Hillary Clinton will roll out a comprehensive climate and energy policy proposal Monday that would dramatically increase the country’s use of renewable energy.
Clinton’s plan, which she will unveil at an energy efficient transit hub in Iowa, will promise to create enough clean renewable energy to power every home in the U.S. within 10 years of Clinton taking office.
That includes a 700% increase in solar panel installation by the end of her hypothetical first term, for a total of half a billion installed solar panels. Clinton will also call for a rapid expansion of power generation capacity from wind, hydro, geothermal, and other renewable sources.
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The former secretary of state will also propose incentives for the technological development of solar and other sources through a number of partnerships and competitions. For instance, she would create a “Solar x-prize” for communities that make it easier to install roof-top panels. And she would create new tax incentives and competitive grants to encourage states and the private sector to invest in clean energy.
She will also call for improvements to the electrical grid, expanding renewable energy production on public lands and increase federal R&D funding.
“I am setting some really high goals that we are going to meet when I am president,” Clinton said in Ames, Iowa Sunday.
Clinton’s plan would also adopt a proposal known as “Deep Decarbonization Pathways,” an international partnership of high-emitting countries that works to find ways to transition industrial countries to low-carbon economies.
“The decisions we make in the next decade can make all of this possible or they can keep us trapped in the past,” Clinton said in a video posted to her website previewing the plan. “We cannot wait any longer.” In the video, Clinton also goes after Republicans, listing quotes from top GOP presidential candidates casting doubt on the science of climate change. Billionaire Clinton donor Tom Steyer, who funds his own climate group and is pushing Democrats to be more aggressive on global warming, called Clinton’s plan an “ambitious framework” and said it made her “a strong leader in solving the climate crisis.” Democratic rival Martin O’Malley has already rolled out a plan that he promise would transition the country 100% renewable energy, and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders often says climate change is a top priority.
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