How a ‘Climate Emergency’ Could Harness Wartime Powers

This week: climate change is certainly the most urgent issue we face. But should it be formally declared an emergency?  There’s a real conversation over the label in the US -- and it could have a very real impact on what the president can do. This has been a growing priority for environmental groups. Grist reported that in December, more than 380 of them sent a letter to Joe Biden’s transition team, urging him to issue an executive order mobilizing the National Emergencies Act.  And now, Rep. Earl Blumenauer and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in the House and Sen. Bernie Sanders in the Senate among others just introduced The National Climate Emergency Act of 2021,  Then: what could be the counter-impact? Changes across the energy economy are set to accelerate. If we don’t do it correctly, are we facing a “Yellow Vest” protest movement like we saw recently in France? And last: a new study shows that some cities are grossly under-reporting their carbon emissions. Do cities even have the resources to measure them properly?    Resources:Grist: AOC, Sanders, and Blumenauer press Biden to declare a ‘climate emergency’Vice: AOC and Bernie Are Teaming Up to Get Biden to Declare Climate Change a National EmergencyVox: “We risk a yellow vest movement”: Why the US clean energy transition must be equitableNew York Times: U.S. Cities Are Vastly Undercounting Emissions, Researchers FindThanks to our sponsors: The Energy Gang is brought to you by Wärtsilä Energy. Wärtsilä is leading the energy transition with the Atlas of 100% Renewable Energy. Stick with us at the end of the show to hear how this tool is helping us understand how to best spend stimulus dollars on the clean-energy transition.  This podcast is brought to you by Sungrow, a leading provider of PV inverter solutions around the world. Sungrow has delivered more than 10 gigawatts of inverters to the Americas alone — and 120 gigawatts in total across the globe. Learn more about Sungrow’s cutting-edge solar projects. This podcast is also brought to you by CPower. CPower’s latest book, "Demand-Side Energy Management in the Time of COVID," takes a peek into eight of the biggest commercial industries in North America and reveals key energy management strategies successful organizations executed during the wildest year of the young century. Download it here.