ONE new exhibition ranks Illinois first among 11 Midwestern states for the amount of clean power under construction and second for new clean power capacity.
The American Clean Energy Association said wind, solar and energy storage currently provide nearly 14 percent of the electricity generated in Illinois, potentially powering more than 3 million homes with clean energy.
Jeff Danielson, vice president of advocacy for the Illinois Clean Grid Association, said some of the benefits of clean energy end up in consumers' pockets.
“There's a climate benefit, but there's also an economic benefit,” Danielson explained. “When you add low-cost energy to the grid, that ultimately accrues to the people who pay the utility bills.”
Danielson pointed out that net energy is a top source job creation and investment, bringing nearly 17,000 good-paying jobs and $17 billion in capital investment to Illinois. When it comes to the ability to operate on clean energy, the report showed that Texas and California continue to lead the nation.
According to the report, Illinois added 485 megawatts of clean energy to the grid in the first half of this year. Two years ago, Governor JB Pritzker signed it Climate and Equal Employment Act.
Danielson stressed that it establishes a national goal of 100 percent by 2050 and allows more renewable energy projects to be built.
“It's worth noting that it's what's in the works, otherwise known as clean energy capacity under construction,” Danielson pointed out. “I think CEJA has had a clear role in creating these greater incentives to bring projects online in Illinois.”
Danielson said clean energy also provides additional income to farmers, ranchers and other private landowners through $58 million annually in lease payments. He said groups like the Clean Grid Alliance work to match investors with green projects and facilitate renewable energy development.
“The Clean Grid Alliance is a non-profit organization that focuses on wind, solar, battery storage and all things grid-related projects that tie it all together,” Danielson added.
Disclosure: The Clean Grid Alliance contributes to our Climate Change/Air Quality, Energy Policy and Environment reporting fund. If you want to help support public interest news, click here.
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Environmental groups in Virginia are among those looking at how to improve and modernize electric grid transmission.
Experts said the age of the grid and the current state are not conducive to the boom in renewable energy projects being developed. The lack of preparation is felt across the country but especially in Virginia, where the latter reference card gives the state network operator the lowest rating.
Quentin Scott, director of federal policy for the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, said grid operators' long-term planning needs to consider increasing renewable energy.
“They don't really represent the high use of renewables,” Scott pointed out. “They don't account for the popularity of the CCA. They don't account for state policies that require states to be 100 percent clean energy by 2050 or 2040.”
Other experts believe grid operators such as Virginia's PJM Interconnections need to hire more people to handle interconnection requests. But the increased demand for these jobs makes the problem harder to deal with. The Virginia General Assembly passed House Bill 862 to make the process more efficient.
If grid operators cannot make the changes in time, about 80% of the emissions reductions outlined in the Inflation Reduction Act may not be realized. Scott and other environmental advocates worry about losing ground. Together with Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Being a backstop authority for such projects, he noted that microgrids can help improve grid performance.
“Solar panels that are on your roof or community solar projects; small businesses that put up, you know, a wind turbine near their business,” Scott explained. “Microgrids allow these kinds of local communities to have more planning, more control over their local resources.”
Microgrids are also known to be weather resistant. Given the powerful effects climate change is having on nations' electrical infrastructure, it may be wise to avoid blackouts. Research has shown that if Texas had more connections to the US Southeast, there wouldn't be as many Blackouts during the deadly winter storm of 2021.
Disclosure: Chesapeake Climate Action Network contributes to our climate change/air quality and sustainable agriculture reporting fund. If you want to help support public interest news, click here.
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The first satellite launched by a nonprofit is now circling the globe, preparing to deliver data on methane pollution from oil and gas facilities worldwide.
The MethaneSAT satellite with support from the Environmental Defense Fund will help monitor methane emissions, a major contributor to global warming.
Jon Goldstein, senior director of regulatory and legislative affairs for the fund, said the advocacy group is focused on making data transparent, accessible to anyone and actionable.
“It's going to help government, it's going to help industry and it's going to help communities who want to know, 'What's happening in my backyard?' Goldstein explained. “They're going to have this publicly accessible, online source of data.”
Goldstein stressed that the data collected should hold accountable more than 50 oil and gas companies that committed at last year's “COP-28” Dubai climate summit to “zero” methane and eliminate conventional flaring gas.
Last week, the Environmental Protection Agency released news methane regulations approved in 2023. New Mexico adopted its own rules in 2021 to combat leaks, particularly from smaller facilities.
The new satellite is designed to measure known sources of methane and discover and quantify previously unknown sources. Goldstein noted that it would allow companies and countries to take action sooner to help reverse the rising temperature of the Earth's surface.
“It's a very powerful greenhouse gas; more than 80 times more powerful, pound for pound, than carbon dioxide in driving climate change,” Goldstein pointed out. “This makes it a huge opportunity for people who want to address this problem quickly, to get out there and fix these leaks.”
New Mexico is second only to Texas as the largest oil producing state in the US MethaneSAT was launched last week from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California.
Disclosure: The Environmental Defense Fund contributes to our Climate Change/Air Quality, Energy Policy, Environment, and Public Lands/Wildlife reporting fund. If you want to help support public interest news, click here.
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Nevada is one of the larger solar markets in the nation, and conservationists want Nevadans to know what's available federal tax incentives.
Russell Kuhlman, executive director of the Nevada Wildlife Federation, is also a homeowner who installed solar panels. Realize that going solar isn't cheap, but with the recent expansion of federal tax credits, you can get 30% back on your investment.
Nevada residents can also benefit from net meteringwhich allows customers to use the energy produced by their solar system to offset their monthly bill.
Kuhlman pointed out that the inflation-reduction law also includes rebates for more energy-efficient appliances.
“When I bought my house, everything was about 20 years old in terms of appliances,” Kuhlman recounts. “Now that I've installed solar, taking even more advantage of those rebates by purchasing an energy efficient refrigerator, dryer, etc. So I'm hoping to leverage all those rebates and tax incentives.”
The Inflation Reduction Act included $8.8 billion to help increase home electrification and access to more efficient appliances. The Department of Energy estimated that the rebates would save households across the country up to $1 billion a year on energy bills and support more than 50,000 jobs.
Kuhlman noted as more residential and commercial solar systems to be installed, there will be less demand for what he calls “large-scale solar projects” on public land.
“Reno and Vegas are some of the fastest growing cities that have high potential for solar development,” Kuhlman noted. “Trying to find a way to incentivize these large-scale developments, I think, is another thing we should be trying to incentivize.”
Yazmyn Pelaez, director of communications for the Nevada Conservation League, said solar investments can improve lives and homes as energy costs rise. He added that it is an opportunity to move away from fossil fuels and ensure that investment reaches more communities.
“Not just homeowners, but renters,” Pelaez emphasized. “We're really working to make this transition as fair as possible because we want to make sure that no one is left behind in this new transition to clean energy.”
Pelaez acknowledged that many don't have access to solar because they rent or have rooftops that can't have a solar system, but he believes community solar could be a viable option. Such facilities are shared by community members who receive credit on their electricity bills for part of the energy produced.
Disclosure: The Nevada Conservation Association contributes to our reporting fund on citizen engagement, climate change/air quality, public lands/wildlife, and water. If you want to help support public interest news, click here.
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