The Northeast cap-and-trade program Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative has generated more than $1 billion for energy efficiency programs in its 10 original member states since its beginning in 2008.
RGGI crossed the milestone with its past auction on Sept. 5 where regional generators of carbon dioxide buy allowances to continue to emit the pollutant into the atmosphere.
Of the $1 billion in proceeds to date, $334 million has gone to the six New England states, all for energy efficiency programs.
Only nine states still participate in RGGI: Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, New York, Maryland, and Delaware. New Jersey originally has its power generators participate in the auction but pulled out last year.
