Global Climate Change

There is no longer a dispute that the earth is warming and that the implications of a changing climate will have far-reaching consequences for the world’s economies, cultures, and quality of life. Anticipated temperature increases of 2 degrees centigrade over the next century, experts say, will be enough to trigger erratic weather patterns, widespread drought, crop failure, and rising sea levels. Impacts on water and food supplies, increased pestilence and disease, and the changing composition of the world’s communities and forests promises to result in serious changes to life as we know it.
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Take Action Today on Energy and Climate Change!

The Senate just passed, and the House will now consider, a bill that will take Vermont one important step further in reducing the state’s global warming pollution and tackling the challenge of climate change with the urgency, action and measures required.
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VNRC's 2008 Energy and Climate Change Legislative Goals

VNRC will be working hard in the 2008 legislative session to help Vermont save energy, save money and generate clean, renewable supplies of power by pushing for implementation of the 38 recommendations of the Governor’s Commission on Climate Change.
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VNRC Statement on Advancement of the Energy Efficiency & Affordability Act

The two House committees charged with considering a bill that would expand thermal efficiency and renewable energy opportunities for Vermonters recently passed those bills out of committee. While S.209 is a step forward, unfortunately the current version of the bill fails to seize on some of the most promising opportunities to achieve savings. At the top of the list of lost opportunities in the current version of the bill is placing the purview of thermal efficiency programs under the umbrella of Vermont’s internationally acclaimed efficiency utility.
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Hopeful News on Energy Efficiency Front

The Vermont House is focusing its attention on S.209, the incarnation of the bill — minus the funding mechanism — that passed handily last session by the Legislature but was later vetoed by Governor Douglas. The primary reason Governor Douglas gave for vetoing the bill was the tax it imposed on Vermont’s sole nuclear power company, Entergy Nuclear. The experts hired by the Legislature to study how the state might structure and fund an expanded energy efficiency program recently delivered their findings to the House Natural Resources and Energy Committee. The consultants outlined several options for lawmakers to consider but sent one strong, overarching message: There’s tremendous opportunity to save Vermonters money if the state embraces efficiency measures soon.
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Climate Commission Report: Vermont's Roadmap to a 'Green Economy'

Recently, the Governor’s Climate Change Commission — on which VNRC's Executive Director Elizabeth Courtney served — issued its long-awaited report outlining 38 “policy options” to reduce Vermont’s contributions to climate change and grow Vermont's 'green economy.' "There's a troubling disconnect between the charge put forward by the governor's commission and the direction he's now heading," said Elizabeth. Read more about Elizabeth's reaction to the results of the climate commission.
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VNRC Urges Action in Wake of Solid Climate Report

Boosting efficiency and renewable energy, protecting Vermont’s “green bank” of farms and forests, and investing in public transportation are among the recommendations in the long-awaited Governor’s Commission on Climate Change report, issued October 26, 2007. “This report is our roadmap to a green economy, and our recommendations are built on solid information,” said Elizabeth Courtney, one of six members of the commission and VNRC’s executive director.
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Town Energy Committee Work Gathers Momentum

VNRC’s work to start and strengthen town energy and climate action committees gained significant momentum recently. With our partners in the Vermont Energy and Climate Action Network, VNRC convened nearly 70 Vermonters representing energy committees and organizations across Vermont on December 6 to network, share stories and consider collaborative opportunities to tackle the energy and climate change challenges before us.
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VNRC Comments on Link Between Climate Change and Affordability

Following on the heels of the release of the final report from the Governor's Commission on Climate Change, VNRC's Executive Director Elizabeth Courtney commented on a troubling irony. "The irony struck me last week when Governor Douglas announced the conclusion of his 'Set the Agenda' tour. According to the governor, affordability topped the list of issues Vermonters care about most, and climate change barely crossed the radar screens. What’s the irony? Action on climate change is all about affordability," Courtney noted.
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Final Report of the Governor’s Commission on Climate Change

The Governor's Commission on Climate Change and its larger, advisory Plenary Group considered hundreds of policy options – some of them innovative, some of them obvious, and many of them already underway or on the drawing boards of Vermont’s officials, businesses, and educators. Ultimately, 38 policy recommendations were forwarded by the Plenary Group to the GCCC for its consideration. On Friday, October 26, 2007, the GCCC released the results of its process and their final report. Read that here.
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