The cost of the doing nothing on climate will far outweigh the cost of a climate transition for New York, according to state Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Basil Seggos, who addressed concerns on Capital Tonight.
“I just want to make sure viewers are clear. People are already paying for the impacts of climate change. That is a certainty. We spent $36 billion to recover from Superstorm Sandy,” Seggos said. “We see a $55 billion bill, potentially, if we don’t do the right things in New York, just on adaptation over the next 10 years.”
There are multiple courses of action when it comes to paying for the climate transition, including the state’s emerging cap-and-invest program.
The DEC and New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) released a climate affordability study in December to examine the best ways to use cap-and-invest program funds, recommending refundable tax credits or using existing benefit programs.
Money from the …