Missouri Energy and Climate Resources:
Missouri is Vulnerable to Climate Change:
- Once-rare floods in Missouri have become a regular occurrence. The historic flood in December 2015 affected 37 counties and the City of St. Louis, leading to 16 deaths and $41 million worth of damage.
- Missouri has not developed statewide plans to adapt to climate change.
- The entire Midwest region will be affected by extreme heat, heavy downpours and flooding that will impact agriculture, health and infrastructure.
- Over the last 30 years, St. Louis has witnessed only 8 days per year above 95°F. This will increase to 49 to 126 extremely hot days by the end of the century.
- Over the next 25 years, extreme heat will cause average commodity crop losses up to 18 to 24 percent in some Missouri counties.
Missouri’s renewable energy efforts and opinions:
- 60 percent of Missourians understand global warming is already happening. A strong 76 percent support funding research into renewable energy and 64 percent favor setting strict CO2 limits on existing coal-fired power plants.
- The Clean Power Plan (CPP) would require Missouri to cut 36.7 percent of its power-sector emissions by 2030. Most of the state’s electricity comes from coal-fired power plants.
- Missouri is party to the lawsuit against the CPP but has not given an official response to the Supreme Court’s temporary stay. The state legislature recently introduced two bills to postpone drafting a state compliance plan for at least one year or, possibly indefinitely.
- Missouri ranks 19th in the country for installed solar capacity with 131 MW of solar power. As of 2014, the state had 459 MW of wind power, ranking it 25th nationwide.
- Last year, the Missouri Public Service Commission rejected a $2.2 billion, 780-mile Grain Belt Express transmission line that would carry wind power from Kansas across Missouri to eastern power grids.