Governor Kathy Hochul of New York has said that the state will launch a programme that sets an annual cap on pollution throughout its economy to reduce emissions while hoping to bring in more than $1 billion annually.
In her 2023 State of the State address at the state Capitol in Albany, Hochul said “Big emitters will have to purchase permits to sell polluting fuels. The dirtier the fuel – the bigger the price tag,” adding that the proceeds will be used to “cover utility bills, transportation costs, and de-carbonization efforts.”
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According to reports, the state’s Department of Environmental Conservation and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority will create the programme, which lowers the emissions cap each year, in accordance with the state’s mandate to achieve emission cuts of 40% from 1990 levels by 2030 and of 85% by 2050.
The governor’s office announced that distributors of heating and transportation fuels as well as large-scale greenhouse gas emitters will be required to purchase licenses for each metric ton of emissions linked to their operations, forcing them to switch to less-polluting options.
It said New York is among the 12 northeastern states participating in the cap-and-invest style programme, the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, since 2005, which has helped halve power plant emissions and raised nearly $6 billion.
Story was adapted from Reuters.
