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The North Carolina Carbon Plan

August 11, 2022 By Ren Martin, Eco-Justice Connection Program Coordinator

In the past few months, for better or for worse, the climate crisis has come to the forefront of the conversation. The Senate recently passed the Inflation Reduction Act, which […]

The North Carolina Carbon Plan

August 11, 2022 by Ren Martin, Eco-Justice Connection Program Coordinator

In the past few months, for better or for worse, the climate crisis has come to the forefront of the conversation. The Senate recently passed the Inflation Reduction Act, which could potentially have major impacts on national policy and funding around climate resiliency. Additionally, the West Virginia v EPA United State Supreme Court decision was released just last month, stripping away needed regulations to limit pollution and protect public health. 

There is also a particular environmental policy discussion closer to home that could significantly affect our ability to regulate pollution. Here in North Carolina, we are in the midst of yet another momentous decision on climate: the N.C. carbon plan. Last year, North Carolina passed a historic piece of legislation that seeks to respond to climate change by reducing carbon emissions. This energy bill, known as HB 951, calls for carbon emissions to be reduced by seventy percent by 2030, and to net zero emissions by 2050.

Duke Energy, the energy provider for our state, has been given free rein by the utility commission to write the first iteration of potential plans. In preparation for creating the final version of the carbon plan, four public hearings have been held to gather community testimony and opinion. During these meetings, the commission overwhelmingly received public testimony in favor of a more robust carbon plan. Several environmental nonprofits–including members of our very own Eco-Justice Connection (EJC) program–were present to give testimony. 

Although many have spoken out at the hearings, there is still more public outreach work and engagement that needs to be done. This is one of many reasons why the North Carolina Council of Churches has become an official intervener in this planning process. Through our collective voice, we aim to have the utility commission incorporate community input with low-income ratepayers, focus on investments in renewables and energy security, and decrease energy burden. As a commitment to community engagement, our staff has been present during each hearing to listen to the voices of North Carolinians. Environmental organizations across the state not only participated in the hearings but have been driven to action. Right before the last in-person hearing in Charlotte, our EJC staff worked in collaboration with other nonprofits to organize a rally, where Ren Martin spoke during the press conference. Multiple environmental organizations have also come together to form collaboratives intended to provide the public with information on the carbon plan, and why Duke Energy’s plan is lacking.

In short, we are at a pivotal moment in history. If the utility commission were to create an ambitious carbon plan, North Carolina could be at the forefront of clean energy in the United States and set a standard that other states could follow. However, Duke Energy’s proposed plans leave much to be desired. Their plan contains no mention of environmental justice nor the real costs that climate change has had on our most vulnerable community members. This cannot stand. Corporations who benefit from the current status quo must not be allowed to control the narrative around climate progress, for the consequences of our inaction grow larger day by day. As the deadlines for major environmental decisions loom before us, we must come together as people of faith to lift up the voices of those most impacted by the climate crisis. 

Come this December, the utility commission is expected to vote on a finalized version of the carbon plan. There are still actions you can take to have your voice heard! Although the in-person hearings are over, on August 23rd there will be two virtual hearings. If you wish to testify, you should register before 5 p.m. on August 16, by emailing the Commission at ncucpublichearing@ncuc.net or by calling 919-733-0837. Learn more about how to attend this hearing by clicking here. If you cannot attend the hearing or you wish to participate in another way, written comments can also be submitted at the NCUC website.

If you would like to advocate and learn more about the Carbon Plan, check out the resources below:

  • 12 Principles for a North Carolina Carbon Plan in the Public Interest
  • Duke Energy’s Report Card
  • NC Council of Churches Intervener Comments
  • Public Witness Process Q & A
  • Duke’s Executive Summary
  • Analyzing the Ratepayer Impacts of Duke Energy’s Carbon Plan Proposal
  • The Charlotte Rally

Filed Under: Blog, Homepage Featured Tagged With: Climate, environment

Meet NCIPL Intern Daniel Perrin, Youth Leader

August 8, 2019 By Michelle Peedin, Program Coordinator, Partners in Health and Wholeness

Daniel Perrin has been interning with North Carolina Interfaith Power and Light this summer. He describes below what led him to this work and how he got connected to NCIPL. […]

Meet NCIPL Intern Daniel Perrin, Youth Leader

August 8, 2019 by Michelle Peedin, Program Coordinator, Partners in Health and Wholeness

Daniel Perrin has been interning with North Carolina Interfaith Power and Light this summer. He describes below what led him to this work and how he got connected to NCIPL.

I’m Daniel Perrin, and I am now, at last, a summer intern with North Carolina Interfaith Power and Light. From the time that I first started learning about this world, I cared about many things, but climate change always seemed to be the all-encompassing issue to me. As I  introduce myself to this community, I want to talk a little bit about myself and how I became involved with NCIPL.

To do that, let me start out with the basics. I am now a rising 9th grader and will be attending Carrboro High School in the fall. Three amazing years at Smith Middle School helped forge my interest in the environment and made it stand out among a crowded field of other issues pressing our world. I currently live in Chapel Hill with my family and my relationship with them has only furthered my interest in the environment. After all, environmental justice is one of the few issues that affect everyone, though no doubt some more than others. There is nothing to do but solve it! That is the only way to get past this and share the same world with every future generation.

In 2017, I was in 7th grade, the usual year for going through the Bar or Bat Mitzvah process for young people of Jewish faith. At my synagogue, Judea Reform Congregation in Durham, the tradition is for every person becoming a Bar or Bat Mitzvah to complete a social justice or Mitzvah project in accordance with your studies. The portion of the Torah that I chanted was B’reishit, the very first section. To give you a sense, B’reishit translates literally to “in the Beginning” and makes a very clear connection to the environment. This portion of the Torah talks about the earth being created and then passed on to Adam and Eve to care for it. To go along with this theme I tried to create an ambitious project centered around bridging religion and environmental action. Enter NCIPL.

The first part of my social justice project was to spearhead and help conduct an energy savings analysis of our synagogue and campus. We worked to coordinate it, and soon thereafter a volunteer auditor from NCIPL — little did I know in a short amount of time, I would be a volunteer with NCIPL — came to our synagogue. That day, we walked around the campus for more than an hour and were led by the auditor, a retired electrical engineer, who taught us ways to reduce our carbon footprint with low or no-cost solutions. What resulted? 11 pages of real, tangible solutions to help our synagogue and help our world.

This project experience introduced me to NCIPL and they stayed on my mind as we coordinated the next part of the project: installing a solar panel at the synagogue to power the Ner Tamid or Eternal Light. The Eternal Light is a symbol of God’s presence that illuminates the sanctuary. On February 19, 2019, a 50-watt photovoltaic solar panel was installed outside the synagogue as well as an AGM battery. The battery stores and supplies energy to the Eternal Light even during the night and several cloudy days in a row. I see powering the Eternal Light with solar energy as a great symbolic act for our community. It represents God’s presence as an eternal source of light. We finally finished that part of the project in February of this year. It was a long process that involved jumping through many hoops, but I learned a lot from the project. Overall, the work that I helped accomplish at my synagogue really struck me as momentous and important because the symbolism can be applied anywhere. I thought at the time, and I think even more now, that NCIPL’s work takes a unique angle to a crucial issue. In some ways, it’s a better angle, because it resonates with people now and emphasizes the personal affect climate change is having on people.

And now, here I am, writing this blog post as an intern with NCIPL, and I am looking forward to continuing this great work.

For more information about NCIPL’s Youth Leadership Initiative contact: michelle@ncchurches.org
For general inquries about NCIPL’s programs contact: programs@ncipl.org

Filed Under: Blog, Homepage Featured Tagged With: environment

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27 Horne St.
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(919) 828-6501
info@ncchurches.org

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