Purpose
- Investigates the causes of economic imbalances.
- Investigates causes tending to destroy or impair the free-market system.
- Explores and develops market-based solutions.
Summary
CSE’s Fossil Fuel Risk Bond program is hitting its stride. As a result of successful research and advocacy in the Pacific Northwest, we now have policy templates that can be used at the state and county level in every US county that has a significant concentration of fossil fuel infrastructure. In addition, the work has been publicized by Brookings Institution, which will greatly enhance our ability to spread the model. Three activities form the core of our FFRB work in 2024 and 2025: (a) monitoring FFRB program implementation in the context of three decision making processes now underway in Oregon and Washington; (b) conducting a rigorous outreach and communications strategy to recruit additional state and county leaders to move the policy forward in their jurisdictions, and (c) conducting research on infrastructure risks and climate costs in these places to bolster FFRB advocacy.
Description
December, 2024 Project Update:
Despite the election results and a very uncertain next few years at the federal level, CSE continues to have success at the state and local level where we believe most of the significant progress is to be made in the short term.
We are approaching the finish line in Multnomah County (Portland), where a Phase III ordinance for requiring financial assurances for fossil fuel facilities is nearing completion.
The draft ordinance can be viewed here: https://multco-web7-psh-files-usw2.s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/Financial%20Responsibility%20for%20CEI%20HUB%20Energy%20Facilities%20Concept%20Ordinance%20Language_Revised.pdf.
The Multnomah County website on the policy can be viewed here: https://multco.us/info/securing-safer-future-financial-assurance-cei-hub.
Some press coverage on the policy here: https://www.streetroots.org/news/2024/11/18/risky-business-multnomah-county-considers-new-requirements-cei-hub-operators.
Note on the County website that they used our successful King County ordinance as a template, so we’re having a regional impact thanks in large part to the Walker Foundation's consistent support.
Daphne Wysham has created a c4 nonprofit – This Land – that is doing the heavy lifting on lobbying and grassroots organizing, including getting folks to the hearings. She received a grant from a local donor to do this political work. We’ve had two public hearings so far showing overwhelming support and have been working closely with the County on editing and improving the draft over the past couple of weeks. The ordinance should be finalized and approved in January. Very exciting for all of us on the risk bond team.
We are also now working with two national partners – Physicians for Social Responsibility and Elected Officials to Protect America – who will be working with us soon to scale up the Pacific Northwest successes to other states and regions. We expect to finalize an MOU in the early spring.
Purpose
In 2016 Center for Sustainable Economy proposed a commonsense solution for addressing the market failures associated with fossil fuel infrastructure – fossil fuel risk bond (FFRB) programs. Climate change is one, a market failure of breathtaking proportions. Add to that the market failures associated with fossil fuel infrastructure itself – the vast network of coal mines, oil and gas wells, pipelines, refineries, oil trains, LNG trains and fossil fuel export terminals that cause expensive physical damages to land, air, water and frontline communities. Air pollution and climate change caused by fossil fuels generate externalized damages of $2.2 – $5.9 trillion per year in the US, and by 2100, the Network for Greening The Financial System predicts a hit in the order of 3 – 10% of GDP each year. Fossil fuel risk bond programs are tools that regulators can use to begin to address these staggering externalized costs.
Scope
The geographic focus of our work in 2024 and 2025 will be in Oregon, Washington, Illinois, California and potentially Louisiana. But the model our fossil fuel risk bond program provides can be adapted for every US state and county that suffers from high concentrations of fossil fuel infrastructure.
Amount Approved
$30,000.00
on 5/15/2024
