From John Locke Foundation’s Jon Sanders:
Since the start of the 21st century, energy-based emissions have been falling dramatically in North Carolina.
- Carbon dioxide emissions are down 34 percent
- Nitrous oxides emissions are down 78 percent
- Sulfur dioxide emissions are down 91 percent
Why?
- As our state grows wealthier, we are transitioning from a manufacturing-based economy to a service-based economy
- As people grow wealthier, consumers are choosing more efficient products, from cars to appliances to electronics on down
- Electric utilities are moving to natural gas and away from coal, as technological revolution in the energy sector has made natural gas plentiful and price-competitive with coal
There’s no crisis here, there’s no market failure, and there’s no cause for alarm. These results are exemplary, and they are market-driven.
There simply is no call for government intervention here whatsoever. Which makes Gov. Roy Cooper’s Executive Order (EO) to “Address Climate Change and Transition to a Clean Energy Economy” so unnecessary. The details of that EO don’t help.
Strangely, the governor justified the order by “citing Florence” and saying that his order would “combat climate change” which he linked to Hurricanes Matthew and Florence.
He also said the order would “create jobs.”
Read more here.
