December 22, 2022 — By the year 2050, the Baker administration envisions virtually all of the state’s more than five million light-duty vehicles will run on electric power instead of fossil fuels, 80 percent of Massachusetts homes will be heated and cooled with electric heat pumps, and the statewide electrical infrastructure will be able to handle two and a half times more load than in 2020.
Those are some of the key benchmarks in a new climate and clean energy plan Gov. Charlie Baker’s secretariat published Wednesday, outlining sector-specific emissions reduction targets and policy steps that will help Massachusetts achieve the legally required target of achieving net-zero statewide carbon emissions by the middle of the century.
The 2050 plan, which the Baker administration released on its way out the door of state government, seeks to formalize and expand a range of tactics already in play, leaning heavily on electrifying the transportation and building sectors and expanding clean energy sources such as offshore wind.
Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Beth Card said the 192-page document “represents the commonwealth’s comprehensive and aggressive plan to achieve net-zero cost effectively and equitably.”
“To successfully achieve net zero in 2050, it is essential to transition our electricity system to clean energy and make Massachusetts transportation and buildings more energy-efficient and electrify those sectors,” Card told reporters. “This effort will have significant implications for our economy, which is why we must engage closely with other state agencies, municipalities, businesses and residents.”
“Really, this plan is a comprehensive sort of capture of what we think needs to happen next,” Card later added.