Illinois' government made policy while the political sun shines on renewable targets. What happens next? (This image comes from the Chicago Sun-Times.)
This September, on a sunny late summer morning in Chicago, Illinois Governor J. B. Pritzker signed a comprehensive piece of environmental legislation called the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (CEJA). Standing on the shore of Lake Michigan, just outside the world-famous Shedd Aquarium, Pritzker heralded the bill as a major...
Given the promising value proposition of pollinator-friendly solar, several states have passed voluntary standards to encourage the practice, and a number of developers have committed to pollinator-friendly projects for all or part of their portfolios. Illinois-based ENGIE Distributed Solar is one such developer. In this interview. Gavin Meinschein, ENGIE’s lead...
In July, the state of Ohio passed its HB 6 energy bill, which authorizes $300 million in annual surcharges on utility ratepayers, primarily to fund four struggling coal and nuclear power plants. The bill also scales back the state’s clean energy targets. Now that HB 6 has been signed into...
Vastly higher clean energy targets are essential to empower the international community to make the leap to a sustainable future, according to Richard Heinberg, coauthor of “Our Renewable Future: Laying the Path for One Hundred Percent Clean Energy.” In this interview, he delves into the practical challenges involved in the...
Developers in the United States believe that there is still room to maintain an adequate level of return for their power-purchase agreements (PPAs). Electricity prices in recent years have plummeted both for PPAs and in the wholesale market. Even so, developers believe that they can benefit from the expected decrease...
“There are no jobs on a dead planet,” said Sharan Burrow, general secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation. Burrow is vice-chair of The B Team, a coalition of business and civil society leaders that was founded by Richard Branson and Jochen Zeitz. In an attempt to address the dual...
Alaska is strongly affected by climate change volatility – and extensively engaged in fossil fuel extraction. And now it’s considering becoming one of the first states in the nation to have a green bank.
Why hasn’t saving water as a way of saving energy had its day in the sun yet in the United States? At Horizon18 in Boston on Oct. 11, speakers at the session “Smart Water Solutions and the Energy-Water Nexus” reflected on the sparkle of hope that they believed these solutions...
Community microgrids can be initiated by a wide range of individuals or organizations. They include mayors and utilities. They also may include “anchor” off-takers like hospital management, development companies, or community organizations. But to succeed, they require that at least one person really take the lead and energize the project.
The versatile online State Energy Analysis Tool produces visuals and data analyses on energy and climate at the state level as well as the national level in the United States. This information allows states to explore their potential for renewable energy and carbon markets. It provides powerful data visualization for...
