Rick Whitbeck recently penned an opinion piece, expressing concern with Chugach Electric Association’s newly elected board members.
Whitbeck fears that they will support “programs to replace coal, natural gas and other traditional energy sources with wind, solar and other renewables.”
Yes. Yes, indeed. One can hope, wherever possible.
If last week’s Alaska Sustainable Energy Conference here in Anchorage is any indication, the Dunleavy administration passionately supports renewable energy, too.
Just last week, the governor signed a bill to keep trees in the ground as carbon offsets (Senate Bill 48) and permanently authorize a renewable energy grant fund (House Bill 62). At this point, I am not sure who remains an outlier on the need to transition away from fossil fuels for our energy source. At the conference, mention of environmental and social governance (ESG) was spoken as frequently as any other subject.
Whitbeck is in an ever-shrinking minority on this issue.
— Rep. Andy Josephson
Anchorage
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