New Clean Energy Legislation Package Would Help Create a Safe, Clean Future for People and Wildlife
The Clean Electricity and Transmission Acceleration Act would streamline clean energy and transmission expansion and fund impact studies on wildlife.
WASHINGTON 鈥 The Clean Electricity and Transmission Acceleration (CETA) Act, omnibus legislation by Representatives Mike Levin (D-CA) and Sean Casten (D-IL) in their roles as Co-Chairs of the House Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition (SEEC)鈥檚 Clean Energy Deployment Task Force, would provide much-needed resources and help streamline approval processes for the expansion of clean energy and transmission. Increasing capacity for clean energy sources like wind and solar, as well as an upgraded transmission infrastructure to deliver that energy, is key to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and helping protect wildlife and communities from climate impacts.
鈥淲e have an opportunity to take bold action to embrace a cleaner future for all, but we do not have the luxury of time if we are to prevent the worst effects of climate change,鈥 said Felice Stadler, vice president of government affairs at the 探花精选. 鈥淐ETA would strike a balance between the need to quickly deploy clean energy and transmission to combat the climate crisis with the need to protect public lands, wildlife, and communities. Streamlining clean energy expansion efforts must prioritize early and meaningful engagement with stakeholders and community leaders to ensure that new projects are sited responsibly for people and habitat. 探花精选 would like to thank Representatives Casten and Levin for their work and leadership on this important legislation.鈥
A 2019 探花精选 report found that two-thirds of North American birds are vulnerable to extinction if global temperatures continue rising at their current rate. Reducing emissions by investing in responsibly-sited renewable energy will save billions of birds, as well as the natural habitats that we all share. 探花精选鈥檚 report, Birds and Transmission: Building the Grid Birds Need, outlines the urgent need for additional transmission capacity and shares solutions for minimizing risks to birds. 探花精选 strongly supports clean energy that is properly sited in ways that avoid, minimize, and mitigate negative impacts on birds and other wildlife. We also advocate for strong enforcement of laws that protect birds and wildlife like the Migratory Bird Treaty Act as we build out renewable energy capacity and supporting infrastructure to meet the climate crisis.
###
About 探花精选
The 探花精选 is a nonprofit conservation organization that protects birds and the places they need today and tomorrow. We work throughout the Americas towards a future where birds thrive because 探花精选 is a powerful, diverse, and ever-growing force for conservation. 探花精选 has more than 700 staff working across the hemisphere and more than 1.5 million active supporters. North America has lost three billion birds since 1970, and more than 500 bird species are at risk of extinction across Latin America and the Caribbean. Birds act as early warning systems about the health of our environment, and they tell us that birds 鈥 and our planet 鈥 are in crisis. Together as one 探花精选, we are working to alter the course of climate change and habitat loss, leading to healthier bird populations and reversing current trends in biodiversity loss. We do this by implementing on-the-ground conservation, partnering with local communities, influencing public and corporate policy, and building community. Learn more at and on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @audubonsociety.
Media Contact: Robyn Shepherd, robyn.shepherd@audubon.org