I was talking to a young woman the other day and I found it so sad to see how worried, even scared she was about the future of our planet. It's frightening to see how quickly things are changing on earth. Ice melts, sea level rising, unpredictable weather and the extinction of certain species. How SAD! There is a great commercial that you can find on Youtube called California's 39 million Heirs It's a reminder to all of us about our responsibility to our state, our world and future generations.
California is known for its tough environmental standards and it's push to curb carbon emissions. As of today, five states—California, Hawaii, Nevada, New York, and Washington—as well as Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico have enacted 100% carbon-free standards and set a timeline of about 20 years to accomplish it. This represents 11% of national electric sales and 5.4% of national utility carbon emissions.
The good news is four more states are actively debating 100% carbon-free standards, and several governors have made pledges to be carbon-free by 2050: Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Michigan, Oregon, and Wisconsin. Other states have set 50% to 75% carbon reduction goals, such as Maryland, New Jersey, and Vermont. It's a good start but every state in our Union should be doing everything they can to take care of our planet.
As these required standards evolve, homeowners will need to make changes and It will be more important than ever for us to know how and when we are using energy in our homes. Should we be doing our laundry during the day—when solar energy is a its peak—or at night? When is the best time to charge an electric vehicle? With new innovations, we will be able to make our homes smarter and more efficient while being less resource-intensive, costly, and wasteful.
Our state is ours to inherit, on one condition: that we do everything in our power to preserve and protect it.
Source: Realtor Magazine, November 14, 2019 How carbon free standards will impact home owners