The DC Council gave preliminary approval to landmark clean
energy legislation Tuesday that would make DC a leader in the fight against climate
change.
Though it would be one of the strongest clean energy laws in
the nation if passed, substantial changes were made late in the process, at
least one of which significantly weakens the bill.
When Councilmember Mary Cheh introduced
the bill in July, it included a provision requiring that DC’s electric
utility, Pepco, buy renewable energy through long-term contracts. That would
reduce DC’s greenhouse gas emissions by 710,000 tons of a year, or 8.1% of DC’s
total emissions, according analysis
of the bill from the DC Department of Energy and Environment.
