Gov. Josh Green on Wednesday signed a handful of measures that aim to fight climate change and move the state closer to achieving its ambitious climate goals.
“One of the challenges we have is we’re still the state with the largest share of consumption of fossil fuels,” Green said at a signing ceremony at the state Capitol. “That is a big problem for us because we’re so far away. But we’re changing that.”
One of the bills, SB 691, authorizes the state energy officer to adopt rules to enforce or amend minimum efficiency standards for certain products and allows suppliers enough time to bring more energy- efficient products to market.
The result will be more products that help reduce electricity and water waste. Hawaii’s residents and businesses are expected to save an estimated $175 million in utility bills over the next 25 years while avoiding 200,000 tons of carbon emissions and conserving 5 billion gallons of fresh water.
Another bill signed Wednesday, HB 192, bans the sale of certain fluorescent lamps in a move to reduce energy waste and pollution. Hawaii joins five other states that already have adopted similar laws.
The law allows energy- efficient LEDs to take the place of fluorescent bulbs beginning in January 2025. By 2050, the policy is expected to save Hawaii taxpayers $382 billion in electricity bills, cut 750,000 tons of carbon emissions and keep mercury, a hazardous waste, out of the state’s landfills and environment.
Melissa Miyashiro, Blue Planet Foundation executive director, said she was excited by the new energy- efficiency policies. She said they will play an important role in helping Hawaii lower carbon emissions while lowering utility bills.
“These are the win-win policies we need to make our ambitious climate goals a reality,” Miyashiro said.
Another bill signed into law, SB 1024, establishes long-term goals and strategies that help to reduce and eliminate greenhouse gas emissions from Hawaii’s ground and interisland transportation sectors. Among other things, it establishes a clean ground transportation working group and interisland transportation working group to recommend changes.
Rep. Nicole Lowen, chair of the House Committee on Energy and Environmental Protection, said the measure bolsters the state’s clean transportation goals by ensuring the development of solutions in the transportation sector. The bill, she said, specifically references sea and air transportation, sectors that haven’t gotten a lot of attention.
“That’s a really important step toward a cleaner transportation future,” Lowen said.
Also signed into law Wednesday is SB 1417, which requires the Hawaii Community Development Authority to consider the impacts of climate change, sea-level rise and climate- resilient development in the design and siting of buildings in the Kakaako and Kalaeloa community development districts.
Hawaii was the first state in the nation to set a goal for 100% renewable electricity and a carbon- negative future by 2045.
Correction: An earlier version of this story included information that has since been corrected, including the amount of fresh water to be conserved over the next 25 years, the number of states that already adopted a similiar law, and the number of carbon emissions expected to be cut by 2050.
