This week, both the Senate and House of Representatives took up a variety energy and environment bills. Here’s how they voted.
In the House
Thursday’s vote by the New Hampshire House of Representatives was against a bill that would have required state agencies to reduce fossil fuel use and encouraged them to switch to electric vehicles.
Transportation is the biggest contributor to New Hampshire’s carbon emissions. These emissions are contributing to climate change.
Jacqueline Chretien, a House Democrat, supported the bill and described it as a simple economic win and an environmental win.
She stated that everyone should support efforts to reduce energy costs and state expenditures.
Legislators who encouraged peers to vote down this bill expressed concern about the reliability and potential impacts of electric vehicles on the grid, as well as the potential environmental and financial impact of their batteries.
The House passed a bill to allow the Burgess biomass power station in Berlin to continue operating for another year. A House AmendmentThe bill was changed from the one that would have been Ratepayers forgiven of a ratepayer’s debtTo one that would give the legislature and the plant one year to find a long-term solution for their financial problems.
Representatives passed two bills on Wednesday to amend the consent calendar in order to assist New Hampshire in preparing for the development of the offshore wind industry at the Gulf of Maine.
Another bill, which would create new structures for community solar programs to benefit low- and moderate-income Granite Staters was also approved on the Houses consent calendar. Advocates claim that this bill could remove barriers to the development of solar projects that are beneficial to low- and moderate income customers.
In the Senate
After a long debate that saw many voices raised, the Senate of New Hampshire passed Thursday’s bill. It would establish a new method to determine how far landfills should be away from water bodies.
Current rules require that landfills are at least 200 feet away water bodies. The new method of placing a landfill is based on how long it would take groundwater, which could have been contaminated from the landfill, reach a river, lake or ocean. If the bill is passed, landfills will need to be sufficiently far away from water bodies to prevent groundwater contamination for more than five year.
Senator Republican Erin Hennessey supported the bill and introduced an amendment to the floor that would allow specific sites to be allowed based on certain situations, such a site’s ability or inability to introduce additional technology to prevent contamination.
Hennessey stated that we must prevent contamination and not put the health of our Granite Staters at risk. He also said that we should not spend uncountable money to clean up any contamination.
The bill’s supporters testified that the new rule is consistent with federal recommendations and protects our environment. They said that New Hampshire would still have more stringent requirements than other states if the bill becomes law.
GOP Senator Kevin Avard criticised the bill, claiming it targets one particular site. LandfillCasella Waste Systems hopes to build in Dalton.
Senators vote down another BillThis would have created a committee to examine the criteria for locating landfills.
