{"id":2343803,"date":"2024-09-20T08:43:02","date_gmt":"2024-09-20T12:43:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/was-environmental-justice-needs-complicating-linkage-to-ca-quebec-carbon-market-washington-examiner\/"},"modified":"2024-09-20T08:45:47","modified_gmt":"2024-09-20T12:45:47","slug":"was-environmental-justice-needs-complicating-linkage-to-ca-quebec-carbon-market-washington-examiner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/was-environmental-justice-needs-complicating-linkage-to-ca-quebec-carbon-market-washington-examiner\/","title":{"rendered":"WA\u2019s \u2018environmental justice\u2019 needs complicating linkage to CA-Quebec carbon market &#8211; Washington Examiner"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">26<\/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%2Fwas-environmental-justice-needs-complicating-linkage-to-ca-quebec-carbon-market-washington-examiner%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=2343803&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--><p>The article discusses \u200bthe complexities surrounding Washington state&#8217;s\u200b efforts to link\u2062 its carbon market to established carbon markets in \u2063California \u2062and Quebec. The focus on &#8220;environmental justice&#8221; in\u200d Washington\u2019s Climate\u2062 Commitment Act (CCA) may hinder this linkage as it mandates that funds be allocated to communities affected\u2062 by environmental\u200c damages. This requirement is seen as potentially \u2062unwelcome by California and Quebec,\u2062 which have successfully collaborated for \u2064a decade in their carbon markets. The article highlights input from various stakeholders, including environmental advocates and\u2063 critics like \u2062Todd Myers, who argue that Washington\u2019s stringent rules regarding fund usage could complicate negotiations. Moreover, debates arise regarding the effectiveness \u2064of \u200dcertain environmental initiatives, such as installing electric vehicle charging\u2064 stations in\u2063 low-income areas where <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/colorado-offers-residents-6000-to-trade-in-gas-powered-vehicles\/\" title=\"Colorado pays residents ,000 to swap gas cars.\">electric vehicle \u2063ownership<\/a> is minimal. The piece underscores the ongoing community engagement by the Washington State Department of Ecology \u200dto address these issues, while raising questions about \u2062how definitions of &#8220;environmental justice&#8221;\u2064 influence policy and \u200coutcomes.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">WA&rsquo;s &lsquo;environmental justice&rsquo; needs complicating linkage to CA-Quebec carbon market<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_1765112\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>(The Center Square) &ndash; The Climate Commitment Act&rsquo;s focus on environmental justice may be complicating efforts to link Washington state&rsquo;s carbon market with the California-Quebec carbon market, a move supporters say will ensure the durability of the cap-and-trade program in the Evergreen State.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>California and&nbsp;Quebec have&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.edf.org\/media\/california-quebec-washington-take-joint-step-toward-linking-carbon-markets-scaling-climate\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>expressed interest<\/strong><\/a>&nbsp;in linking to Washington&rsquo;s carbon market.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Linking California&rsquo;s, Quebec&rsquo;s and Washington&rsquo;s carbon markets would enable deeper and faster cuts in climate pollution while creating a more stable, predictable market for all,&rdquo; said Katelyn Roedner Sutter, the Environmental Defense Fund&rsquo;s California director. &nbsp;&ldquo;Three major climate leaders joining forces would create a huge momentum boost for climate action.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>One factor complicating linkage efforts is the requirement that&nbsp;<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/ecology.wa.gov\/Air-Climate\/Climate-Commitment-Act\">CCA<\/a><\/strong>&nbsp;funding go to individuals from communities facing environmental harm or health impacts and the organizations serving those communities in what is termed &ldquo;environmental justice.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The Washington State Department of Ecology has been holding listening sessions and community meetings to seek public input on linkage.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Before we make a final decision, the CCA requires that we do an environmental justice assessment,&rdquo; &nbsp;Nikkia Harris, DOE&rsquo;s Climate Pollution Reduction Program rulemaking coordinator, explained at a July 22 listening session. &ldquo;The purpose of that is to identify a wide range of environmental justice impacts this action may have. This is required to occur in the early development stages of work and will help us make informed decisions to reduce environmental harms and to address environmental and health disparities.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Todd Myers, environmental director at the Washington Policy Center, isn&rsquo;t opposed to linkage but notes Washington&rsquo;s strict rules about how CCA dollars can be used may not be going over well in California and Qu&eacute;bec.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;There are some benefits to a larger market, and one of them is that cap-and-trade systems can be very volatile, and being part of a larger market smooths out that volatility, so prices aren&rsquo;t shooting up and down dramatically,&rdquo; he said.<\/p>\n<p>But California and Quebec have been linked for 10 years, and Myers suggested the two entities may not be inclined to bend to Washington&rsquo;s desires about how CCA money is spent. &nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;We don&rsquo;t get to set the rules, they do,&rdquo; Myers said. &ldquo;They are very unlikely to change their rules to accommodate Washington.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>He explained that whatever counts or doesn&rsquo;t count for ways to reduce carbon dioxide emissions means &ldquo;we just have to go along with that.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>That could be an impediment to linkage.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Washington wants to keep all of its special interest payments and preferences and doesn&rsquo;t want California and&nbsp;Quebec weakening that,&rdquo; said Myers, who also questioned what &ldquo;environmental justice&rdquo; really means when it comes to CCA-funded projects.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It really just means giving favored special interest groups more money and consideration, and the reason that California and&nbsp;Quebec might not go along with it is that every environmental justice idea proposed actually makes it harder to reduce CO2 emissions,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;It makes it more expensive and less effective.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>For example, Myers questioned the placement of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/white-house-pressures-gop-on-infrastructure\/\" title=\"White House Pressures GOP on Infrastructure\">electric vehicle charging stations<\/a> in low-income communities where there are few, if any, electric vehicles.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;In the case of improving air quality in low-income communities they argue there are too many gas- and diesel-powered vehicles, so we need more electric vehicle charging stations,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Spending taxpayer money on EV charging stations is incredibly wasteful already, but putting them in places where there are no electric vehicles makes no sense.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Caroline Halter, communications manager for DOE&rsquo;s Climate Pollution Reduction Program, emailed to respond to Myers&rsquo; criticism about <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/radio-host-gets-stranded-in-ev-late-at-night-says-it-exposes-the-problem-with-dems-green-agenda\/\" title=\"Radio host stranded in electric vehicle at night highlights issues with Democrats&#039; green agenda\">installing charging stations<\/a> in disadvantaged communities.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Charging infrastructure is part of what drives electric vehicle adoption, along with options for purchase at a variety of price points and purchasing incentives,&rdquo; she said.&nbsp; &ldquo;Combustion-engine vehicles emit greenhouse gases as well as criteria air pollutants, which are known to harm human health. Disadvantaged communities tend to be disproportionately impacted by this type of pollution, so increasing the prevalence of zero-emission vehicles is a part of advancing environmental justice.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Myers didn&rsquo;t buy it.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The argument that we need to put EV chargers in places where there are few EVs because that&rsquo;s where the problem is seems like looking for your keys where the light is good even if you didn&rsquo;t drop them there,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;For EV chargers to reduce air pollution, they need to be used.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>There will be more listening sessions and opportunities for impacted communities to&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/ecology.commentinput.com\/?id=dBVRthgWf&amp;utm_=&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_source=govdelivery\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>weigh in<\/strong><\/a>, before the DOE crafts a draft linkage proposal.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Ecology wants to hear from groups that currently benefit under Washington rules to see if we can maybe convince California to change its rules to be like ours,&rdquo; said Myers, adding Washington&rsquo;s projects are, in his opinion, more expensive and less effective.<\/p>\n<p>The elephant in the room is&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www2.sos.wa.gov\/_assets\/elections\/initiatives\/finaltext_3038.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>Initiative 2117<\/strong><\/a>, which prohibits state agencies from imposing any type of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/gop-pac-works-to-repeal-cap-and-trade-as-washington-state-leads-nation-in-gas-prices\/\" title=\"GOP PAC aims to repeal cap and trade as Washington tops nation in gas prices.\">carbon tax credit trading<\/a> and repeal legislation establishing a cap-and-trade program to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/buttigieg-becomes-the-first-millennial-confirmed-to-a-cabinet-position\/\" title=\"Buttigieg Becomes The First Millennial Confirmed To A Cabinet Position\">reduce greenhouse gas emissions<\/a>. Voters will decide I-2117 on Nov. 5.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/letsgowashington.com\/i-2117\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>I-2117<\/strong><\/a>&nbsp;seeks to repeal portions of the CCA which aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 95% by 2050.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Billions of dollars have already been collected, so they can spend that, but no money would be collected going forward,&rdquo; Myers said about what happens if I-2117 passes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_1765112\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"1765112\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Washington state&#8217;s emphasis on &#8220;environmental justice&#8221; under the Climate Commitment Act (CCA) may be hindering efforts to connect its carbon market with those of California and Quebec. Advocates argue that such a linkage would strengthen the cap-and-trade program in Washington. Both California and Quebec have shown interest in integrating their markets with Washington&#8217;s. Katelyn Roedner Sutter, the Environmental Defense Fund\u2019s director for California, stated that uniting these three significant climate leaders could accelerate reductions in climate pollution and create a more stable market environment.<\/p>\n<p>However, one challenge is the CCA&#8217;s stipulation that funding must benefit individuals from communities affected by environmental harm or health issues\u2014an aspect of &#8220;environmental justice.&#8221; The Washington State Department of Ecology has been conducting community meetings to gather public feedback on this potential linkage. Nikkia Harris, coordinator for the DOE\u2019s Climate Pollution Reduction Program, emphasized at a recent session that an environmental justice assessment is necessary before any final decisions are made to identify various impacts related to this action.<\/p>\n<p>Todd Myers from the Washington Policy Center supports linking but points out that Washington&#8217;s stringent rules regarding CCA funding might not align well with California and Quebec&#8217;s established practices. He noted that while larger markets can help stabilize cap-and-trade systems&#8217; volatility, it is unlikely that California and Quebec will adjust their regulations to accommodate Washington\u2019s preferences.<\/p>\n<p>Myers expressed concern over what &#8220;environmental justice&#8221; entails within CCA-funded initiatives, suggesting it often benefits specific interest groups rather than effectively reducing CO2 emissions. He criticized proposals like placing electric vehicle charging stations in low-income areas where electric vehicles are scarce as misguided spending.<\/p>\n<p>In response, Caroline Halter from DOE argued that establishing charging infrastructure is crucial for promoting electric vehicle adoption and addressing pollution disproportionately affecting disadvantaged communities. However, Myers remained skeptical about this approach.<\/p>\n<p>Further community engagement sessions will occur before drafting a proposal for linkage between carbon markets. Additionally, Initiative 2117 poses another challenge; if passed on November 5th, it would prevent state agencies from implementing any form of carbon tax credit trading or repealing existing cap-and-trade legislation aimed at significantly reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 2050\u2014potentially halting future funding while allowing previously collected funds to be spent<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2343804,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/AP24116016419306-1024x683.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[41317,41316,32667],"class_list":["post-2343803","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-carbon-market","tag-environmental-justice","tag-washington-state"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/AP24116016419306-1024x683.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2343803","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\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2343803"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2343803\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2343804"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2343803"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2343803"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2343803"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}