Climate scientists say we must significantly reduce greenhouse gases if we are to leave a livable planet for future generations. Otherwise, it will become increasingly inhospitable to life.

It is undeniable that emissions generated by the burning of fossil fuels and other human activities are warming our planet and contributing to unpredictable and intense hurricanes, severe drought conditions, massive wildfires, rain bombs, devastating flooding and other disastrous climate consequences.

To heal our planet, we must not only dramatically reduce emissions but also remove greenhouse gases from the atmosphere at a rate that exceeds human-caused emissions (net-negative carbon). Greenhouse gas removal is more effectively achieved through natural carbon sinks, such as forests, oceans and soils. However, these natural processes take time to develop, and carbon dioxide, the most prevalent greenhouse gas, can stay in the atmosphere for hundreds of years.

Unfortunately, the concentration of carbon dioxide in the Earth’s atmosphere continues to rise. Today it is 33% higher than in 1958 when regular measurements started at the Mauna Loa Atmospheric Observatory. The U.S. has made progress in reducing its emissions. But much more absolutely must be done. The U.S. is, historically, the largest total carbon polluter in the world, and according to World Data, U.S. carbon emissions per person exceed that of China by over 40%. Globally, the U.S. dumps more than 100,000,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Every day.

Can we achieve meaningful emissions reductions? Yes. We have the technology and know-how to enable a low-carbon energy future and remove the carbon pollution that already exists. To do so, we must make regulatory and policy changes to allow for a more rapid transition to clean energy and transportation and enhance our natural carbon sinks.

The Energy Permitting Reform Act of 2024 (S. 4753) is a bipartisan compromise that will enable such changes. When passed, it will accelerate the deployment of clean energy. While it includes some controversial provisions that potentially benefit fossil fuel companies (drilling leases and liquefied natural gas export terminals), its overall impact gives an emissions reduction of 25% by 2050, according to energy research organizations such as Princeton’s Zero Lab, RMI, Third Way and Resources for the Future.

A major element of the Energy Permitting Reform Act is to streamline the lengthy regulatory process for obtaining permits to develop clean, renewable energy while maintaining the integrity of environmental protection regulations. For example, the bill would greatly shorten the time to permit new transmission lines that are needed to transmit power from remote solar farms and other renewable energy sources to cities and other large demand centers.

Another example is the quicker deployment of responsible, equitable geothermal energy. This is of major significance to Hawaii, given the potential for geothermal energy to provide the state with abundant baseload power that can contribute greatly to our energy independence.

Importantly, the provisions in the Energy Permitting Reform Act are necessary for the U.S. to fully realize the value of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) of 2022. The IRA appropriated hundreds of billions of dollars for energy and climate change initiatives. However, hurdles in the permitting process are slowing progress and delaying the emission reduction benefits of these projects. The energy act would speed up the development of many of these projects by more rapidly approving good projects and rejecting bad ones.

The Energy Permitting Reform Act is critical to our transition to a clean energy future and should be actively supported. We urge Hawaii’s U.S. Sens. Mazie Hirono and Brian Schatz to support this legislation.

Sophia Park is a local high school student; Ron Reilly is a Citizens’ Climate Lobby Hawaii (CCLH) state coordinator; Keith Neal is a CCLH member.