Policy changes in U.S. could increase green power capacity by ten-fold
WASHINGTON, DC, US, 2004-07-28 (Refocus Weekly)
Policy changes in the United States could lead to 131 GW of green power capacity by 2025, more than ten times the level of 2001.
A balanced energy plan would revamp the electricity system to reduce fossil
fuel consumption and polluting CO2 emissions by 47%, while saving US$36 billion
a year, according to ‘A Responsible Electricity Future: An Efficient, Cleaner
& Balanced Scenario for the U.S. Electricity System’ prepared for the
National Association of State Public Interest Research Groups. The analysis
contrasts a ‘business as usual’ view from projections of the U.S. Department
of Energy with a ‘balanced’ energy future in which renewables, energy
efficiency and local generation play an increasing role.
Total generation from renewables could increase from 3% now to 15% in 2025 “by
taking advantage of the potential for development of wind and solar power,
biomass energy and other renewable sources of energy,” combined with a
reduction in the growth of demand for electricity from 42% to 5%.
“Achieving the vision of a balanced energy future will require a shift in
public policy,” it says, but would allow many older coal- and oil-fired power
plants to be retired along with older nuclear reactors that pose a threat to
public health and safety. It would reduce fossil fuel consumption for power
generation by 19% from 2001 levels, compared with the 48% increase projected
under the DOE scenario.
“The current electric power system in the U.S. is heavily dependent upon
central station plants, fossil and nuclear fuels, and an increasingly strained
system of wires to deliver that generation to customers,” it notes. Costs
would be lower in the balanced case by avoiding a “tremendous investment” in
new central generation and transmission facilities, and would avoid current
power plants which “pose significant risks” to customers and society in
general.
“In recent years, there has been dramatic progress in the development of less
risky generation facilities, especially wind turbines, biomass facilities and
distributed generation technologies,” but despite the progress, “these less
risky technologies still only represent a small portion of the total electricity
resources in the U.S.”
“The vast majority of the renewable capacity added over the study period is
fueled by wind and biomass, and this is consistent with most studies of U.S.
renewable generation potential,” it adds. Geothermal would go from 2.9 GW
capacity in 2001 to 8.9 GW in 2025; biomass would go from 1.8 to 39.9, solar
thermal from 0.3 to 0.8, solar PV from 0.02 to 4.2 and wind from 4.2 to 73.3 GW
over the quarter century. In total, non-hydro renewables could climb from 12.5
to 131.5 GW capacity.
The National Association of State PIRGs will release another report in August
that will call for minimum requirements for green power as a percentage of
electricity use, ratepayer-financed programs to support renewables, and strong
energy efficiency standards.
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