Dive Brief:
- Hillary Clinton's campaign is signaling the candidate will not support calls for a price on carbon, despite that proposal being included in the Democratic party's platform adopted over the weekend.
- Inclusion of a carbon price was a significant victory for Bernie Sanders, whose supporters pressed for the plank following the Vermont Senator's decision to concede the nomination to Clinton.
- Clinton's environmental policy calls for cutting carbon and boosting renewable energy, but it does not include mention of a price on carbon.
Dive Insight:
The inclusion of a price on carbon was a specific policy goal advocated by Sanders supporters, but it does not appear the party's standard bearer will continue that fight.
“Her plan is clearly articulated on her website. It's not her plan," Clinton energy policy adviser Trevor Houser told the Associated Press.
The language inserted into the Democratic party platform on Saturday reads: "Democrats believe that carbon dioxide, methane and other greenhouse gases should be priced to reflect their negative externalities, and to accelerate the transition to a clean energy economy and help meet our climate goals."
The Sanders campaign issued a statement following the platform decision, saying Democrats "agreed to the most aggressive plan to combat climate change in the history of the party here Saturday night." The Vermont senator endorsed Clinton for president this week.
Clinton's environmental plan calls for a national goal of installing 500 million solar panels, generating enough renewable energy to power every home in America, bringing greenhouse gas emissions to 30% below what they were in 2005 within the next decade.
Clinton has also called for a $60 billion Clean Energy Challenge to give states, cities, and rural communities resources to go beyond federal standards on carbon pollution and expanding clean energy. She has also committed to implementing the Clean Power Plan.
Clinton's challenger, Donald Trump, endorsed many long-held Republican priorities in an energy speech last month, including rescinding pollution regulations, opposing international environmental accords, and supporting the fossil fuel industry. If elected, he would be the sole world leader to deny the science behind climate change, a Sierra Club report noted this week.