OPEN LETTER: NUCLEAR NEW YORK & CLEAN ENERGY JOBS COALITION – NY URGE GOV. HOCHUL TO FOCUS ON ENERGY RELIABILITY AS STATE PURSUES CARBON FREE GRID
Nuclear New York, a non-partisan advocacy group, and the Clean Energy Jobs Coalition-NY, a coalition of labor and management leaders representing more than 270,000 energy workers across New York State, sent an open letter to New York Governor Kathy Hochul urging her administration to “harness all viable carbon-free technologies” to ensure access to clean, abundant, safe, and reliable power.
With mandates for more electrification of everything from buildings to vehicles to heating systems, the letter emphasizes the need for MORE electric generation that operates reliably, regardless of weather conditions.
As such, the letter encourages Governor Hochul to “energize New York’s climate agenda in your upcoming State-of-the-State address by signaling that you share the enthusiasm of President Joe Biden and other world leaders for the outstanding prospects of nuclear technology.”
The groups praise elements of the Climate Action Plan as it embraces an “All of the Above” clean energy strategy, recognizing the enormous value of existing nuclear facilities and the potential of advanced nuclear power capabilities. Scientists and engineers join organized labor and management to spotlight the importance of family sustaining jobs while noting “severe storms in Buffalo demonstrate, loss of energy can be deadly.”
Accordingly, they express caution in achieving certain mandates under the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA). The letter highlights consequences of bad energy policies in Europe and echoes warnings from the New York Independent System Operator (NYISO) – New York’s non-profit grid operator, that shrinking electric generation supply pose reliability threats.
The entire letter is available here.