White House Announces New Climate Working Group as Part of its Clean Energy Agenda

The White House recently announced a new initiative to stimulate more jobs, whilst also playing a role in tackling the current climate change crisis. Included in this new initiative is the establishment of a new Climate Innovation Working Group, which will support the national Climate Task Force, and support President Biden’s goals to launch a new agency: Advanced Research Projects Agency-Climate (ARPA-C). Further establishing the importance of this initiative is the fact that this working group will be co-chaired by the White House Office of Domestic Climate Policy, Office of Science and Technology, and the Office Management and Budget.
 
Among other responsibilities, the Climate Innovation Working Group will work with the administration to advance:
 

• Zero net carbon buildings at zero net cost, including carbon-neutral construction materials;
• Advanced energy system management tools to plan for and operate a grid powered by zero carbon power plants;
• Energy storage at one-tenth the cost of today’s alternatives; and
• New, sustainable fuels for aircraft and ships, as well as improvements in broader aircraft and ship efficiency and transportation management.

In conjunction with the establishment of this new working group, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced $100 million in funding through the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) to support transformational low-carbon energy technologies. DOE Chief of Staff Tarak Shah noted, “The Department of Energy is committed to empowering innovators to think boldly and create the cutting-edge technologies that will usher in our clean energy future and create millions of good-paying jobs.”
 
For further information about this new initiative, click here: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/02/11/biden-harris-administration-launches-american-innovation-effort-to-create-jobs-and-tackle-the-climate-crisis/.