New Hampshire’s natural beauty is undeniable. But its environment — and the people and the economy that depend on it — faces mounting threats due to climate change. You can see and feel the changes for yourself: It’s hotter than it used to be.
It snows less. Water is creeping in from the coast. The next governor of New Hampshire will set the tone for how the state addresses climate change.
So far, the state has been out of step with its New England neighbors. It lags in renewable energy adoption and is the only state in the region without a statutory requirement to lower greenhouse gas emissions. Whoever replaces Gov.
Chris Sununu, who is not seeking reelection after four terms in office, will also have to tackle energy affordability in a state and region with some of the highest electricity rates in the country. The next governor will also make key appointments to the Public Utilities Commission and the Department of Energy. The four top candidates for governor expressed distinct visions in these areas in interviews with the Bulletin.
Asked how they see climate change impacting the state in the coming years and decades, and what they would do to mitigate those impacts, the candidates described the problem in different terms. Kelly Ayotte, the Republican former U.S.
senator and state attorney general, said she would take a “bipartisan, balanced approach to protecting our environment, but we have to do so without increasing energy costs, because people can’t afford.