Texas
How new plans to tackle climate change will impact Texas
How new plans to deal with local weather change will affect Texas
The White Home’s Nationwide Local weather Advisor Gina McCarthy spoke with FOX 4’s Blake Hanson about how the federal authorities’s new plans to deal with local weather change will affect Texas.
The federal authorities is in the midst of rolling out new plans to deal with local weather change.
This week, FOX 4’s Blake Hanson spoke with the White Home’s Nationwide Local weather Advisor, Gina McCarthy, about how these modifications will affect Texas.
As brutal warmth sparks wildfires throughout the state and pushes Texas’ electrical grid to its limits, the White Home is within the midst of rolling out new local weather actions after congressional motion on the matter failed.
Considered one of methods is to increase wind manufacturing off-shore within the Gulf of Mexico.
It’s nonetheless unclear how a lot Texas will profit, with the ERCOT-run grid largely cutoff from the remainder of the nation.
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[REPORTER: “Given the nature of our grid and its isolation, does the White House plan for Texans to be able to benefit from some of that expansion in the Gulf of Mexico?”]
“Oh, completely. I imply, we’re speaking about offshore wind within the Gulf of Mexico for the primary time. We’re taking a look at alternatives not simply in Texas, however in Louisiana, with this 700,000 acres, with that are actually going to be eligible for leasing. We’re seeing a variety of non-public sector curiosity in truly the event of offshore wind. We’re seeing it large time within the Atlantic. We’re additionally seeing it exterior the Pacific. And so there’s actual alternative to develop the type of clear vitality that may add worth into the Texas system,” McCarthy responded.
Whereas Texas has loads of wind technology out west, offshore wind would provide one other benefit.
“Now, one of many good issues about offshore wind is it is not an intermittent vitality supply. It’s truly operating on a regular basis, as a result of while you’re out within the open ocean, you have got wind blowing on a regular basis,” McCarthy mentioned. “So renewable vitality, and in some instances matched with battery storage, goes to offer the type of safety that we’re all in search of in our vitality system and add actual worth to householders by reducing the price of electrical energy.”
A few of these modifications will take years to play out.
Within the meantime, many People are already struggling within the excessive warmth, and we’ve already seen excessive demand at occasions geared at giving out provides, which McCarthy mentioned President Joe Biden is tackling too.
“He additionally talked about assets which might be occurring the desk, greater than $2 billion from FEMA, the Federal Emergency Administration Company, to assist individuals modify as these temperatures rise. We’re speaking about extra entry to air conditioners, extra entry to cooling facilities. We’re speaking about alternatives below Housing and City Growth and Well being and Human Companies to really permit individuals extra entry to cooling programs. Now we have to maintain each other protected whereas we’re constructing a grid system that will not contribute to our altering local weather,” she added.