Beginning today, PSEG will occasionally offer our regular Thursday oped space to environmental groups. This piece, by Jeff Tittel, president of the New Jersey chapter of the Sierra Club, appears in honor of Earth Day. Guest columns do not necessarily represent the views of PSEG.
This is probably the most important Earth Day since the first one 39 years ago. Because now, we have a chance to finally address climate change by starting on the path to reduce greenhouse gases 80 percent by 2050.
The Sierra Club has always believed that green equals green; that a good environment equals a good economy. We can move on both fronts if everyone plays a role. Individuals can recycle, turn off the lights, walk instead of drive, and buy local produce.
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Lawmakers can enact green building codes and appliance standards, address leakage and decoupling, and encourage renewable energy programs and energy efficiency. The business community must invest in new technologies and develop greener products.
So let’s get started. Investing $3 billion in efficiency and renewable energy programs over the next three years could generate 150,000 jobs in New Jersey. Every dollar invested to make a home more efficient saves $4 in the long run. Businesses will save even more. For every $1 spent on office or industrial buildings, $16 can be saved in energy costs, if you combine heat, power and cogeneration. These technologies, combined with energy storage and a smart grid, will put us on a sustainable path.
We stand at the cusp of a technological revolution. With photovoltaic solar, wave, wind, and micro hydro technologies, we can produce more than 30 percent of our electrical energy. We can turn landfills into energy plants, use methane from sewer plants to generate electricity, cover sound barriers and light poles with solar panels and develop community solar programs in towns. Offshore wind, especially combined with wave technology, could produce even more electricity.
These technologies, combined with energy storage systems, smart grid technology and net metering, will put us on the path to a sustainable energy future.
We have to think outside the box. With these tools, we can produce clean renewable power while creating thousand of jobs here in New Jersey.
Now is the time. We have a President and Congress that are going in the right direction. Governors across the county are leading on these issues. There is support from labor, industry and the business community. Instead of a perfect storm, we may have the perfect opportunity.
What’s your view? Please let us know at Opinion@PSEG.com.
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