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Don’t Let The Clean Heat Standard Take Away Your Choice!
The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is in the process of implementing what is called a Clean Heat Standard for Massachusetts. A clean heat standard is a very complex tool to measure greenhouse gas emissions and work towards a goal of reducing said emissions. Done correctly, it could be a great way of working towards a cleaner environment in Massachusetts. Unfortunately, Massachusetts appears set to embrace an electrify everything movement and not actually a clean heat standard.
As currently written, the Clean Heat Standard would:
- Limit fuel choices for homeowners
- Encourage widespread electrification over affordable, commercially available fuels
- Exclude Bioheat Fuel as a contributor to the energy solution
- Tax Bioheat and other fossil and renewable fuels (although they will not call it a TAX)
- Eliminate jobs and close local, family-run businesses
- Require massive heating equipment conversion costs
- Create an incredible strain on the electric grid (one which currently relies heavily on fossil fuels) increasing the likelihood of blackouts
Here at Noonan, we believe that Cost, Comfort and Choice are likely quite important to you! If the Clean Heat Standard is implemented, what will that mean for your family?
If you currently heat with an oil-fired heating system, the clean heat standard would force you to give this up and install whole-home electric heat pumps which cost anywhere from $20,000-$35,000. Furthermore, while heat-pumps/ductless mini-splits have a role in the year-round comfort of many homes, they struggle mightily in the cold temperatures of New England Winters, leaving you without a source of heat on our coldest days. In addition, the life expectancy of a heat pump is only 10-15 years (1/2 the life expectancy of a furnace or boiler), requiring change outs twice as often.
As mentioned above, ISO New England has repeatedly warned about reliability concerns during severe weather so how would increasing the strain on that grid by forcing residents to heat with electric heat pumps make sense? In addition, the grid overwhelmingly still relies on fossil fuels (70% of the support comes from natural gas, coal and fuel oil) so that in and of itself, it does not meet the state’s own definition of “clean heat”.
Noonan customers are already doing their part toward a cleaner Massachusetts. We joined forces with leaders in our industry years ago to bring Bioheat, a renewable, low-carbon fuel, to our customers. We have continued to work toward higher blends of biofuel which is the fastest and most cost-effective way to help the Commonwealth meet its goals. Best of all, it works seamlessly in liquid fuel heating equipment with no expensive modifications.
Don’t let the MA DEP make this decision for you and your family. Use this form, or personalize as you see fit, to make your representatives in Boston aware that you want to choose how you heat your home!
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