The Energy Independent Vermont coalition today welcomed the release of the 2016 Vermont Comprehensive Energy Plan (CEP) and its recognition of the importance of putting a price on carbon pollution.
The CEP section on carbon pollution pricing was an addition to the original draft update of the CEP and comes after Vermonters all across the state attended hearings and submitted comments telling the the Department of Public Service to recommend carbon pollution pricing in the updated plan. Additionally, the CEP calls for strategic investments in energy efficiency and renewable energy.
In particular, Energy Independent Vermont celebrates:
The CEP’s commitment to “…investigate and pursue options for market-based GHG emissions policies….” A market-based carbon pollution pricing policy is core to the Energy Independent Vermont proposal.
The CEP’s recommendation for “strategic investments … to spur and shape the early adoption of new technologies and their markets.” The EIV proposal creates an Energy Independence Fund to spur innovation, build markets and reduce costs.
EIV Campaign Manager Tom Hughes said this news demonstrates a major shift in the discussion about pricing carbon pollution in Vermont.
“With this plan, the Shumlin Administration and the Department of Public Service have outlined a responsible path away from fossil fuels and toward a clean energy future.” Hughes said. “The question is no longer if Vermont should put a price on carbon pollution, but how.”
Read the Executive Summary of the CEP below. The entire CEP can be found on the Department of Public Service website.