Jersey's cleaning up, well maybe not the Jersey Shore

Being from Jersey, I often hear the overused "What exit are you?" or "Oh, the armpit of America."  Well, look here people, Jersey is one of the first 10 states to join the fight against global warming through a voluntary emissions cap-and-trade. It has raised over $9.1 Million to fund renewable energy projects to help increase adoption and spur innovation. In fact, even before this, Jersey ranked 2nd in the country in PV installation,  after those tree-huggers in CA. So while the Jersey Shore may be dirty, the air will be clean and we are innovating on new ways to promote clean energy.  There is a lot more to Jersey than meets the Turnpike.

New Jersey has collected around $9.1 million to fund clean energy projects during a quarterly auction of carbon allowances held earlier last week. The auction generated $87,956,944, with most of the proceeds going toward zero interest loans and grants for energy efficiency and renewable energy projects statewide. Additional funds will be given to the Board of Public utilities to provide customer assistance, and will also be used in programs that help lower carbon emissions and protect habitats. New Jersey is one of ten states involved in a voluntary cap-and-trade program which auctions off emissions from power plants, called the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). The other states are Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island and Vermont. To see the full article, click here.
By Christine Ribeiro. Christine is an Associate at MassChallenge. She is also a New Jersey native.