PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The State of Pennsylvania ranks in the top five for most greenhouse gas emissions, and the Wolf administration wants to change that with a new climate action plan.
Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection secretary Patrick McDonnell said the average temperature in Pennsylvania has gone up two degrees since 1900.
“That is increasing the intensity of weather events, from this month's historic flooding and tornadoes in southeastern counties to record water levels in Lake Erie in 2019," said McDonnell.
“While it’s certainly true Pennsylvania will not solve the climate change crisis on its own, the rest of the world will not solve it without us.”
He said the Wolf administration’s Pennsylvania Climate Action Plan 2021 is a good starting point in what can seem like an overwhelming task. It incrementally lowers emissions over the next 30 years.
“There are 18 actions that will meet our greenhouse gas emission reduction goals, as long as partners across sectors start now to carry them out within five years," said McDonnell.
“We'll get our biggest greenhouse gas emission reductions from creating a carbon free electricity grid that uses renewable and nuclear energy.”
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The action plan includes getting more electric cars on the road through infrastructure improvements, shifting to a carbon-free-energy grid, and joining 11 other states in the northeast in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative.
That process is underway with an executive order from Governor Wolf and a 3-2 vote from the Independent Regulatory Review Commission. Republicans in the state legislature argue Wolf lacks the statutory authority to make the move.
