Energy & Environment — Climate bill could prevent up to $2T in damage

The White House is projecting serious cost-savings from averted climate damage thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act. Meanwhile, green groups are seeking a ban on new gas heating in homes and buildings.  

This is Overnight Energy & Environment, your source for the latest news focused on energy, the environment and beyond. For The Hill, we’re Rachel Frazin and Zack Budryk. Someone forward you this newsletter? Subscribe here. 

IRA could avert $1.9T in climate damage: analysis 

The Inflation Reduction Act, the tax and climate bill President Biden signed into law last week, could reduce the costs from climate-related damages by up to $1.9 trillion, according to an analysis by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).  

The analysis published Tuesday is based on three models crafted by Rhodium Group, Energy Innovation and Princeton University. They found the law’s climate provisions could potentially cut up to 1 billion annual metric tons of carbon dioxide by the end of the decade, nearly meeting the White House target of cutting emissions in half relative to 2005 by 2030.  

To model the reductions beyond 2030, the analysis uses the “social cost of carbon” metric, or the financial damages associated with a projected future level of carbon pollution. The analysis notes that the model assumes yearly reductions through 2030 will continue at a comparable pace through the next two decades, which is likely a conservative estimate.  

Meeting these projections could reduce financial damages from climate impacts by between $700 billion and $1.9 trillion up to 2050, the OMB models found. In addition to reduced property damage from climate disaster, the savings would also come in the form of fewer negative health impacts and fewer energy costs associated with hotter temperatures.   

In the nearer term, the models project the law could save between $34 billion and $84 billion a year by 2030.   

Read more about the analysis here.  

Advocates ask Biden to ban new natural gas heating 

Environmental advocates are asking the Biden administration for a federal ban on new natural gas-powered heating appliances in homes and commercial buildings.  

In a petition submitted to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Tuesday,
26 health, environmental and consumer protection organizations asked the agency for the ban.  

Environmental and health advocates have fought to bar natural gas appliances in homes and buildings at the city and state levels, citing health and climate impacts.  

In their new petition, the 26 groups largely focused on health impacts. They specifically asked the EPA to prohibit new heating systems that emit nitrogen oxides, which have been linked to negative respiratory outcomes and are also a precursor to smog, which can worsen lung conditions like asthma.  

While natural gas is more widely used, the groups are also seeking to prevent new oil-powered heating.  

• In the U.S., 47 percent of households use natural gas as their main heating fuel. Under the proposal, these households would not be required to make immediate changes. 
   
• But newly manufactured appliances wouldn’t be allowed to emit nitrogen oxides, effectively preventing the new manufacturing of fossil fuel-powered heating appliances.  

Amneh Minkara, the Sierra Club’s Building Electrification Campaign deputy director, said the groups’ request fills a hole, addressing previously unregulated emissions.  

“Regulations for other major sources like the industrial sector, the energy sector, the transportation sector, they’ve all been regulated by the EPA thus far, but a massive source of these emissions from the building sector have not,” Minkara said.  

The natural gas industry argued against the petition.  

“This proposal would impose undue burdens on consumers at every step of the process, including our most vulnerable communities,” said a statement released by the American Gas Association. 

Read more about the push here. 

STUDY LINKS WEEDKILLER TO CONVULSIONS IN ANIMALS 

Scientists have uncovered a link between the world’s most commonly used weedkiller and convulsions in animals — raising questions about the herbicide’s potential impact on the human nervous system as well.   

Exposure to glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup, increased seizure-like behavior in soil-dwelling roundworms, according to the researchers, who published their findings in Scientific Reports on Tuesday.  

With glyphosate use expected to rise dramatically over the coming years, understanding its possible effects on human health is critical, according to the study.   

• “It is concerning how little we understand the impact of glyphosate on the nervous system,” lead author Akshay Naraine, a Ph.D. candidate at Florida Atlantic University and the International Max Planck Research School for Synapses and Circuits, said in a statement.  
  
• “More evidence is mounting for how prevalent exposure to glyphosate is, so this work hopefully pushes other researchers to expand on these findings and solidify where our concerns should be,” Naraine added.      

Just last month, data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention revealed that more than 80 percent of urine sampled by the agency was at or above the detection limit for glyphosate. 

Bayer, which manufactures Roundup, has faced thousands of lawsuits alleging that the product causes cancer. While the International Agency for Research on Cancer deemed glyphosate a “probable” carcinogen in 2015, the Environmental Protection Agency said in 2020 that there was insufficient evidence to show that the chemical is a probable or likely carcinogen. 

Read more here from The Hill’s Sharon Udasin. 

WHAT WE’RE READING

• It’s Happened Before: Paleoclimate Study Shows Warming Oceans Could Lead to a Spike in Seabed Methane Emissions (Inside Climate News) 
• Does the Bay Area have enough water to build housing during the California drought? (The Mercury News)
• China’s unrivaled 70-day heat wave (Axios)
• Drought has killed the cotton crop in Texas. In wetter Louisiana, it’s helping spark a revival. (NOLA.com)
• Deep-Sea Mining Is Close to Reality Despite Environmental Concerns (The Wall Street Journal) 

🍴 Lighter click: Mmmm…windmills?

That’s it for today, thanks for reading. Check out The Hill’s Energy & Environment page for the latest news and coverage. We’ll see you tomorrow.  

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