Incoming President Joe Biden’s approach to the U.S. response to global warming “has to come with a substantial package” of early executive actions, Ernest Moniz (once and future energy secretary?) told a Washington webinar Tuesday. He said the Biden agenda should include a policy to “roll back the roll-backs” of the Trump years.
Moniz, 75, an MIT veteran energy research and policy leader, was Secretary of Energy from 2013-2017, and was an undersecretary of energy in the Clinton administration. He has been rumored as a possible Biden choice for another term as energy secretary.
Moniz told a zoom conference organized by the Keystone Policy Center and the multinational law firm Dentons, that the need for swift and sure executive action is “very clear following the experience of the last four years.” He suggested reinstating methane emissions limits, a restart of the DOE energy efficiency standards, revival of corporate average fuel economy standards for cars, and return to using the social cost of carbon in calculating costs and benefits of regulation.
The task is not just to rebuild initiatives that the Trump administration rejected, “but rebuilding our domestic programs. We have got to walk the talk.”
He said that for the U.S., a regional approach to decarbonizing the economy is most promising, as regions in the U.S. often have differing institutions, infrastructure, and problems. The Energy Futures Initiative, which he founded in 2017, has looked at the needs and opportunities of regions.
Moniz pointed to his home state in Massachusetts. First, he said in mid-December, it’s cold, meaning that winter heating is a priority. The region has impressive offshore wind resources, little heavy industry, a regional electric grid not up to moving lots of hydro power from Canada to the U.S., and inadequate natural gas transportation.
The region, Moniz said, has 22 GW of offshore wind potential, but that’s not being exploited, citing the failed Cape Wind project. “If we are not doing nuclear,” said the nuclear physicist, “and don’t have capacity for carbon capture and sequestration, it focuses the mind on what is possible.”
California is an interesting contrast, with lots of potential for renewables. But data shows that there is no wind in California for 90 days per year, and solar energy is seasonal. Also, as has often been noted, the state’s electricity distribution systems are not designed to handle solar capacity. The state also has large potential for carbon capture and storage, although state law explicitly forbids used of carbon capture and storage to meet its ambitious low-carbon goals.
Moniz said working with Congress on a bipartisan basis will be important, with the first focus on policy issues already in play. He said there appears to be good support in both parties for “advancing the innovation agenda, but we have got to put this on steroids if we have any chance of meeting” Biden’s 2035 and 2050 goals. He also said Congress should be able to support infrastructure legislation and spending focused on reducing emissions.
“Getting comprehensive legislation is a much bigger hill to climb,” Moniz said, noting that the upcoming senatorial runoffs in Georgia could be key. “No matter how slim the majority, the majority leader controls,” suggesting that if Republican maintain control of the Senate, the legislative task becomes more daunting.
For the incoming Biden administration, Moniz said, “Quick out of the box is going to be a key.
–Kennedy Maize