This past Friday it was New Mexico utility PNM Resources announcing that it would "leave the U.S. Chamber of Commerce because of the business group's position on climate change." Today, it's the nation's largest utility - Exelon.Today, Exelon CEO John Rowe announced that his company — the largest electric utility company in the United States — would not renew its membership in the U.S. Chamber of Commerce because of its opposition to global warming action. In his keynote address to the annual conference of the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE), the nation’s largest association of energy efficiency experts, Rowe said that the Chamber’s multi-million-dollar campaign against clean energy legislation is incompatible with Exelon’s commitment to climate change leadership...As the science becomes more and more dire on what we're doing to our planet's environment through profligate combustion of fossil fuels, and as the potential economic boon from clean energy becomes more and more apparent, rational energy companies are getting on board with the need to put a price and/or cap on carbon emissions. As Exelon CEO Rowe said today, "The carbon-based free lunch is over" and "Putting a price on carbon is essential, because it will force us to do the cheapest things, like energy efficiency, first." Thank you, Exelon, for getting with the rest of us in the "reality-based universe."
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Confirming Exelon’s decision to ThinkProgress, a spokesperson explained that “Exelon is a big supporter of climate legislation.” Exelon is the third energy company to sever ties with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in the past week, joining Pacific Gas & Electric and PNM Resources.
Closer to home, unfortunately, we have one of the worst, greediest, most irresponsible companies in the world - Dominion Virginia Power. Unfortunately, the folks at Dominion are also extremely adept at buying off our legislators and spending the money they collect from our utility bills to spew their corporate propaganda here, there and everywhere (sort of like they spew their pollution). When are we going to have candidates for higher office in Virginia who say "enough is enough" to Dominion? So far, the best I'm seeing is Creigh Deeds' call for a mandatory renewable portfolio standard. Bob McDonnell, unsurprisingly, is completely worthless on environmental and energy issues ("drill baby drill" - yeah!), which makes it utterly unsurprising that he received the Fairfax County Chamber of Commerce's endorsement the other day. And yes, Dominion Power is on the Chamber's Board of Directors (as is ExxonMobil, which is even worse than Dominion if at all possible). 'Nuff said.
