The Virginia Air Pollution Control Board, acting not with discretion but on orders from the General Assembly, voted December 2 to adopt Advanced Clean Cars Program regulations that delegate ultimate control to the California Air Resources Board. Virginia will simply follow Sacramento’s lead in dictating an ever-increasing percentage of new car sales be certified as low emission or zero emission by the CARB.
California regulators voted on Thursday to ban the sale of new gas-powered leaf blowers and lawn mowers starting in 2024 and portable generators by 2028, the latest step in the state’s aggressive effort to reduce harmful pollutants and transition toward a carbon-free economy.
Gov. Charlie Baker has pulled the plug on a regional climate initiative that would have capped tailpipe emissions and was projected to hike gas prices at a time of record inflation, admitting the multi state-deal is “no longer the best solution.”
Virginia should not abandon the current structure entirely. The pure competitive supplier model has plenty of downsides (See Texas). It is only attractive to so many in Virginians at this time because Dominion Energy Virginia has corrupted the market to unfairly enrich its stockholders. If all these other steps are taken and electricity costs in Virginia stabilize, the desire to bolt from the monopoly service will wane.
A lawsuit filed Tuesday in Charlotte County Circuit Court could derail plans to build a mega-utility solar array on more than 21,000 acres in Charlotte County near the border with Halifax and Mecklenburg counties.
“If I'd have done something like this to somebody else's property, then probably Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) and Louisa County would have me in jail or fine me,” Marks added. "This big company comes in and you can tear up creation and nobody does anything about it."
When Richmond City Council indicates an intention to eliminate the Richmond Gas Works, as it did with a resolution on Sept. 13, that decision does not stop at the city line. Tens of thousands of Henrico and Chesterfield residents and businesses also are served by and depend on that municipal public service utility.
Benchmark U.S. natural-gas prices edged above $5 per million British thermal units this month, near their highest since 2014, but they are fairly tame compared with levels in Europe and Asia. The inventory situation seems less dire at home too as underground natural-gas storage grows. The problem is that seasonal stockpiling isn’t happening quickly enough, with inventories 7.1% below their five-year average and less margin for error.
The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted just how vulnerable America’s economic security and growth are to systemic risks. Now, as we look to lead our nation into a greener era, we must not lose sight of the fact that this energy future must be affordable and inclusive to all Americans.
Technology giant Amazon has announced it is partnering with Arlington County to purchase the energy from the Pittsylvania County solar project which is being named Amazon Arlington Solar Farm Virginia... Formerly called the Maplewood Solar Project, the solar farm is being developed by Dominion Energy. Construction began last year, and the project has an expected completion date in 2022.