Renewable Energy Focus
Greentech Media - Jan 5
California Governor Jerry Brown has upped the ante on the state’s green energy goals, calling for a big increase in renewable energy, alternative fuels, and building efficiency over the next fifteen years, along with the smart grid investments to put them to use. In his inaugural address, Brown proposed an ambitious expansion of California’s renewable energy goals, from one-third by 2020 to 50 percent by 2030, a goal that’s now open to state policymakers with the passage of AB 327 last year. Brown also proposed that the state set guidelines to cut fossil fuel use in cars and trucks in half over the next fifteen years, and double energy efficiency in existing buildings over the same time.
North American Windpower - Dec 22
On Friday, December 19, President Obama signed H.R.5771, the Tax Increase Prevention Act of 2014, into law. H.R.5771 provides a one-year extension through the end of 2014 for dozens of tax provisions that expired at the end of 2013, including the wind energy production tax credit (PTC). The one-year extension, applied retroactively, is far shorter than the time frame sought by the American Wind Energy Association, which was advocating for a two-year PTC extension as contained in the EXPIRE Act, a separate tax extenders package that passed in the Senate Finance Committee but was stalled in May.
North American Windpower - Jan 7
According to a new report from Virginia-based market analysis firm SNL Financial, new generating capacity added 15.5 gigawatts to the U.S. generating fleet in 2014, which was slightly more than the 15 gigawatts added in the prior year. Looking at 2014's new capacity by fuel type, slightly more than half was gas-fired. Wind accounted for the second-largest amount of capacity added, almost 3.8 gigawatts, during the year. As wind developers rushed to capitalize on the brief extension of the production tax credit, the month of December saw almost one-third of all of 2014's wind capacity additions. New solar capacity in 2014 totaled 3.2 gigawatts.
Scientific American - Dec 23
Electricity suppliers have been shedding jobs over the past three years, with a net loss of 5,800 jobs across the U.S. While non-hydro renewable power plants have seen significant growth, these job additions were not enough to offset losses at nuclear, fossil fuel, and hydroelectric power plants. Hydroelectric power has seen a six percent loss in jobs since January 2011. However other renewables, namely wind, solar, biomass, and geothermal, have seen significant job gains despite largely declining electricity sales across the country.
Los Angeles Times - Dec 23
Moving to limit fallout from a growing scandal at the California Public Utilities Commission (PUC), Governor Jerry Brown named his former renewable energy advisor, Michael Picker, as the new president of the powerful regulatory agency. The governor also chose Liane Randolph, 49, general counsel at the California Natural Resources Agency, to fill Picker's former seat on the five-member PUC, which has far-reaching powers over the rates and policies of the state's private electric and natural gas power companies and other public utilities.
The Desert Sun - Jan 2
Joshua Tree's defunct airport could be turned into a mid-sized solar farm, and many of the town's residents are livid. Florida-based NextEra Energy Resources has proposed a 20-megawatt solar power plant at the Roy Williams Airport, which has been shuttered for several years. Southern California Edison has a 20-year contract to buy the electricity generated at the site, which is located about a mile north of Highway 62. But residents of Joshua Tree are crying foul, arguing that the 115-acre project would hurt tourism, stir up dust, and threaten their community's rural character. They also insist that the Roy Williams Airport, if revived, could be a boon to the town's economy, which relies largely on out-of-town visitors drawn to Joshua Tree National Park. International oil and gas conglomerate BP initially proposed to turn Joshua Tree's airport into a solar farm a few years ago. But BP pulled out of the solar business in 2011, and NextEra acquired the project rights the next year. If San Bernardino County approves the project, NextEra hopes to finish construction no later than December 2016, just in time to take advantage of a 30 percent federal investment tax credit that expires at the end of that year.
The Desert Sun - Dec 25
One of the biggest winners in a controversial renewable energy plan could be a surprising group: off-road vehicle enthusiasts. The Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Plan is primarily focused on promoting renewable energy development and conservation across 22.5 million acres of California desert. But it would also set aside as much as 3.5 million acres for recreation, including more than 300,000 acres for off-road vehicle access. Some environmental groups say the draft plan shows too much deference to off-roading, which they argue can damage critical habitats and introduce non-native species to the desert.
San Diego Union - Jan 7
California broke ground Tuesday on its $68 billion high-speed rail system, promising to combat global warming while whisking travelers between Los Angeles and San Francisco in less than three hours. The bullet train project, the first in the nation to get underway, faces challenges from Republican cost-cutters in Congress and Central Valley farmers suing to keep the rails off their fields. Others doubt the state can deliver the sleek system as designed, and worry it will become an expensive failure. Gina McCarthy, administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, said the all-electric trains, running on renewable energy, will take cars off highways and provide an effective alternative to flying on jet fuel, which pumps far more greenhouse gas into the atmosphere.
