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Modernize energy rules for geothermal and battery waste
Modernize energy rules for geothermal and battery waste
Grassroots

Industry-led initiatives

Encourage public-private partnerships – for geothermal, perhaps an “adopt-a-lease” program where companies and DOE identify prime sites and fast-track demonstration projects.

Encourage industry coalitions to pilot solutions while policy catches up, including faster geothermal demonstration projects and voluntary battery collection and recycling pathways. Use public-private partnerships to prove what works and build support for formal rules. This matters because visible success can accelerate adoption, but voluntary efforts need reinforcement to scale.

Why this works

  • Industry buy-in can preempt the need for heavy regulation and show success (for instance, if automakers voluntarily retrieve most of their sold EV batteries for recycling, it builds case for formalizing it).

Sierra Club

Advocacy
sierraclub.org

Exploring, enjoying, and protecting the planet

The Sierra Club, founded in 1892 by John Muir, is one of the oldest and largest grassroots environmental organizations in the U.S. With chapters in every state, the Sierra Club engages in a range of activities to protect the environment: it lobbies for strong environmental legislation (from climate action to wildlife protection), runs grassroots campaigns to move beyond fossil fuels, leads outdoor outings to connect people with nature, and occasionally takes legal action to enforce environmental laws. The Sierra Club also has an active political program endorsing and campaigning for pro-environment candidates through its PAC.

Mechanism

About Grassroots

How Sierra Club uses funding

  1. Convene geothermal developers and partners to identify prime sites and pilot streamlined permitting approaches
  2. Coordinate with agencies on pilot pathways that still address environmental and cultural considerations
  3. Support battery coalitions to expand voluntary collection programs like Call2Recycle to cover EV batteries in the interim
  4. Develop shared standards for labeling, collection logistics, and transport practices consistent with emerging guidance needs
  5. Publish pilot results and operational lessons to inform agency guidance and legislation
  6. Recruit lagging companies and reduce free-rider problems through coalition commitments and transparency
View full partner profile

Milestones

Checkpoints and the expected timing for each step

  1. 1

    Form industry working groups and select pilots

    Near-term

    Coalition partners agree on pilot locations, roles, and success criteria

  2. 2

    Launch geothermal demonstration pilots

    Mid-term

    Pilot projects begin under streamlined, well-documented permitting pathways

  3. 3

    Expand voluntary battery collection coverage

    Mid-term

    More collection points and participating companies adopt shared logistics

  4. 4

    Publish standards and recommendations

    Mid-term

    Pilot results translate into clear, reusable standards and policy inputs

  5. 5

    Transition pilots into scaled policy and operations

    Longer-term

    Agency guidance or legislation adopts proven approaches and scaling begins

Risks, trade-offs & sources

Updates

No updates yet.

Updates will appear here as the strategy progresses.

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