G.K.BUTTERFIELD & IVAN URLAUB: North Carolina's secret weapon in the climate crisis

EDITOR’S NOTE: G.K. Butterfield represented North Carolina’s first congressional district for 18 years, retiring in 2022. He was a senior member of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce and chair of the Congressional Black Caucus. Ivan Urlaub was executive director of the N.C. Sustainable Energy Association for 14 years.

A little-known EPA program could accelerate North Carolina’s clean energy future. But time is running out.

Business leader Bob Keefe declared recently that our state “is at the forefront of the next economic transition: the clean energy boom,” pointing out that the Environmental Protection Agency is preparing to require power companies to cut greenhouse gas emissions and automakers to make cars that meet new emissions standards.

These EPA rules — the “sticks” — will accelerate North Carolina’s transition to a clean energy and clean transportation future. But ensuring this transition creates an economic boom will require powerful incentives — the “carrots” — to be implemented, too.

And the clock is ticking.

That’s why last week we launched Supercharge America, a bipartisan organization calling for fast action to make sure we don’t miss out on climate wins in 2024.

The EPA’s plans to cut greenhouse gas emissions from power companies and cars are historic, but those plans can work even faster if the agency also creates incentives to enable a new, clean-energy ecosystem to flourish.

That’s where a little-known EPA program comes in — one that could be a powerful tool for boosting North Carolina’s economy and fighting climate change.

Over a year ago, EPA head and North Carolinian Michael Regan proposed an innovative idea to update the Renewable Fuel Standard program (which was created to encourage the production of alternative fuels for vehicles) to allow clean electricity to be considered a “renewable fuel” for electric vehicles.

Why is this important? Because updating the EPA program would support electric vehicle sales and create a new incentive to make sure those vehicles are powered by clean sources.

Here’s how:

First, the program would boost electric vehicle manufacturing. Research from Harvard University indicates automakers must nearly double investments in electric vehicle production to meet the ambitious goals to be set in the EPA’s new vehicle emissions standards.

With new support, carmakers would be able to increase electric vehicle production and sell them at prices meeting or beating the prices of gasoline cars. The EPA program would also allow the carmakers to assure electric vehicle drivers that when they plug in their cars, they are powered by clean sources.

This could be huge for North Carolina. Already an electric vehicle investment hotspot, more electric vehicle manufacturing would mean more jobs as the state becomes a premier destination for the transition to clean transportation.

Second, if the EPA makes the updates to the Renewable Fuel Standard, it would also spur a surge in clean electricity investments. Businesses and towns that turn organic waste into electricity — and sell it for use in electric vehicles under the Renewable Fuel Standard — would be rewarded. This would create new revenue for these businesses in North Carolina.

The climate impacts can’t be overstated. Estimates show that including clean electricity for electric vehicles in the Renewable Fuel Standard could reduce the emissions equivalent of taking 117 million cars off the road. And it could help produce more than enough clean energy for every single electric vehicle in America for years.

What’s the holdup?

Washington is distracted. The focus has been on the “sticks” more than the “carrots.” Meanwhile the EPA chief’s clean electricity for electric vehicles proposal has gotten comparably little attention. Both carrots and sticks are needed to create the clean energy boom that America needs.

What’s more, there’s rare bipartisan unity here. Polling released by Supercharge America last week finds that nearly 60% of North Carolinians would support this update to the Renewable Fuel Standard, including nearly 80% of Democrats.

As Washington gets consumed by election-year politics, this bipartisan opportunity could slip through our fingers. We have to act fast.

While we applaud the EPA for pushing companies to fight climate change, the agency should also revive the innovative Renewable Fuel Standard proposal to make its climate-fighting plans work even faster. It would boost manufacturing, make electric vehicles more affordable and create clean electricity to supercharge North Carolina.

It’s time. The climate clock is ticking.

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