The COP21 talks in Paris put climate change front and center. They confirmed that climate change is both the biggest challenge and the biggest opportunity of our generation. Coastal cities in the United States lie at risk from storm surges and sea rise. But they have it easy. Full nations in the Pacific will end…
Dec 15
2015
2015
Oct 28
2015
2015
Charging Up: CLF and Partners Release Electric Vehicle Report for Northeast/Mid-Atlantic Region
Today, with partners Sierra Club and Acadia Center, CLF released a groundbreaking new report, Charging Up: The Role of States, Utilities, and the Auto Industry in Dramatically Accelerating Electric Vehicle Adoption in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic States. The report can be downloaded here. The new report outlines the policy pathway states in the Northeast and…
Oct 6
2015
2015
Could an Electric Car Be in Your Future?
Cars. They cost a lot and pollute a lot. One exciting new opportunity to address both these problems are electric cars. They’ve come a long way. Gone are the days when the Toyota Prius was the only hybrid available to consumers. My interest in this was recently sparked at a gathering I attended of electric…
Feb 17
2015
2015
Growing Clean Energy
The recent massive snow storms provide a stark reminder of why we need more clean energy. The more fossil fuels we burn, the more global warming we face. Fiercer and more frequent storms continue to march across New England wreaking havoc with the daily lives and pocketbooks of so many. Thankfully there are many efforts…
Apr 3
2014
2014
Transportation Matters for Maine
Let’s face it, Maine is a big rural state (larger than the five remaining New England states taken together), where lowering greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles has been and will be a continuing challenge. CLF’s Maine office is actively engaged in three different projects with a wide range of partners who are determined to find…
Apr 2
2014
2014
Patrick Administration’s New Electric Vehicle Rebate Program Poised to Rev Up Key Clean Energy Sector
Last Thursday, Governor Deval Patrick announced the roll-out of a brand-new electric-vehicle (EV) rebate program in Massachusetts. At a celebration of the launch of the Worcester Regional Transit Authority’s electric transit bus fleet, Governor Patrick announced that the new $2 million initiative – the Massachusetts Offers Rebates for Electric Vehicles (MOREV) program – will provide…
Dec 12
2013
2013
Massachusetts Leading the Way on Electric Vehicle Transit
The Worcester Regional Transit Authority (WRTA) is about to make Massachusetts a national leader in electric vehicle, or “EV”, transit. The WRTA has just purchased three additional electric buses, which will join the existing bus fleet of 46. This includes ten hybrid buses (diesel-electric) as well as three existing electric buses. With a grand total…
Nov 20
2013
2013
Driving Climate Change
A version of this article appeared in the November 17, 2013 edition of the Sunday Rutland Herald / Times Argus. The biggest contribution to climate change in Vermont comes from how we get ourselves around. As a rural state we rely on cars — and they burn a lot of gasoline, producing significant greenhouse gas…
Oct 24
2013
2013
New England States Charge Ahead on Electric Vehicles with New Memorandum of Understanding
Today eight states, including four in New England, announced a landmark initiative to collectively put 3.3 million electric vehicles on the road by 2025 and develop fueling infrastructure to support them. The governors of Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Connecticut joined California, New York, Maryland, and Oregon in signing a Memorandum of Understanding to ensure…
Jan 16
2012
2012
When a Fact Check Goes Wrong and Misses the (Clean Energy) Point
The rise of dedicated public fact checking services like PolitiFact, FactCheck.org and the Washington Post Fact Checker has been a generally good thing. However, these services can go astray when they decide that a statement which would be improved with clarification is “false” – a practice that weakens the “false” label when it is applied to an outright falsehood.