Donald Trump Once Believed in Clean Energy, So What Happened?

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This is a guest post by Dave Anderson, originally posted on the Energy and Policy Institute.

President Donald Trump is well known for his record ofย over-the-top attacksย on clean energy, but properties managed by the Trump Organization have taken advantage of state energy efficiency incentives to save money and reduce their carbon dioxideย emissions.

Asย first reported by Hiroko Tabuchi in todayโ€™s New York Times, theย Trump Tower at City Centerย in White Plains, New York, benefited from a lighting upgrade, the addition of a combined heat and power (CHP)ย system, and other energy efficiency improvements. The projectย receivedย more than $280,000 in incentives from theย Multifamily Performance Programrun by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA). Aย low-interest loanย from NYSERDA covered the remainder of theย cost.

โ€œI strongly believe in clean energy, conserving energy, all of that โ€” more than anybody,โ€ Donald Trump was quoted as saying in aย fact sheetย on the CHP component of the project that was prepared for NYSERDA by CDH Energy Corp. Those words stand in sharp contrast to Trumpโ€™s bombasticย attacks on clean energy, climate science, andย green buildings.

โ€œThe CHP systemโ€™s greater efficiency compared to the use of conventional utilities should help to substantially reduce emissions of carbon dioxide as well as other pollutants and greenhouse gases,โ€ the factsheet alsoย said.

Lifetime savings from the Trump Tower energy efficiency project areย expectedย to total just over $2.84 million, more than four times the cost of the upgrades, showing how the very kind of clean energy initiatives that Trump has slammedย can generate real economicย benefits.

โ€œTrump Tower at City Center reduced its energy use by 21 percent, creating a major savings on energy costs,โ€ according to 2013 NYSERDAย case study. โ€œAfter just over three years, the project has paid for itself withย savings.โ€

The Trump Tower likely never would have benefited from these savings if not for the energy efficiency incentives offered by NYSERDA. Inย a 2013 video, the buildingโ€™s property manager explained how his first course of action upon seeing the buildingโ€™s high energy bills was to explore what options NYSERDAย offered.

Other Trump Projects Benefited From Clean Energyย Incentivesย too

By 2008, the Trump Organizationโ€™s participation in the Multifamily Performance Program already included โ€œ15 projects โ€” 3385 units,โ€ according toย statistics provided to the New York Public Service Commission by TRC Energy Services, a consultant and contractor for NYSERDA.ย 

In addition, at least three other Trump properties benefited from clean energy incentives offered by Newย Jersey.

โ€œAll three projects will yield a projected annual savings of over $11 million in energy costs and the avoidance of over 150 million pounds of CO2 emissions,โ€ according to aย 2007 two-pagerput out by the New Jersey Clean Energyย Program.

โ€œThe projects will annually avoid over 150 million lbs. of CO2, a leading cause of global climate change,โ€ย saidย the New Jersey Board on Publicย Utilities.

Trump alsoย agreed to achieve LEED certificationย at his โ€œTrump on the Oceanโ€ project, which was planned for Jones Beach, as part of a lease agreement with the New York Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. That project was cancelled after the destruction caused by Hurricaneย Sandy.

โ€œHurricane Sandy has opened everyoneโ€™s eyes to the potential risks of building directly on the oceanfront,โ€ a state officialย explained in a statementย at the time. โ€œLooking over the coming decades, as we face sea level rise and the threat of future damaging storms, we have concluded that building a major new facility directly on the oceanfront, on the scale of the Trump project, is not prudentย policy.โ€

Trump Benefited From State Clean Energy Policies the Fossil Fuel Industry Has Long Opposedย ย ย ย ย 

Around the time of the Trump Tower project, NYSERDAโ€™s MPP incentive program wasย funded by three sources: New Yorkโ€™sย Systems Benefit Charge,ย Energy Efficiency Portfolio Standard, and theย Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiativeย (RGGI). These clean energy programs have since beenย highlighted as modelsย for states seeking to cost-effectively meet the Environmental Protection Agencyโ€™s first-ever limits on carbon dioxide pollution from power plants under the Clean Powerย Plan.

Unfortunately, Donald Trumpโ€™sย prioritiesย as president seem to be moreย squarely alignedย with the agenda of his allies in the fossil fuel industry, such as the Koch brothers. Trumpย pledged on the campaignย trail to โ€œrescindโ€ the Clean Power Plan, prior to being elected president. Scott Pruitt, a vocal opponent of the Clean Power Plan and closeย ally of the fossil fuel industry, is Trumpโ€™s newย EPAย administrator.

Koch-funded special interest groups, such as Americans for Prosperity, have long targeted theย Clean Power Planย andย RGGI, as well asย system benefits chargesย andย clean energy standards, withย misleading attacks. Trump backersย like the coal company Murray Energyhaveย invoked his nameย in their ongoing attacks on clean energyย policies.

Another Reminder of Donald Trumpโ€™s Fip-flops on Clean Energy, Climate Change, and Greenย Buildings

Donald Trump is now well known for his postsย espousing climate change denial and denigrating clean energyย onย Twitter.

It wasnโ€™t always this way. In 2009, Donald, Eric, and Ivanka Trumpโ€™s names appeared alongside those of other business leaders inย a full-page ad in the New York Times, which urged President Barack Obama to lead the world on addressing the very real threat posed by climateย change.

โ€œInvesting in a Clean Energy Economy will drive state-of-the-art technologies that will spur economic growth, create new energy jobs, and increase our energy security while reducing the harmful emissions that are putting our planet at risk,โ€ the adย said.

The energy efficiency improvements at the Trump Tower at City Center, andย similar projects undertaken elsewhere, show that as a business, the Trump Organization took steps to put those forward-thinking words into action. Nonetheless, Donald Trump would go on to publicly attack green buildings in his celebrityย persona.

In 2012, Donald Trump attacked green buildings during the inaugural edition of the โ€œTrump Tuesdaysโ€ feature on CNBCโ€™s The Squawk Box. Watch the segment, which begins at 6:10, in the video on the Energy and Policy Instituteย website.

Lower Electricity Bills at a Trump Tower, Thanks to New Yorkโ€™s Clean Energyย Policies

On the campaign trail, Trumpย wrongly claimedย that the Clean Power Plan willย raise electricity bills by double digits. But residents of the Trump Towerย now enjoy lower electricity bills, thanks to an energy efficiency program made possible by New Yorkโ€™s clean energy policies, which provide a roadmap for other states to affordably meet the Clean Power Planโ€™sย goals.

Installation of a combined heat and power system benefited those Trump Tower residents. Experts say thatย low-income communities can benefit from CHP too, and have recommended that the EPA include CHP in the Clean Energy Incentive Program component of the Clean Power Plan. The Combined Heat and Power Associationย planned to meetย with members of the Trump administration inย February, and its regulatory committee is still working on the Clean Powerย Plan.

Can Donald Trump Learn From his Business Experience With Cleanย Energy?

A number of states areย now calling on Trumpย to stand by the Clean Powerย Plan.

โ€œStates like New York are on the front lines of climate change โ€” and have demonstrated how to cut pollution and emissions while protecting affordable and reliable electricity, creating jobs, and growing our economy,โ€ said New York Attorney General Schneiderman in a recent statement. โ€œThe Clean Power Plan builds on that successful work and is a blueprint for the critical action needed to fight climate changeโ€™s devastating environmental, economic, and public health impacts. The science is clear and far too much is at stake to turn back the clock on our climateย efforts.โ€

Donald Trumpโ€™s own properties benefited from energy efficiency upgrades, courtesy of successful clean energy and climate change policies in states like New Jersey and New York. However, the Trump administrationย appears to be heading in a very different directionย onย clean energyย andย climate change.ย 

Main image:ย Trump International Hotel and Tower (Chicago)ย Credit:ย TonyTheTiger,ย CC BYSAย 3.0

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