Washington, D.C. — In response to today’s announcement from the Department of the Treasury outlining internationally aligned standards for receiving federal tax credits for hydrogen production, the League of Conservation Voters (LCV) issued the following statement from VP of Federal Policy, Matthew Davis:

“Today’s announcement is another step in the Biden-Harris administration’s whole-of-government approach to tackle the climate crisis through investments in new clean technologies and projects while reasonably ensuring the buildout of green hydrogen production reduces emissions as Congress intended. It is critical that the deployment of clean, green hydrogen also substantially reduces or eliminates toxic pollution in historically excluded and already overburdened communities. These communities must be equitably included and consulted in the process, and we urge the Biden-Harris administration to deploy clean hydrogen in a way that maximizes community-identified benefits and minimizes risks for all communities.  We also urge the administration to swiftly finalize these reasonable sideboards for green hydrogen without opening up new loopholes, and ensure that clean hydrogen investments support communities, good paying union jobs, and high-road labor standards.”

“Hydrogen used to prolong fossil fuel use and infrastructure has no place in our clean energy future, and the proposal is not reassuring on limiting emissions from hydrogen created from methane gas. The administration’s model estimating upstream emissions from methane gas woefully underestimates the real climate and public health impacts and the administration should not encourage the fossil fuel industry’s efforts to greenwash methane gas. We look forward to continuing to engage with the administration as they finalize these rules.”

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