Joining a group of 18 states and local governments, Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey announced Tuesday her support for the Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean Power Plan.
The Attorney General’s office joined in filing a motion to intervene in a case being heard by the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, according to a Tuesday press release.
Healey said the Clean Power Plan is in line with the Commonwealth’s goals and is a “pivotal step” toward reducing carbon emissions.
“Here in Massachusetts, we’ve been national leaders in clean energy — from the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, to energy efficiency programs, and a standard to promote greater reliance on renewable energy,” Healey said in the release. “Those programs have been good for Massachusetts residents and good for our regional economy. There is no time to waste.”
The Clean Power Plan requires states to set standards to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from fossil-fueled power plants.
“These emission reductions will help prevent and mitigate harms that climate change poses to human health and the environment, including increased heat-related deaths, damaged coastal areas, disrupted ecosystems, more severe weather events, and longer and more frequent droughts,” the motion stated.
The motion also stated that the Clean Power Plan will cut emissions by enacting state-specific limitations.
“In addition, the Clean Power Plan imposes specific obligations on many of the undersigned states,” the letter said. “As a result, State and Municipal Intervenors’ interests in defending certain aspects of the Clean Power Plan, including the state-specific emission-reduction targets the Plan assigns and the compliance options it allows, are distinct from EPA’s interests.”
Nathan Phillips, professor of environmental science at Boston University’s College of Arts and Sciences, said Healey’s decision is beneficial on both a local and global level.
“We need to transition our energy system to a clean energy system so we have to rapidly decarbonize our economy and this is a step in the right direction,” Phillips said. “Dirty energy affects local communities and it affects the most vulnerable people the worst. It’s a global issue because, if we don’t start driving our carbon emissions down rapidly the entire planet is going to be in a really bad shape.”
Healey’s decision will reinforce Massachusetts’ ongoing support for clean energy, Phillips said.
“This decision means that Massachusetts stays at the forefront of clean energy which is great,” Phillips said. “It just keeps us right there in front with other states like California and New York and others so it’s the right thing to do and so she’s doing her part to keep us in the lead.”
Several residents said they were pleased to see Healey’s effort to creating a more sustainable environment.
Aurora Alvarez, 19, of Kenmore, said Healey’s support is an important step in creating a sustainable future.
“I think [state legislators showing their support for clean energy] is really good,” she said. “I think it’s an issue of the future and if we don’t do something about it now then we’re going to run into some really big problems for our generation.”
Ilker Yalcin, 50, of Back Bay, said it is necessary for state legislators to show their support for clean energy to make life more sustainable.
“Any legislator regulating the energy in a green way is highly important because we can not sustain this dirty energy for the rest of our lives,” he said. “We have to somehow shift towards green energy.”
Jessica Haskins, 23, of Kenmore, said Healey’s support for cutting carbon emissions is one of the best ways that any environmental progress can be made.
“It’s great because power companies are the biggest handle you can have on emissions,” she said, “but it’s the biggest lever you can have to reduce carbon dioxide emissions so I think supporting clean energy policy makers especially is probably the easiest lever we can move to really change emissions.”
