EDITOR'S NOTE: Jay Richardson is the General Manager at New Belgium Brewing in Asheville.

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This fall, Gov. Roy Cooper issued an important executive order to reduce carbon emissions and grow North Carolina’s clean energy economy. As one of North Carolina’s 257 craft brewers, New Belgium Brewing supports the governor’s action to address climate change because we know that climate change poses a direct threat to beer, to business, and to our entire state.

North Carolina’s craft breweries employ 4,160 people and are responsible for $2.2 billion in economic activity for the state. We need healthy rivers, clean water, and stable barley and hop supplies to craft our beer, and we are already witnessing firsthand the impacts of climate change on our supply chain. The flooding and devastation that North Carolinians experienced as a result of the recent hurricanes are a prime example.

Extreme weather events like these along with drought and erratic temperatures harm farmers. This in turn threatens the quality, affordability, and availability of brewing materials such as barley, hops and citrus fruit. These weather events are only expected to increase in frequency and severity if we do not act quickly to reduce emissions from our transportation and electricity systems.

Cooper’s executive order sets a positive example and a strong precedent for protecting North Carolina’s environment while growing the economy. By setting targets to reduce statewide greenhouse emissions 40 percent by 2025 and increase the number of registered zero-emission vehicles to at least 80,000 by 2025, North Carolina can take necessary steps required to transition to a low-carbon economy. The governor has also directed state agencies to reduce energy consumption in state-owned buildings by 40 percent by 2025, ensuring that tax dollars go further and that our public buildings are better prepared for more intense storms.

Climate protection efforts at this scale require strong commitments from both public and private entities. While we’re celebrating Cooper’s efforts, New Belgium is also working diligently to reduce our own emissions. Our goal is aggressively set to achieve carbon neutral operations by 2050.  Solar panels cover the roof of our packaging hall in Colorado and our tasting room in Asheville, and we’ve invested heavily in energy efficient equipment throughout our breweries.  Thankfully — and proudly — several of our craft brewery peers are taking similar actions.

These commitments and actions are merely a starting point when it comes to our collective ability to tackle climate change. We need leadership and collaboration across all sectors and from our elected officials. We need strong policies in place to make our communities more resilient in the face of natural disasters and to grow our clean energy economy so that we are able to mitigate the impacts of climate change.

The governor also used the executive order to underscore the importance of supporting corporate renewable energy investments. Dozens of our peers in North Carolina have committed to powering their operations with more renewable energy and have not been able to fully realize their commitments due to policy barriers. Access to third-party renewable energy sales and more competitively-priced utility renewable energy programs could allow more companies to invest in renewable energy locally and ensure North Carolina does not miss out on new investment opportunities.

We encourage state lawmakers and regulators to heed the goals and initiatives that Cooper laid out in his executive order. Strong policies and programs will spur new investments and accelerate the state’s transition to a clean energy economy. We look forward to working with the governor and the North Carolina business community to make this vision a reality. It is critical for North Carolina’s economic success.

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Capitol Broadcasting is owner of Bull Durham Beer Co., ln the Durham Bulls Athletic Park in Durham, N.C. as well as founder of a brewery incubator at Rocky Mount Mills in Rocky Mount, N.C.