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The White House on Wednesday approved a plan by Senator Joe Manchin III to expedite the approval of some fossil fuel projects in order to accelerate the construction of new transmission lines critical to achieving President Biden’s climate goals.
John Podesta, President Biden’s senior adviser on clean energy innovation, said congressional efforts to speed up permitting rules for energy projects, a process that could take years, have undermined efforts to strengthen wind, solar and other clean power.
“Right now, the permitting process for clean energy infrastructure, including transmission, is experiencing delays and bottlenecks,” Mr. Podesta told an audience at the Bipartisan Policy Center, a Washington think tank. “We need to fix this problem now.”
The announcement of the White House attracted rapid opposition from many environmental groups, which are still seething through the administration of the Willow oil project in Alaska.
In support of the plan by Mr. Manchin, a West Virginia Democrat who is a supporter of coal and gas, Mr. Podesta pointed out that the senator played a key role last year in passing Mr. Biden’s signature $370 billion clean energy climate law. tax incentives.
Mr. Manchin’s consent plan would ensure the completion of a long-delayed gas pipeline in West Virginia, the Mountain Valley Pipeline. Environmentalists, civil rights activists and many Democratic state lawmakers have opposed the project for years.
“The president frankly doesn’t like everything in the bill, but we support it because it means compromise,” Mr. Podesta said.
The olive branch comes amid tense negotiations between Mr Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy over raising the debt ceiling ahead of a June 1 deadline, after which the US government could default.
As a condition to lift the loan cap, House Republicans have sought to cut clean energy spending and overhaul allowing that prioritize the development of fossil fuels. Mr. Biden insisted that lawmakers should raise the cap unconditionally.
A spokesman for Mr. McCarthy said in a statement that the Republican allowed the plan linked to the debt ceiling package “will get our economy back on track, lower costs and streamline the production of clean, affordable American energy.”
Mr. Manchin on Wednesday sidestepped the question of whether to include a permit overhaul in a vote on the debt ceiling, saying, “Wherever we can get reform, I’m going to do it.”
In addition to fast-tracking the Mountain Valley Pipeline, which will run from West Virginia to Virginia, Mr. Manchin’s bill sets a two-year limit on the environmental review of major Federal energy projects, including fossil fuels. It also directs the president to identify at least 25 high-level energy projects and prioritize them.
Mr. Manchin noted Wednesday that, despite the opposition, the proposal allowed was the only one with bipartisan support.
“Just sit down and discuss what to do now,” he said.
The White House on Wednesday also issued an order directing the agency to ease the seating and allow interstate transmission lines until legislation is enacted.
It also lists 11 priorities Mr. Biden wants in the new permitting law, including helping clean energy projects like wind and solar get on the grid faster and setting new goals for renewable energy development on federal lands. In addition, the White House calls for the construction of new hydrogen and carbon dioxide infrastructure, the elimination of duplicative environmental reviews and better community engagement.
Some environmental groups attacked the administration’s announcement, saying Mr. Manchin’s bill would lead to more oil and gas development even as scientists say the window to reduce emissions from fossil fuels is closing fast.
Mr Biden pledged to help limit global warming to no more than 1.5 degrees Celsius, or 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit, compared to pre-industrial temperatures. This is the threshold beyond which scientists say the likelihood of catastrophic impacts increases. But the International Energy Agency warns that the goal cannot be reached if countries continue to approve the development of new fossil fuels.
In an appearance at a Washington think tank, Mr. Podesta criticized environmental groups that often sue to block new facilities. They say such efforts threaten to undermine progress in tackling climate change.
“We got very good at stopping projects that we forgot how to build,” said Mr. Podesta, who was a senior adviser on climate change to President Barack Obama and founded the Center for American Progress, a liberal think tank.
“It’s a shame that John Podesta didn’t think about the fossil fuel playbook and the frontline communities most harmed by fossil fuels because they are the enemy of a renewable energy future,” said Brett Hartl, director of government affairs at the Center for Biological Diversity. .
The group was one of nearly 300 environmental organizations that sent a letter to Mr. Biden and congressional Democratic leaders urging him to reject Mr. Manchin’s plan, saying that while it would “in part” help the development of renewable energy, it would be “massively. dwarfed” by accelerated oil and gas projects.
Other groups like the Natural Resources Defense Council praised the White House’s priorities but said they remained opposed to Mr. Manchin’s plan.
Clean energy organizations say the industry is considering swift action by Congress.
“Expansion and modernization of the national electricity grid is central to achieving important climate and energy security goals,” said Gregory Wetstone, president of the American Council on Renewable Energy, a trade group.
Mr. Podesta said the White House, as it sought to compromise with Republicans, had a red line: “No more climate denial.” Some Republican efforts to fast track infrastructure would allow agencies to ignore climate change when assessing the environmental impact of new projects. “There is no more looking the other way,” Mr. Podesta said.
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