Tomorrow marks the two-year anniversary of the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act. Representatives of Nevada’s climate and energy activists claim that the law has improved the quality of life of the state’s residents, despite facing criticism and threats from opponents of the measure.

Nevada Assemblyman Howard Watts III, Democrat of Las Vegas, is one of many who say the IRA has helped make energy-efficient home and business renovations more affordable, helping people save money and protect the environment. He also says that in the two years since the law was enacted, the IRA has created over 20,000 jobs, brought $14.5 billion in new and private investment into the country and led to 16 clean energy projects in the Silver State to date.

“I think it’s important to recognize the incredible progress we’ve made. But at the same time, we still have a long way to go and there’s a lot to look forward to as things come out over the next year,” Watts said.

Watts added that more information on incentives, rebates and tax credits is available through the nonprofit Nevada Clean Energy Fund. He also recommends Rewiring America’s Personal Electrification Planner and IRA Savings Calculator as easy-to-use tools.

Michelle Hamilton, a Reno resident and community organizer with the environmental organization Citizens’ Climate Lobby, said she and her husband have long been environmental advocates and used IRA benefits to add electricity to their older home. She argues that electrifying a home doesn’t have to be a difficult undertaking.

“To address these concerns, it’s important to have a plan in place and understand that this won’t happen overnight and that you can time your purchases so that existing equipment will need to be replaced anyway,” she said.

Hamilton added that some things are different in new homes than in older ones, and urged all builders to make their new home “electric-friendly,” meaning it should have an electrical panel that can support things like electric vehicle charging, an electric stove or a clothes dryer.

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Pittsburgh is emerging as a leader in innovative solutions like electric vehicles and clean energy to combat the climate crisis. The group Elected Officials to Protect America says electric vehicle registrations are up about 82% in 2022 compared to the previous year.

Democratic Rep. Emily Kinkead of Allegheny County sees Pittsburgh as a future leader in the green economy, supported by strong unions and academic institutions.

“Whether it’s solar power for schools, sealing oil wells, or a number of other things that are moving us away from fossil fuels and toward electric vehicles, moving away from fossil fuels is a great way to make sure we’re protecting our citizens now,” she explained.

The state is leveraging funding from sources such as the Inflation Reduction Act, which calls for a historic $370 billion investment to combat climate change over the next decade. Pennsylvania’s goal of reducing emissions by 50% by 2030 is the same goal President Joe Biden has set for the nation.

Pittsburgh City Council member Erika Strassburger said the biggest benefit of the Anti-Inflation Act and the bipartisan infrastructure bill – especially in Western Pennsylvania and Pittsburgh – is that they have created many jobs.

“You don’t have to go far from Pittsburgh to the Mon Valley to see 600 new jobs in a battery factory that will help electrify our vehicles and our systems. And those are jobs that would not have been created without these federal investments,” she explained.

Strassburger noted that federal funding will allow Pittsburgh to invest $15 million in electric vehicles for its city fleet, adding that the switch will save energy, reduce gasoline consumption and ultimately save taxpayer money in the long run.

“If we can scale that up, and that’s our intention, to reduce energy costs – starting with 100 residents of the city of Pittsburgh by the end of this year and then over the course of the next six years for 10,000 residents across the region – that means the biggest benefit we see is that people will have to pay less of their paycheck for energy,” she continued.

In Pennsylvania, the number of electric car purchases has increased significantly. At the beginning of this year, more than 47,000 electric cars were registered in the state.

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Iowa has thousands of fewer square miles than Nebraska, but has nearly 3,000 more concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs).

Opponents of the massive facilities argue there are enough of them. The rise of CAFOs across the country has fueled opposition from local residents as well as environmental and animal rights groups.

In Iowa, a grassroots group has blocked the construction of about 100 of these plants. Barb Kalbach, president of Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement, attributes much of Iowa’s poor water quality to runoff from animal waste that is spread on fields along with commercial fertilizer. Kalbach believes that Nebraska’s rural communities should also oppose such developments.

“The manure has to go somewhere,” Kalbach stressed. “The question is not, ‘Should I dump it on the ground or not?’ It has to go. They have to empty the pit and then it gets taken away. And if there are any water problems, people have to act immediately.”

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) describes animal manure as “a major source of nitrogen and phosphorus in surface and groundwater.” Approximately 20 percent of public water supplies and private wells in Nebraska have nitrate and nitrogen levels higher than recommended.

Jonathan Leo, a Nebraska environmental and land use attorney, said CAFO owners typically contract with local farmers to use the animal waste. He noted that for the largest operations, a methane digestion system is essential because of the enormous amount of waste generated.

“It breaks down manure into methane, a major greenhouse gas, which is sold to third parties as an energy source,” Leo explained. “And digestate, which is sold to farmers off-farm as a nutrient additive for the soil.”

Leo and others helped residents of a small Nebraska town block an Iowa producer from opening a large-scale facility that would house more than 6,000 hogs. Leo noted that many of the opponents were farmers themselves.

“We worked with them on how to organize and understand their county’s ordinance on CAFO permits,” Leo said. “And they appeared before their county council and planning commission in a way that made their own bosses say, ‘We’ve never seen this kind of citizen activism before.'”

The failed operation would have taken place about a half-mile uphill from a creek that feeds a lake in a state recreation area used for swimming, boating and fishing.

As a result of a lawsuit filed by Food and Water Watch, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has now agreed to investigate the environmental impacts of CAFOs after years of pressure to do so.

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A summer of fires, floods and extreme heat has prompted a series of town hall meetings on climate change in New Mexico this month in the run-up to the 2025 legislative session.

Camilla Feibelman, director of the Sierra Club’s Rio Grande Chapter, said the meetings will involve communities. She explained the idea is to make sure they are informed about federal, state and utility incentives that will help people weatherize their homes, increase appliance efficiency, install solar panels and purchase electric vehicles.

“At the same time, we want to hear from people what our transition might look like,” Feibelman stressed. “What kind of jobs might people have? What kind of legislation do they think we should be working on in the next 60 days.”

The first town hall meeting will be held in Albuquerque on August 8, followed by others in Las Cruces, Taos and Santa Fe. New Mexico state legislators will be present at each of the meetings, which begin at 5:30 p.m.

Feibelman acknowledged that New Mexico has done a lot to combat climate change, such as clean car mandates, solar credits and energy-efficient building requirements. There are also new laws to reduce methane and smog from oil and gas production. But as she noted, it remains a complex problem.

“Because the Permian oil boom is so big and so profound, it’s like the goalposts are being moved,” Feibelman stressed. “If we really want to reduce our emissions in the way that a crisis like this requires, we really need to take comprehensive action.”

She added that people who have long relied on jobs in the fossil fuel industry must also find a sustainable path forward as we tackle the climate crisis. Feibelman sees the town hall meetings as a good opportunity for people to learn about the huge impacts of climate change, including how it worsens their allergies.

“We want people to feel like they’re taking away from these town hall meetings some small steps that they can implement at home,” Feibelman emphasized. “And some broader opportunities to participate in the decision-making and legislative process.”

New Mexico residents have long been fortunate to have fewer mosquitoes than many other states, but climate change has unexpectedly brought a new species to Albuquerque, making it difficult to be outdoors during the summer months.

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