When the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act was signed into law, it unleashed a stream of clean energy projects, with Gov. Josh Shapiro quickly taking the initiative to welcome at least $116.1 million of investment for our state.

With our abundant natural resources and skilled workforce, Pennsylvania is well positioned to embrace the fight to reduce pollution. In just one year, federal policy to support a clean energy transition has helped bring 157 jobs to our state. Meanwhile, the Department of Energy estimates we’ll see at least $270 million in large-scale clean power generation and storage in Pennsylvania by 2030.

All this investment illustrates how we can reap rewards for Pennsylvania residents while tackling the most pressing issue of our time — escalating weather extremes due to heat-trapping carbon pollution we continue to release into the atmosphere, altering our climate.

At the very least, the climate policy progress already made must remain intact. With an election year around the corner, it may be tempting to play politics around this legislation or around the climate issue in general, but any efforts to roll back or redirect this critical climate investment would be ill-advised. Voters like us want — and expect — these benefits to continue to flow into our state.

As our legislators look to the future, they should continue to ramp up clean energy efforts, meeting the moment to reduce climate pollution while bringing good jobs and real-world benefits to Pennsylvania.

Bruce Cooper

Cranberry Township

group leader of the Slippery Rock chapter of Citizen’s Climate Lobby