By Leah Seligmann, Chief Sustainability Officer, NRG Energy
This week, people from around the world will focus their attention on climate change as global leaders convene in New York City for the UN Climate Summit 2014. There will be marches, week-long bike rides, expert talks, and meetings with heads of state and titans of industry—all focused on how we can address what is arguably the greatest challenge of our generation. It will be an impressive and perhaps unprecedented show of support, and I am sure it will be an inflection point in the fight against climate change. But this one week is not nearly enough to alter the course we are on.
To do what we need to do in the timeframe we need to do it in will require a concerted effort across the globe. Companies will have to design smarter products and services, policymakers will have to create a framework that encourages action and discourages emissions. Perhaps most importantly, consumers will need to understand and take ownership of their choices.
At NRG, this call to action hits particularly close to home. The electricity industry is at the center of the climate crisis. Today, the energy system is the largest contributor to CO2 emissions in the United States, and as one of the nation’s largest electricity generator, NRG has a very large stake in the issue of GHG emissions and in seeing that those emissions are successfully reduced. In our current system, carbon emissions go hand-in-hand with the majority of energy we use, and changing this is not easy. The energy we produce is enough to power the homes and businesses of 40 million Americans. We provide a vital lifesaving and enabling service to our customers that cannot be interrupted as we transition to a clean-energy economy.
To get to the dramatic carbon reductions we need while preserving both reliability and the affordability of electric energy, we need innovation and some fundamental changes to how energy is sourced, produced, sold, regulated, and consumed. Our entire system needs to evolve. As a company, NRG has been laying the foundation for this transition for several years. For example, we have invested to become the largest provider of solar energy in the United States, are developing the nation’s largest network of EV charging stations, and just two weeks ago, we broke ground on Petra Nova, the world’s largest post-combustion carbon capture project at an existing coal plant. These accomplishments are important, but they are just the very beginning of what needs to happen to address climate change.
Even though NRG is one of the largest players in the electricity industry in the United States, we account for only a fraction of a percent of global GHG emissions. Unlike many things we take on as a company, our actions alone will only make a very small dent in the fight against climate change. Success on this challenge will require unprecedented collaboration across all sectors and geographies. We need everyone to stand up and do their part in support of climate action. At NRG, our task is to keep the current energy system running as we build the system of the future, integrating carbon-free energy seamlessly into our customers’ lives. Everyone reading this also has a critical role to play. We must all take steps to mitigate climate change, whether it is choosing renewable energy, improving resource efficiency, or changing agricultural practices.
Climate Week provides an opportunity to voice our support for action, but the days and weeks that follow are what really matter. I challenge everyone to reflect on how they can contribute to the solution and then, without hesitating, take action.