Clean Energy Plan Will Cut Electric Bills
Posted June 28, 2016 07:15 am | Public News Service
TALLAHASSEE, FL – Without changes in the way electricity is produced and how it is used, Floridians will likely see a nearly 17 percent increase in their electric bills over the next 15 years, according to a new study from the Georgia Institute of Technology.
Read the report here.
But the study also says that doesn't have to happen. The report finds that implementing the Obama administration's Clean Power Plan could halt that increase, saving the average Florida household more than $2,600 over the same period.
Marilyn Brown, a Georgia Tech professor and the
study's author, says the report clarifies a lot of
misinformation.
"A lot of analysts say that the Clean Power Plan is
going to bankrupt the nation," she relates. "But what
we're showing is in fact, if done wisely, we can save
consumers money and also prevent fossil fuels from
heating up the planet."
The
Clean Power Plan, introduced in 2015, aims to reduce
carbon dioxide emissions from power plants by 32 percent
by 2030, increase the use of renewables such as solar
and wind and implement efficiency measures.
The plan was challenged in the courts and, as a result,
states are not required to submit their plans for
implementation until the case is resolved.
Brown says the plan reduces the use of fossil fuels such
as coal and gas to generate power, not only cutting
costs, but significantly reducing greenhouse gases and
slowing the rate of climate change.
She adds that another major element of the plan - one
that is often misunderstood - is implementing energy
efficiency measures.
"Energy efficiency is not taking cold showers and
drinking warm beer," Brown points out. "It's not
suffering. It's not consuming less in order to cut your
bills. It means using energy more wisely, purchasing and
using equipment in a more efficient manner."
The report also finds that by reducing emissions, the
plan also would improve the nation's health, preventing
thousands of illnesses, premature deaths and hospital
admissions each year.
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