Increasing Solar Access for All Americans

Dan Utech
Dan Utech
July 07, 2015
12:58 PM EDT

Last year, the United States brought online as much solar energy every three weeks as it did in all of 2008, and the solar industry added jobs 10 times faster than the rest of the economy. And since the beginning of 2010, the average cost of a solar electric system has dropped by 50 percent.

But we know that our economy is strongest when every American has the tools to get ahead. That means just as we are working to make high-quality health care and community college more available and affordable to middle-class and low-income families, we must also work to expand opportunities for families to use cleaner sources of energy that can help households save on their utility bills.

Related Topics: Energy and Environment

The Administration Takes a Big Step in Addressing Climate-Damaging HFCs

Posted by Brian Deese and Dan Utech on July 02, 2015 at 12:30 PM EDT

Today, the United States took decisive action on climate change by curbing the use of the potent greenhouse gases known as hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs). These factory-produced chemicals, which are primarily used in air conditioning and refrigeration, can pack up to 10,000 times the global warming punch of carbon dioxide. Absent ambitious action to limit their use, emissions of HFCs in the United States are expected to nearly triple by 2030.

That’s why the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today finalized a rule under the Significant New Alternatives Policy (SNAP) program that will prohibit the use of certain HFCs where safer and more climate-friendly alternatives are available. Simultaneously, the agency also listed as acceptable additional climate-friendly alternatives, expanding the options for businesses to use chemicals that are less harmful to the global climate.

EPA’s final rule will help us make a significant and meaningful cut in our greenhouse gas emissions—up to the equivalent of 64 million metric tons of carbon dioxide of avoided emissions in 2025.

Leading businesses are already stepping up to replace HFCs with safer and more climate-friendly alternatives, and these measures from EPA will go hand-in-hand with these private-sector efforts. The United States is at the cutting edge not only when it comes to developing the next generation of safe and cost-effective alternatives to HFCs, but also in terms of incorporating these alternatives into American cars, air conditioners, refrigerators, foams, and other products.

Innovative American companies are leading the charge to ensure Americans will have climate-friendly insulation in our homes, HFC-free air-conditioners in our cars, and more sustainable supermarkets and corner stores. For example, last September, the White House hosted an event at which 22 private-sector companies and organizations stepped forward with commitments to reduce emissions from HFCs. Those commitments will reduce cumulative global consumption of these greenhouse gases by the equivalent of 700 million metric tons of carbon dioxide through 2025, equivalent to 1.5% of the world’s 2010 greenhouse gas emissions and the same as taking nearly 15 million cars off the road for 10 years.

The momentum we are making both through the final rule EPA announced today and also through these private-sector commitments advances global climate action. In April, the United States joined with Canada and Mexico to propose an amendment to the Montreal Protocol to tackle HFCs globally. Last month, G-7 Leaders committed to continue efforts to phase down HFCs and to negotiate a Montreal Protocol amendment this year, and the African Group, India, island countries, and the European Union all support an amendment. We have also made HFCs a key element of our bilateral climate discussions, and our bilateral announcements with China, India, and Brazil all recognize the need to advance progress on managing HFCs in the Montreal Protocol. Scientists predict that such strong international action would help shave off up to half a degree of warming by the end of the century, substantially furthering our goal to limit global temperature rise.

Today’s announcement takes a big step toward a more sustainable future and demonstrates to other countries that we are making serious efforts at home to complement the global solutions that we are advocating for internationally.

Here are some early examples of what companies and organizations have to say about EPA’s action today:

“We are delighted to see these final SNAP regulations. The action offers clarity to the industry and very positive, long term impact for the environment.”

– Steven Trulaske, Owner, True Manufacturing

“Honeywell applauds the EPA on their landmark action to restrict the use of high-global-warming HFCs, which are among the most potent greenhouse gases in use today. EPA’s action will accelerate the adoption of solutions with far less impact on the atmosphere while also spurring private sector innovation and creating jobs.”

– Ken Gayer, Vice President and General Manager of Honeywell’s Fluorine Products business, Honeywell

“AHAM applauds the EPA decision in its final SNAP rule to adjust certain compliance deadlines, which demonstrates the Administration’s flexibility and desire to work with the appliance industry to make the most impactful environmental gains. It also reflects the voluntary steps that home appliance manufacturers are taking to end the use of HFCs as foam-blowing agents. The home appliance industry is committed to delivering the most energy efficient and environmentally responsible products to American homes.”

– Joseph M. McGuire, President, Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers

“Chemours continues to support the President’s Climate Action Plan and EPA’s commitment and action using existing EPA authority to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in applications that have readily available lower global warming potential options. We believe it is critical that we reduce high global warming potential emissions in a manner that ensures that we are still able to deliver the critical societal services that HFCs provide today.”

– Diego Boeri, Global Business Director, Chemours Fluorochemicals

“Ingersoll Rand applauds the U.S. efforts to prioritize a transition away from high global warming potential refrigerants and it further reinforces the significance of our climate commitment to significantly increase energy efficiency and reduce the climate impact of our products and operations.”

– Paul Camuti, Chief Technology Officer, Ingersoll Rand

“We appreciate EPA’s partnership with manufacturers during this rulemaking process and EPA’s willingness to work with the Department of Energy to acknowledge the impacts of each other’s regulations and reduce burdens on U.S. companies.”

– David Szczupak, Executive Vice President, Global Product Organization, Whirlpool Corporation

Brian Deese is a senior advisor to the President. Dan Utech is the Deputy Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate Change.

See more about Energy and Environment  
Subscribe

Protecting Public Health and the Environment

Posted by Ali Zaidi, Dan Utech, and Christy Goldfuss on June 24, 2015 at 12:34 PM EDT

President Obama is committed to protecting public health and the environment. Just yesterday, the White House hosted a Summit on Climate Change and Public Health. The Summit brought together senior White House and Administration officials, doctors, nurses, students, mothers, public health organizations, and deans from medical, public health and nursing schools around the country to, in the words of President Obama, “address the gathering challenges and costs that the threat of a changing climate poses to our nation’s health.”

Congress is moving in the other direction. This week, the House will begin debate on H.R. 2822, a bill that would undermine the Administration’s efforts to protect the health of communities around the country, including those that are the most vulnerable like children and the elderly. It would block common-sense carbon pollution standards for power plants, which if finalized as proposed would prevent more than 150,000 asthma attacks in kids and up to 6,660 premature deaths each year.

The bill would also prevent EPA from updating one of our most important air quality standards – the National Ambient Air Quality Standards for ozone. Updating national standards for ozone pollution, which is particularly harmful for children and adults with asthma, would, if finalized as proposed, prevent thousands of premature deaths and hospital admissions and prevent up to a million lost school days each year. These are just two of many provisions in the bill that would force EPA to ignore science at the expense of public health.

We have benefited from 40 years of success under the Clean Air Act. In fact, since the Clean Air Act was enacted with bipartisan support in 1970, the economy has more than tripled in size, while harmful air pollution has decreased by nearly 70 percent. The Administration will continue to defend the Clean Air Act and protect public health.

Ali Zaidi is the Associate Director for Natural Resources, Energy and Science at the Office of Management and Budget. Dan Utech is the Deputy Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate Change. Christy Goldfuss is the Managing Director of the Council on Environmental Quality.

See more about Energy and Environment  

Your Health and Our Environment: How Can We Protect Both?

Amanda Stone
June 18, 2015
06:51 PM EDT

National Dialogue on Climate Change And Health

There are a whole host of public health impacts that are going to hit home. The great thing about this conversation is to see all the work that’s already being done by public health officials, the medical community, nurses and families.

- President Obama

Today, the White House is convening a Summit to bring together health and medical professionals, academics, and other stakeholders to empower people and communities with the information and tools they need to protect public health in the face of climate change.

Related Topics: Energy and Environment, New York, Ohio

The White House Clean Energy Technology Summit

June 16, 2015 | 1:05 | Public Domain

The White House hosted entrepreneurs who showcased innovative clean energy technologies that have breakthrough potential to reduce carbon pollution and help us combat climate change. June 16, 2015.

Download mp4 (44MB) | ()
Subscribe

Mobilizing $4 Billion in Private-Sector Support for Homegrown Clean Energy Innovation

Posted by Secretary Ernest Moniz on June 16, 2015 at 07:19 AM EDT

Ingenuity is one of our country’s greatest assets. America’s entrepreneurs and innovators have a legacy of unleashing their creativity, grit, and imagination to invent, discover, and build solutions that not only contribute to our growing economy, but also solve some of the toughest challenges facing the nation. Investing in homegrown innovation, including the development of new, clean-energy technologies, is a crucial part of the fight against climate change – and is key to keeping America on the leading edge of the world’s transition to a low-carbon economy.

See more about Energy and Environment  

Empowering Developing Nations to Boost Their Own Climate Resilience

Brian Deese and John Holdren
June 09, 2015
09:45 AM EDT

Today, at the U.S. Institute of Peace, the United States and partners from around the world are delivering on President Obama’s commitment to help empower developing nations to boost their own climate resilience.

The Climate Services for Resilient Development Partnership, initially announced by the President at the UN Climate Summit in New York last September, will provide actionable science, data, information, tools, and training to developing countries that are working to strengthen their national resilience against the impacts of climate change. The Partnership is launching with more than $34 million in financial and in-kind contributions from the U.S. government and seven other founding-partner institutions from around the world: the American Red Cross, Asian Development Bank, Esri, Google, Inter-American Development Bank, the Skoll Global Threats Fund, and the U.K. government.

Climate change threatens our entire planet. The impacts of climate change – including more intense storms and storm surge damage, more severe droughts and heat waves, sea-level rise, ocean acidification, and biodiversity losses – are already being experienced in different ways around the world. These impacts can be particularly damaging in developing countries, which often lack the resources and technical capacity to effectively prepare for and adapt to the effects of climate change.

Related Topics: Energy and Environment, New York

Asked and Answered: What 10-Year-Old Yadid Asked the President

Yena Bae
June 05, 2015
12:32 PM EDT

This is the latest post in our "Asked and Answered" series, in which we periodically feature an exchange between the President -- or a Senior Administration Official -- and an American who wrote him. If you'd like to write the President yourself, you can do so here.

May was Jewish American Heritage Month. To celebrate, the President joined communities around the country in honoring the contributions Jewish Americans have made to our nation and the shared values that move us forward together.

To highlight these enduring ideals, we wanted to share a letter exchange between the President and a young Jewish American writer whose parents celebrated Hanukkah at the White House last year. Ten-year-old Yadid Frydman Orlow from White Plains, New York thanked the President, but asked a few important questions as well. His thoughtful questions reflect the recognition that progress begins when someone dares to ask, "What can I do to help?"

Here is the handwritten letter from Yadid, along with his parents’ invitation to last year’s celebration:

Yena Bae is a Senior Analyst and Project Manager in the Office of Presidential Correspondence
Related Topics: Florida, Georgia, New York, Wisconsin

Faith Leaders as Climate Champions of Change

Posted by Katharine Gallogly on June 03, 2015 at 06:00 PM EDT

In June 2013, President Obama outlined the Climate Action Plan -- his roadmap for action in the second term that cuts carbon pollution, helps prepare our country for the impacts of climate change, and continues to lead international efforts to address global climate change. President Obama believes in the power of individuals to make a difference on these issues. He also knows the faith community has a powerful role in leading climate change efforts.

As the President has said:

Let’s do more to promote … development … from ending extreme poverty to saving lives, from HIV/AIDS to combating climate change so that we can preserve God’s incredible creation.  On all these issues, faith leaders and faith organizations here in the United States and around the world are incredible partners, and we're grateful to them.

This July, the White House will honor faith leaders who are making a difference to combat climate change and advance conservation in their communities. We will celebrate the impact they are having here at home, and on the lives of people around the world.

See more about Energy and Environment,  

LA CASA BLANCA

Oficina del Secretario de Prensa

PARA PUBLICACIÓN INMEDIATA

22 de mayo de 2015

Proclama Presidencial – Oración Por La Paz, Día De La Recordación 2015

ORACIÓN POR LA PAZ, DÍA DE LA RECORDACIÓN 2015

-------

PROCLAMA DEL PRESIDENTE DE LOS ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA

El Día de la Recordación, Estados Unidos hace una pausa para rendir homenaje a los héroes caídos que murieron en servicio a nuestra nación. Con el corazón cargado y un sentimiento de profunda gratitud, lloramos a estas mujeres y hombres: padres, hijos, seres queridos, compañeros de fatigas, amigos y todos los conocidos y desconocidos que creían tan profundamente en lo que nuestro país puede ser que estaban dispuestos a entregar sus vidas para proteger su promesa. El dolor se apodera de nuestros corazones en su ausencia, pero su espíritu nos da fuerza para continuar con su labor de proteger y renovar las libertades que todos los estadounidenses aprecian y por las que estos héroes dieron hasta su última gota de devoción.

En solemne reflexión, nos reunimos, en pequeños pueblos y grandes ciudades, en los campos de batalla, en los cementerios y en los lugares sagrados donde se ha derramado sangre por la causa de la libertad, a lo largo de nuestro país y alrededor del mundo para recordar la cadena ininterrumpida de patriotas que consiguieron la independencia, salvaron nuestra Unión, derrotaron al fascismo y protegieron a la nación que amamos de amenazas emergentes en un mundo cambiante. Hoy, su legado es llevado adelante por una nueva generación de hombres y mujeres que prestan servicio y por todos aquellos que se esfuerzan para dar forma a un Estados Unidos más perfecto; y sus enormes sacrificios continúan haciendo posibles nuestras oportunidades.

Tenemos una enorme deuda con todos aquellos que se sacrifican en nuestro nombre, incluidos los padres y madres que han entregado sus hijos e hijas a Estados Unidos, cónyuges y parejas que cargan con el peso de la pérdida impensable y valientes niños en quienes el legado de sus padres vive. Como país, debemos cumplir nuestras obligaciones para con estas familias de oro. Nos hemos comprometido a que nunca caminen solos, a que su país este a su disposición siempre... y tenemos que trabajar todos los días para cumplir esta promesa.

Nuestra nación nunca olvidará el valor y distinción de las mujeres y los hombres que defienden la libertad, la justicia y la paz. Hoy, nos dedicamos de nuevo a compromisos de igual calibre que aquellos que han prestado el servicio más alto: apoyar a nuestras tropas con los recursos que necesitan para hacer su trabajo. Nunca dejar de buscar a aquellos que han desaparecido o son prisioneros de guerra; asegurar que todos nuestros veteranos tengan acceso a los cuidados y beneficios que se han ganado y merecen; y continuar con nuestra labor constante de la construcción de una nación digna de los héroes a los que hoy rendimos homenaje.

En honor a todos nuestros caídos en el servicio, el Congreso, mediante una resolución conjunta aprobada el 11 de mayo de 1950, según enmendada (36 U.S.C. 116), ha solicitado al Presidente que emita una proclama convocando al pueblo estadounidense a observar cada Día de la Recordación como un día de oración por la paz permanente y a que designe un período en ese día en el que el pueblo de Estados Unidos pueda unirse en oración. El Congreso, por medio de la ley pública 106-579, también ha señalado las 3 de la tarde, hora local, de ese día como un momento a ser observado por todos los estadounidenses, a su manera, denominado Momento Nacional de Recordación.

AHORA, POR TANTO, YO, BARACK OBAMA, presidente de los Estados Unidos de América, proclamo por la presente el 25 de mayo de 2015 Día de la Recordación, como día de oración para una paz permanente, y designo las 11 de la mañana de ese día en cada localidad como el tiempo para unirnos en oración. También deseo pedir a los estadounidenses que observen un Momento Nacional de Recordación a las 3 de la tarde, hora local, en el Día de la Recordación.

Solicito a los gobernadores de los estados y territorios de Estados Unidos, y a los funcionarios adecuados de todas las entidades del Gobierno, que ordenen ondear las banderas a media asta hasta el mediodía en este Día de la Recordación en todos los edificios, instalaciones y buques navales de Estados Unidos, así como en las zonas bajo su jurisdicción y control. También le pido al pueblo estadounidense que despliegue la bandera a media asta en sus hogares durante este período habitual previo al mediodía.

EN FE DE LO CUAL, firmo en este vigésimo segundo día de mayo del año de Nuestro Señor dos mil quince, y el ducentésimo trigésimo noveno de la independencia de los Estados Unidos.

BARACK OBAMA