{"id":2011036,"date":"2023-08-24T16:15:02","date_gmt":"2023-08-24T20:15:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/consumer-watchdog-launches-campaign-exposing-duke-energy-esg-priorities-over-reliable-power-grid\/"},"modified":"2023-08-24T16:19:19","modified_gmt":"2023-08-24T20:19:19","slug":"consumer-watchdog-launches-campaign-exposing-duke-energy-esg-priorities-over-reliable-power-grid","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/consumer-watchdog-launches-campaign-exposing-duke-energy-esg-priorities-over-reliable-power-grid\/","title":{"rendered":"Consumer Watchdog exposes Duke Energy&#8217;s ESG priorities over reliable power grid in new campaign."},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">28<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fconsumer-watchdog-launches-campaign-exposing-duke-energy-esg-priorities-over-reliable-power-grid%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2011036&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div class=\"article-content\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Consumer Watchdog Exposes Duke\u200c Energy&#8217;s \u200dPriorities<\/h2>\n<p>A consumer\u200d watchdog\u200c unveiled\u200c a\u2064 new\u2062 campaign Thursday\u2064 to highlight one of the nation\u2019s largest energy provider\u2019s loyalties to Wall Street social, environmental and\u2062 governance \u200dstandards \u2064(ESG) over a safe and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/with-push-for-electric-vehicles-democrats-pursue-the-paris-hilton-strategy-on-energy\/\" title=\"With Push For Electric Vehicles, Democrats Pursue The Paris Hilton Strategy On Energy\">reliable power grid<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The new\u2063 campaign \u200bfrom Consumers\u2019 Research, \u200dan\u200d educational non-profit, is exposing the corporate activism through a\u200b series of\u200d digital\u200d and \u200bbillboard ads complete with a new website, <a href=\"https:\/\/rebukeduke.com\/\">RebukeDuke.com<\/a>, modeled after \u200bDuke Energy\u2019s own webpage.\u200d The group \u200calso opened\u200c the initiative with a letter calling on the North Carolina Utilities Commission to \u2063reject corporate rate increases to pay for far-left activism. \u200bThe company\u200c has <a href=\"https:\/\/p-cd.duke-energy.com\/-\/media\/pdfs\/our-company\/esg\/2022-impact-report.pdf?rev=3d15a7b22cea45e2a7e9a481bb445e00\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">pledged<\/a> \u200d $145 billion over the\u200b next decade to achieve \u2063\u201cnet-zero\u201d emissions\u200d power generation.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cAs the nation\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/americans-likely-to-be-tracked-for-co2-emissions-under-secs-new-climate-rule-consumers-research\/\" title=\"Americans Likely to Be Tracked for CO2 Emissions Under SEC\u2019s New Climate Rule: Consumers\u2019 Research\">oldest consumer protection organization<\/a>, Consumers\u2019 Research\u2019s purpose is to educate consumers\u200d on issues that impact \u2063them and amplify their voice in\u2063 the marketplace.\u2063 It \u2063is for \u200dthis reason that we implore the commission to put an\u200c end \u2064to the abuse of North\u2062 Carolina consumers by \u2064Duke Energy,\u201d wrote the watchdog Executive Director Will Hild. \u201cDuke\u2019s\u2063 operations\u200d have become a laundry list of expensive boondoggles and distractions.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Hild\u2019s laundry\u200b list of boondoggles outlined in the letter range from \u2064\u201cracist trainings and racial quotas\u201d to \u201ctargeting children with transgender propaganda,\u201d all paid for by \u201cnever-ending \u2064rate\u2064 increases.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen they aren\u2019t pushing double-digit rate increases onto customers, they\u200b are busy \u2064wasting their time and customers\u2019\u2062 money pushing political initiatives\u2062 (some\u200b targeting children) and massive pay increases for their\u2063 executive suite,\u201d Hild wrote.<\/p>\n<p>On Wednesday, the company struck an agreement with North Carolina officials that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wfae.org\/energy-environment\/2023-08-23\/nc-regulators-cut-duke-energy-rate-hike-for-eastern-nc-and-asheville\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">feature<\/a> rate increases\u2064 for residents \u2063across \u2063the state.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Hawaiian Nightmare<\/h2>\n<p>In Hawaii, the entire town of Lahaina was reduced to ash and rubble \u2062after hurricane\u200b winds are suspected to have brought down \u200bpower lines \u2062run by \u200bHawaiian Electric, sparking flames. The company now faces multiple lawsuits following\u2064 the\u200b fires that caused upwards of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2023\/08\/22\/moodys-hawaii-wildfires-caused-up-to-6-billion-in-economic-losses.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">$6 billion<\/a> in\u2063 damage. At \u200cleast one suit <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2023\/08\/14\/investing\/hawaiian-electric-maui-fires-lawsuit\/index.html#:~:text=The%20suit%20alleges%20that%20Hawaiian,a%20fire%20in%20those%20conditions.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">alleges<\/a> the\u2064 utility servicing 95 percent\u200b of residents failed to de-energize power lines ahead of high-risk conditions.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2023\/08\/12\/us\/west-maui-wildfires-risk.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&#038;referringSource=articleShare\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">According<\/a> to The New York Times, the Hawaiian Islands \u200chad been warned about the potential for \u2063apocalyptic\u2063 wildfires for years. A report from\u2064 2020 gave West\u2062 Maui, in \u2064particular, where\u2062 this month\u2019s fires\u2063 killed at least <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kitv.com\/news\/lahaina\/authorities-identify-8-more-people-killed-in-lahaina-fire-death-toll-remains-at-115\/article_8ee4374c-4164-11ee-8ecc-6303c07618a0.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">115<\/a> people, \u2063the highest likelihood\u2062 of wildfires breaking out.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat\u2019s more, the report said that West Maui had the county\u2019s second-highest rate of\u200d households \u2064without a\u200b vehicle \u2014 almost 7 percent \u2014 and the highest density\u2063 of multiunit housing in the county \u2014\u200d almost 40 percent,\u201d read \u200cThe Times. \u201cThe \u200breport identified 50 strategies for the county \u200dto take to \u2062lessen the impact of natural hazards. For example, one of them called \u2063for the \u2064county to \u2018establish an \u200balternative \u200croute to and from\u200b West Maui for use during disasters.&#8217;\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Despite the prophetic report, the world\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/consumer-watchdog-launches-campaign-exposing-duke-energy-esg-priorities-over-reliable-power-grid\/\" title=\"Consumer Watchdog exposes Duke Energy's ESG priorities over reliable power grid in new campaign.\">largest warning \u2064sirens\u2063 remained silent<\/a> as the\u200c blaze forced\u2064 residents to risk drowning in the Pacific as Lahaina burned.\u200b The Associated Press <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/hawaii-fires-timeline-maui-lahaina-road-block-c8522222f6de587bd14b2da0020c40e9\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">reported<\/a> Wednesday that\u2063 barricaded\u200b road closures also kept \u200dmany residents\u200b trapped\u2064 in the flames.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">\u2018Fire In Paradise\u2019<\/h2>\n<p>The same alleged \u200dmisconduct\u200b by a\u200d corporate utility giant is to blame for California\u2019s 2018 Camp Fire \u2064that \u200bultimately became the\u2064 subject of documentaries on both <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=5KNAl23NwME\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Netflix <\/a>and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=F3OX1PR2SCM\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Frontline PBS<\/a>. Each titled \u201cFire In Paradise,\u201d the \u2063pair of films chronicle the destruction of the entire town of Paradise from the\u2063 blaze that \u2062killed \u200b85 people.<\/p>\n<p>Investigators\u200b attributed the flames to faulty equipment\u200b run\u2062 by Pacific\u2063 Gas &#038; Electric (PG&#038;E), a San Francisco-based utility. In 2020, the company <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2020\/06\/16\/business\/energy-environment\/pge-camp-fire-california-wildfires.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">pled guilty <\/a>to \u200c84 counts of involuntary\u200c manslaughter and was \u200bforced to pay \u2062a $3.5 million fine\u2063 over the devastation.<\/p>\n<p>PG&#038;E has also pledged a \u200b <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pge.com\/en_US\/about-pge\/environment\/what-we-are-doing\/pge-climate-goals\/pge-climate-goals.page?WT.mc_id=Vanity_climate\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">commitment<\/a> to \u201cnet-zero\u201d emissions while the state also remains distracted from proper wildfire resilience efforts. In\u2064 2019, Democratic Gov. \u200cGavin Newsom <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2021\/09\/11\/how-much-is-gavin-newsom-to-blame-for-californias-wildfires\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">cut<\/a> \u2062 California\u2019s budget for wildfire prevention \u2062and resource management\u00a0by 40 percent.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A consumer watchdog launched a campaign exposing a major energy provider&#8217;s prioritization of Wall Street&#8217;s ESG standards over a secure power grid. Consumers&#8217; Research, an educational non-profit, aims to reveal the company&#8217;s corporate activism through digital and billboard ads.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":494,"featured_media":2011037,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[546],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2011036","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-federalist"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2011036","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/494"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2011036"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2011036\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2011037"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2011036"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2011036"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2011036"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}