Roadblocks to decarbonizing the energy grid slow progress to climate change goals

Greenhouse gas emissions are on the decline in the U.S. and in North Carolina, but many climate scientists say those cuts aren’t happening fast enough.

North Carolina’s greenhouse gas inventory, released this year, shows a downward trend in the state over the past two decades.

Emissions fell by nearly 12% from 2019 to 2020, in part because of natural gas and renewable energy replacing coal in the state’s energy mix.

Dr. Melissa Lott, a climate researcher at Columbia University, says the U.S. could reach net zero with the technology that's already been developed.

“Technology isn’t the issue," Lott said. "It's the non-technical barriers that are holding us back."

Lott says infrastructure improvements are one of the major challenges to getting renewable energy sources on the grid.

"We need to invest in transmission, the really big wires that go from power plants to communities and also the small wires that take electricity to our homes," Lott said. "But that's not a technical problem. We know how to solve that. We just have to make the choice to do it."

Lott also said workforce and supply chain issues present hurdles to deployment, as well as geopolitics - the "not in my backyard" mentality.

Erin Baker with the University of Massachusetts says administrative hurdles are slowing the development of offshore wind, including long timelines for permits.

"Offshore wind has immense value in the fight against climate change and the government can help by setting goals, by providing green bonds, and by working to streamline all the regulatory processes that need to be done," Baker said.

A state-mandated climate goal aims to reduce emissions in the energy sector by 70% by 2030, but Duke Energy’s most recent carbon plan aims to push that deadline to 2035 or later.