President Biden celebrated Earth Day on Monday by announcing $7 billion in federal grants to help low-income households afford solar panels, as he tries to lock down the support of young, climate-focused progressives who supported him in the last election.
The solar power grants will serve more than 900,000 households in low- and middle-income communities and will be awarded by the Environmental Protection Agency.
Mr. Biden said the grants will reduce emissions by the equivalent of 30 million metric tons of carbon dioxide and could save households across the country $350 million annually.
“Energy costs are among the biggest causes for families to budget, particularly among poor and middle-income families,” Mr. Biden said. “In fact, low-income families can spend 30% of their paychecks on energy bills. It’s outrageous.”
Solar energy is gaining traction as a critical renewable energy source that could reduce the nation’s reliance on fossil fuels. It is not only clean but can boost the reliability of electrical grids. But it is also expensive to install, making it difficult for many Americans to adopt it.
Mr. Biden also announced the creation of 2,000 jobs that will be the first of his 20,000 federally funded jobs that will be available to young people to get involved in conservation and renewable energy to combat climate change.
The initiatives were announced during an Earth Day event at Prince William Forest Park in Virginia. It was established in 1936 as a summer camp for underprivileged youth from Washington as part of President Franklin Roosevelt’s Civilian Conservation Corps, a New Deal program to create jobs during the Great Depression.
It is ironic that Mr. Biden delivered his remarks in a forest. A recent study by Harvard University and others has found that several solar projects have required the clearing of carbon-absorbing forests, undercutting their environmental progress.
Some young progressives have soured on Mr. Biden over U.S. support of Israel in its war against the Palestinian militant group Hamas.
Upon taking office, Mr. Biden pledged to be the “climate president” and took dramatic steps to woo green activists, including halting permits for natural gas exports and steering billions of taxpayer dollars into green energy programs.
Mr. Biden‘s environmental message is in danger of being drowned out by young environmentalists angry over the president taking too long to demand a cease-fire in Gaza. Polls show that younger voters overwhelmingly support more aggressive climate actions, like the ones Mr. Biden has championed, and back Palestinians in Gaza.
Mr. Biden‘s relationship with some young climate activists was already tense when they expressed disappointment over the government greenlighting the Willow oil project in Alaska, approving the construction of a deep water oil export terminal off the Texas coast and allowing more natural oil and gas drilling in the U.S. than the Trump administration.
• Jeff Mordock can be reached at jmordock@washingtontimes.com.
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