyoming state legislature.?Citing the need to protect the oil and gas industry in the Cowboy State, the bill proposes to ban the sale of electric cars by 2035.?Of course, this bill has nothing to do with California’s strictest-in-the-nation law that bans the sale of new fossil fuel powered cars by 2035.?Here at 52 Weeks we are ALL EARS for anyone who can identify a scrap of rational thinking on this perspective.?Just send an email to [email protected].

Vineyard Wind is a major project designed to deliver 800 megawatts of power to Massachusetts.?Comprised of 65 wind turbines located 15 miles off the coast of Martha’s Vineyard, the project will power the equivalent of 400,000 homes, create many green jobs and save customers more than a billion dollars in the first 20 years of operation.?Offshore wind turbines are well established in Europe but brand new in the US.?What could go wrong??The idyllic summer Cape Cod beach experience did not blend with the (literal) vision of rotating wind turbines on the horizon.?The fishing community objected as well.?Opposition stalled this project for years.?Through coalition building with local communities, environmental groups and politicians the project finally prevailed.?

Unlike Vineyard Wind, some environmental groups have opposed the expansion of renewable energy.?The Quebec Hydro project that promises to provide inexpensive renewable energy to New England hit a wall when a coalition of citizens, environmental groups and local energy companies organized a referendum in Maine last fall. ?The project is at a standstill awaiting a decision from Maine’s Supreme Court.?As the transformation to renewables unfolds, big impacts on land use will be inevitable.?This research study (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences) concludes that net zero carbon emission targets can be reached with minimal habitat conflicts.?However, collaboration among multiple stakeholders from the start is essential.?

So, what’s the action on this, climate change agents??First off, join the climate conversation wherever it is happening.?The more people from multiple perspectives are in dialogue about our rapidly approaching future, the more everyone will be “change ready.”?Secondly, keep your eyes and ears to the ground.?In the near future, this movie will be coming to a theater near you.?No way to avoid it.?And when it arrives, please respond with a “Yes – in my backyard (YIMBY)!”