Environmental Impacts of the Production and Use of Energy

The Pace Energy and Climate Center has delved into the field of emissions monitoring and regulation through its involvement in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), its work with NYSERDA's Environmental Monitoring, Evaluation, and Protection (EMEP) Program, and its participation in the activities of the New York Independent System Operator (NYISO). Emissions control, whether through a cap-and-trade program or carbon tax, is one of the most pressing environmental concerns today. The Center is at the forefront of developing successful strategies to control emissions in New York and the Northeast.

Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI)

RGGI is a cooperative effort by nine Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states to curb emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG) from the power sector through adoption of a multi-state cap-and-trade program. The Pace Energy and Climate Center, through its participation in the Stakeholder Committee, played an essential advisory role in the development and design of the Northeast RGGI, the nation’s first mandatory program to cap power sector emissions. The RGGI program serves as a potential model and impetus for a federal carbon reduction program. For more information, please contact Pace Energy and Climate Center Executive Director Franz Litz at flitz@law.pace.edu.  For more information on RGGI, click here: RGGI Operating Plan

Environmental Monitoring, Evaluation and Protection Program (EMEP)

The Pace Energy and Climate Center is currently working in connection with EMEP on several issues related to emissions monitoring and regulation. In January 2007, the Center was awarded a five-year contract with the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority to provide technical and communications assistance to the Environmental Monitoring Evaluation and Protection Program (EMEP), supporting cutting edge scientific research and policy analysis on the human health and ecosystem effects of power sector emissions. The Center is studying the performance of current emissions trading markets and examining how potential cash flows from emissions allowances can improve the economics of distributive generation projects in New York and New England. The Pace Center is also engaged in various aspects of outreach and communications for EMEP.

The EMEP Program, through its funded research activities, has contributed greatly to the body of scientific literature and understanding of the role of power plant pollutants in compromising human health and natural environmental systems. A fundamental tenet of the EMEP program has been to maximize the value of scientific research for purposes of policy formulation. To accomplish this, the EMEP Program has made a concerted effort to forge effective channels of communication between the scientific and policy communities. The goal of the Center-led effort will be to disseminate NYSERDA-funded research projects in language and formats that are accessible and meaningful to policymakers and the public. Specific work products will include: conferences, policy primers, project updates, newsletters, an EMEP website and other resources. For more information, please contact Zywia Wojnar at zwojnar@law.pace.edu
 

New York Independent System Operator (ISO) Activities

The Pace Energy and Climate Center is the lead sustainable energy advocate before the New York ISO, which oversees wholesale electricity markets in the state. The Center is credited with helping to establish the country’s most aggressive and successful programs to reduce energy usage and stabilize prices in times of peak demand, and has led precedent-setting efforts to remove penalties levied against owners of “intermittent” renewable energy resources (wind and solar) for events (e.g., weather) beyond their control.  For more information, contact Jackson Morris at jmorris@law.pace.edu