Accelerating Decarbonization in the United States Technology, Policy, and Societal Dimensions (2024) / Chapter Skim
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2 Energy Justice and Equity
2 Energy Justice and Equity
Pages 87-144
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From page 87... ...
The transition to a net-zero-carbon future offers multiple socioeconomic benefits, including improved public health and energy affordability, but action is needed to en sure energy justice can be advanced. This requires disadvantaged communities, local governments, and community-based organizations to be engaged in defining where, when, and how to prioritize federal and state resources during the energy transition.
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From page 88... ...
It reviews existing energy in equities in several areas, including energy affordability and accessibility to low-carbon technologies, and discusses how energy policies and programs can be developed to redress inequities and avoid creating new ones. The chapter then assesses recent fed eral actions that can support a just energy transition and equitable implementation of decarbonization actions.
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through the incorporation of recognitional, procedural, and distributional equity into energy design, owner ship, governance, and implementation. Energy transition -- efforts by jurisdictions to transform or develop their energy sector away from fossil fuels (Bozeman et al.
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. Figure 2-1 shows how the just transition movement has evolved beyond its origins in concerns with impacts on workers to encompass a broader array of principles for just and equitable change.1 The contemporary environmental justice movement can be traced to the 1980s.
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. The concept of "climate pollution" bridges conversations focused on environmental justice issues and those focused on climate mitigation by relying on the broadly held concerns about the effects of multiple sources of "pollution" on individuals' health (Méndez 2020; Yoder 2022)
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. Like the environmental justice movement, this movement advocates for affected communities to have access to climate change mitigation decision-making to ensure that policy efforts address disproportionate climate harms.
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The committee defines a "just energy transition" as the process of transforming the en ergy system by ensuring that all communities, workers, and social groups are included in the processes toward and outcomes of the net-zero future through the incorpora tion of the principles of energy justice. Incorporating energy justice principles in the energy transition will provide the nation an opportunity to prioritize human-centered approaches in energy system design and policymaking so that the costs and benefits of energy services are distributed fairly (Tarekegne et al.
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ENERGY INEQUITIES: HISTORICAL AND RECENT TRENDS Some aspects of the energy transition could aggravate, rather than address, energy inequities if decarbonization actions are not intentionally focused on equity and jus tice (Carley et al. 2018b; Romero-Lankao et al.
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This section analyzes four historical and recent trends in energy-relevant inequities: energy affordability; accessibility, acceptability, and adoption; public health and community resilience; and jobs and workforce development. Energy Affordability The current energy system has led to disparities in energy affordability, the ability to afford one's energy bills, with disadvantaged communities experiencing most of the negative costs.
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. Households within disadvantaged communities in the United States often spend a larger fraction of their household income on utilities for heating, cooling, and other home energy services than the general population (Drehobl and Ross 2016; Drehobl et al.
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The benefits of the energy transition to date have not always been equally distrib uted. The energy burdens of inefficient appliances, homes, and vehicles persist in low-income populations and for households of color.
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Accessibility, Acceptability, and Adoption Disadvantaged communities are often economically excluded from, reluctant to adopt, or unaware of opportunities to install low-carbon technologies. This might be owing to fear of hidden costs, program limitations, lack of trust in government, inadequate outreach and information, insufficient capacity, and inequitable and predatory financing (Madrid 2017; Méndez et al.
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. Furthermore, the legacies of past discriminatory practices often prevent disadvantaged communities from reaping the rewards of tree shade, open space, good-quality housing, energy-efficient building envelopes, and cleaner air (Church et al.
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. On the other hand, adaptation to heat with air conditioning requires more energy and if that energy continues to be generated with fossil fuels, this runs the risk of perpetuating adverse health impacts from air pollution from fossil fuel combustion.
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Across all four dimensions examined in the previous section -- energy affordability; acces sibility, acceptability, and adoption; public health and community resilience; and jobs and workforce development -- disadvantaged communities would benefit most from actions 7 See Chapter 4 for more about the impacts the transition will have on workforce and Chapter 12 for the impacts the transition will have on the on the fossil fuel industry. 101 A00026 -- Accelerating Decarbonization in the United States_CH02.indd 101 3/30/24 2:14 PM
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Future decarbonization programs that prioritize engagement from communities most impacted by the cur rent energy system and provide multifaceted, long-term solutions and benefits help address all three tenets of energy justice. Stakeholder's Environmental Justice Concerns Several environmental justice and energy justice organizations have raised con cerns about aspects of recent decarbonization policies and their impacts on the environment and on disadvantaged communities.
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ensure participation of people of and reducing energy burdens for color and individuals from under-served disadvantaged communities. communities in jobs in the growing • Develop training, financing, and clean energy economy.
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117-169) fail to fully address the fact that disadvantaged communities face disproportionate impacts from the fossil fuel industry.
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Additionally, CCS technologies also pose the risk of displacing an alternative technology that produces no emissions, such as power generation from solar or wind. Environmental justice groups have expressed concerns about the potential of CCS technologies and infrastructure, including direct air capture, to perpetuate harms to disadvantaged communities (e.g., see Amsalem and Bogdan Tejeda 2022; Chemnick 2023; Climate Justice Alliance 2023; Natter 2023)
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For more information about the IIJA and IRA, see the section "Assessment of Recent Federal Actions." Furthermore, environmental justice groups are wary that federal agencies may be slow to identify disadvantaged communities' priorities and needs, which will slow the de livery of equitable benefits (Walls 2022)
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By going beyond a narrow focus on GHG emissions mitigation to include quality jobs, public health, and environmental justice, these efforts open unique opportunities to leverage synergies and intersections between the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations9 and the advancement of U.S. climate ambitions.
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: • National Climate Task Force to "facilitate planning and implementation of key Federal actions to reduce climate pollution; increase resilience to the impacts of climate change; protect public health; conserve our lands, water, oceans, and biodiversity; deliver environmental justice; and spur well-paying union jobs and economic growth." • Interagency Working Group on Coal and Power Plant Communities and Economic Revitalization to "coordinate the identification and delivery of Federal resources to revitalize the economies of coal, oil and gas, and power plant communities." • White House Environmental Justice Interagency Council to "develop clear perfor mance metrics to ensure accountability and publish an annual public perfor mance scorecard on its implementation." • White House Environmental Justice Advisory Council (WHEJAC) to provide rec ommendations to the White House Environmental Justice Interagency Council "on how to increase the Federal Government's efforts to address current and historic environmental injustice." 10 Within the language of the EO, the term "underserved communities" refers to populations sharing a particular characteristic, as well as geographic communities, that have been systematically denied a full opportunity to participate in aspects of economic, social, and civic life.
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To fill the gap, EO 14091 requires federal agencies to submit annual Equity Action Plans12 enumerating 11 As part of EO 14008, OMB was directed to publish an annual Environmental Justice Scorecard (EJ Scorecard)
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. The order attempts to establish a government-wide approach to environmental justice by requiring federal agencies to: • Identify and address disproportionate, adverse health and environmental effects of federal activities, including the cumulative impacts of burdens on communities; • Identify and address barriers that impair the ability of communities to receive equitable access to benefits, including those related to climate mitigation and resilience; • Consider adopting or requiring measures to avoid or mitigate adverse envi ronmental and health effects of federal activities on communities; and • Provide opportunities for community engagement, including by fully consid ering input provided during decision-making processes and providing techni cal assistance.
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The codification of a durable pro gram allows for the outcome of the program to be evaluated and modified to better meet the target. Finding 2-2: EO 14008 presents an innovative approach to addressing environ mental justice concerns by requiring that 40 percent of the benefits from covered programs go to disadvantaged communities.
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. It is estimated that $240 billion of the total appropriations will address environmental justice priorities (White House 2021)
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. The IRA directs nearly $400 billion in appro priations and authorizations to clean energy, including to reduce carbon emissions and support environmental justice objectives (Elliot et al.
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However, the mul tiplicity of non-compatible definitions, including the one used for the Climate and Economic Justice Screening Tool, makes it difficult to accurately measure 14 As of March 2023, CEQ's Climate and Economic Justice Screening Tool Version 1.0 is one of more than 30 environmental justice screening tools across federal, state, and local agencies (Dean and Esling 2023)
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Recommendation 2-2: Develop a Federal Baseline Set of Metrics for Disadvan taged Communities for Program Design and Evaluation. To enable consistent program design and evaluation, the White House Council on Environmental Quality should develop a standardized set of core metrics for programs serv ing disadvantaged communities to be used in all federal activities, to the extent feasible under statutes governing each agency.
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However, some provisions, such as those for offshore drill ing and carbon capture and storage, do not align with environmental justice goals, including undermining climate mitigation goals and creating or continuing pollution that threatens public health and quality of life for disadvantaged communities. Recommendation 2-3: Implement Federal Legislation for Equitable Outcomes.
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To support all decarbonization action, human and fiscal capital must be available. In its first report, the committee recommended that Congress support actions to overcome barriers created by a lack of capacity-building including funding research to support the regional coordination of the transition; establishing equitable energy transition offices in each state; and funding community block grants for local decarbonization planning (NASEM 2021)
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Drawing lessons and best practices from existing programs and adapting them to different state and regional contexts could prove beneficial for the nation's energy transition. For example, California's Transformative Climate Communities Program (TCC)
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Funded by the state's Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, TCC is directed by California Assembly Bill 2722 to make at least 35 percent of climate change investments in the state's disadvantaged communities, low-income communities, and low-income households (A.B.
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. TCC offers a blueprint for climate investments that help redress historic injus tices through stakeholder and community decision-makinga in all aspects of the program design and implementation "to ensure grant funds provide direct, meaningful, and assured benefits to disadvantaged communities" (SGC 2023, p.
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, and HUD. As part of the Federal Interagency Thriving Communities Network, the joint EPA-DOE Environmental Justice Thriving Communities Technical Assistance Center (TCTAC)
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. At the time of this writing, some of the nation's biggest funders have not committed to being transparent about the percent of their dollars going 16 Followingthe release of the committee's first report, the House Committee on Natural Resources held an oversight hearing to discuss how to provide communities targeted by the environmental justice movement with a voice to speak out against and support federal policies (Committee on Natural Resources 2022)
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. The current federal policy encourages regional and local planning that integrates energy into community based and holistic approaches to address climate resilience, environmental justice, and economic opportunity in disadvantaged communities.
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To enable a lasting and effective commitment to community-led solutions to energy transitions, Congress should: a. Authorize a National Transition Corporation (NTC)
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Further more, the White House Environmental Justice Advisory Committee should review and advise these guidelines to ensure that they adhere to an equity framework. Evaluation of the Just Energy Transition The data collection of relevant metrics, evaluation of outcomes and progress, and communication of results are critical components of any effective policy action, especially when a new policy is first implemented.
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There is a need to assess if energy transition actions are resulting in equitable and just outcomes for the nation, especially for disadvantaged communities. All principles of energy justice need to be operationalized in evaluation with a twofold goal of (1)
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transition, the collection of data on the equity impacts of investments and the equity outcomes of programs is still needed because there are multiple screening tools to locate disadvantaged com munities for targeted energy equity programs. Box 2-4 describes CEQ's Climate and Economic Justice Screening, which identifies disadvantaged communities and will be used for the implementation of Justice40 covered programs, as an example of the iterative process of identifying target population identification metrics.
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SOURCE: Data from Climate and Economic Justice Screening Tool. 128 A00026 -- Accelerating Decarbonization in the United States_CH02.indd 128 3/30/24 2:14 PM
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. How ever, an addendum to the 2021 memo encouraged federal agencies to use CEJST Version 1.0 to identify disadvantaged communities for Justice40 covered programs and other federal programs where resources are directed to disadvantaged communities (Young et al.
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19 In July 2023, DOE introduced its new Office of Energy Justice Policy and Analysis (OEJPA) , which will collaborate with members of minority and disadvantaged communities to "achieve equity-centered Federal energy policy, research and development, and demonstration and deployment activities" (DOE n.d.)
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The analysis of both qualitative and quantitative data through participatory workshops, focus groups, and other elicitation techniques including the engagement of community stake holders in their development, is critical to creating a comprehensive understand ing of the implementation and outcomes of climate mitigation programs, and to redressing any failings of federal programs. Recommendation 2-6: Evaluate the Equity Impacts of the Just Energy Transition.
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Additionally, energy justice principles need to be incorporated into policymaking to achieve top-down integra tion and implementation. Laying these foundations now through baseline definitions, equitable implementation, and capacity building is critical to ensuring a just energy transition.
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Objective(s) Categories Short-Form Implementing Addressed by Addressed by Addressed by Recommendation Recommendation Recommendation Recommendation Recommendation 2-1: Codify the Congress • Electricity • Equity Rigorous and Justice40 Initiative • Buildings • Health Transparent • Land use • Employment Analysis and • Transportation Reporting • Industry Ensuring Equity, • Finance Justice, Health, • Fossil fuels and Fairness of Impacts 2-2: Develop a Council on • Electricity • Equity Rigorous and Federal Baseline Environmental • Buildings Transparent Set of Metrics for Quality • Land use Analysis and Disadvantaged • Transportation Reporting Communities for • Industry Ensuring Equity, Program Design • Finance Justice, Health, and Evaluation • Fossil fuels and Fairness of • Non-federal Impacts actors 2-3: Implement Federal policy • Electricity • Public Rigorous and Federal Legislation makers • Buildings engagement Transparent for Equitable • Land use • GHG reductions Analysis and Outcomes • Transportation • Equity Reporting • Industry Ensuring Equity, • Finance Justice, Health, • Fossil fuels and Fairness of • Non-federal Impacts actors Ensuring Procedural Equity in Planning and Siting New Infrastructure and Programs aThe text in this table was changed during editorial review to improve clarity and alignment with information in other sections of the report.
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Objective(s) Categories Short-Form Implementing Addressed by Addressed by Addressed by Recommendation Recommendation Recommendation Recommendation Recommendation 2-4: Build Multi- Congress, National • Non-federal • GHG reductions Ensuring Level Capacity Transition actors • Equity Procedural Equity to Support Corporation, • Health in Planning Community-Led Environmental • Employment and Siting New Transitions Protection Agency, • Public Infrastructure and Department of engagement Programs Energy, state Ensuring Equity, legislatures Justice, Health, and Fairness of Impacts Building the Needed Workforce and Capacity 2-5: Develop Federal • Electricity • Equity Ensuring Equitable Interagency • Buildings • Public Procedural Equity Technical Thriving • Land use engagement in Planning Assistance Communities • Transportation and Siting New Guidelines Network, • Industry Infrastructure and White House • Finance Programs Environmental • Fossil fuels Ensuring Equity, Justice Advisory • Non-federal Justice, Health, Committee actors and Fairness of (WHEJAC)
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From page 135... ...
2022. "Opening Remarks." Presented at Accelerating Decarbonization in the United States: Technology, Policy, and Societal Dimensions: Implementing a Just and Equitable Energy Transition -- Philanthropic Perspectives.
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2020. "The Justice and Equity Implications of the Clean Energy Transition." Nature Energy 5(8)
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2022. "Opening Remarks." Presented at Accelerating Decarbonization in the United States: Technology, Policy, and Societal Dimensions: Implementing a Just and Equitable Energy Transition -- Philanthropic Perspectives.
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EJLF (Environmental Justice Leadership Forum)
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2023. "The Environmental Justice Thriving Communities Technical Assistance Centers Program." https://www.epa.
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2022. "Panel Discussion." Presented at Accelerating Decarbonization in the United States: Technology, Pol icy, and Societal Dimensions: Implementing a Just and Equitable Energy Transition -- Nonprofit Perspectives.
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2019. "Distributed Solar and Environmental Justice: Exploring the Demographic and Socio-Economic Trends of Residential PV Adoption in California." Energy Policy 134:110935.
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2023. "Why the White House's Environmental Justice Tool Is Still Disappointing Advocates." Grist.
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2014. "From Environmental to Climate Justice: Climate Change and the Discourse of Environmental Justice." WIREs Climate Change 5(3)
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2022. "We Act for Environmental Justice Responds to Inflation Reduction Act of 2022." https://www.weact.org/2022/07/we-act-for-environmental-justice-responds-to-inflation-reduction-act-of-2022.
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