Earth Equity News

Report Argues for Local Renewable Power. By Jim Witkin, NYTimes, October 30, 2009. "Most states could meet their demand for electricity with renewable energy sources inside their own borders, according to a new report from the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, a nonprofit group in Washington that advocates for local sustainability solutions. The report, called Energy Self-Reliant States, examined the commercial potential for wind, rooftop solar, geothermal and small-scale hydro projects. Thirty-one states, mostly west of the Mississippi, could meet all their electric demand, and all states could generate at least 25% of their demand using these in-state resources, the authors of the report suggest. Of the 36 states with current renewable energy goals or mandates, all could meet these goals by relying on in-state renewable fuels, the report found. Roof-top photovoltaic panels on their own could generate 25% of electricity needs for more than 40 states. The report advocated strongly for state and local control over these renewable energy assets and a decentralized approach to electricity generation: building small-scale, distributed energy facilities and upgrading the transmission and distribution systems within each state. This is opposed to national energy policy, which promotes the construction of a high-voltage, national transmission super highway to carry electricity generated in a handful of renewable-rich states to other regions of the country."