From Massachusetts to Montana, Energy Infrastructure Is Needed Across Our Nation

Electricity demand is surging nationwide from housing development, industrial electrification, and electric vehicles, creating identical energy stressors at opposite ends of the country, The Berkshire Edge reported.

“We are at different ends of the country, but we are seeing the same energy stressors in our communities,” Pauline Banducci and Robin Paone wrote.

Banducci resides in Monterey, Mass., while Paone resides in Whitefish, Mont., and both serve as volunteers with Citizens’ Climate Lobby. The organization empowers everyday people to bridge divides and build political will for effective climate solutions in Congress.

America’s clean energy divide is widening along regional lines, according to the letter. The West holds vast, untapped potential of low-cost wind and solar but lacks the transmission lines to export power, while the East is choked by regional grid congestion that limits its ability to import cheaper power for booming industrial hubs.

US Senate advances major bill aimed at boosting energy infrastructure — CGTN America

To address these challenges, the Bipartisan American Affordability and Jobs Act was recently introduced to Congress. The comprehensive package of permitting reforms aims to improve energy security and grid reliability while lowering energy costs in Massachusetts and Montana.

“This bill also has the capacity to reduce polluting emission by billions of tons,” Banducci and Paone stated in The Berkshire Edge.

Supporters emphasize that the current status quo leaves people paying too much while the grid lacks proper reliability and security. They argue that the legislation addresses these issues better than today’s permitting processes.

“Congress needs to act now before the end of this year,” Banducci and Paone urged, calling the bipartisan energy bill a rare development.