California's largest utilities already are slated to generate enough renewable power to get close to meeting the state's current mandate of 50 percent from renewables by 2030.
California's largest utilities already are slated to generate enough renewable power to get close to meeting the state's current mandate of 50 percent from renewables by 2030.
Senate Bill 100, an ambitious clean energy plan put forward by Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon, drew praise from Palm Springs Mayor Rob Moon and Council member Geoff Kors Wednesday, who said the push for clean energy would create jobs and conserve resources.
California has been marching toward higher levels of clean energy for years, and state officials said the transformation is happening even faster than expected. The state generated 29% of its power from solar, wind, geothermal and other renewable sources in 2016.
Solar is going to play a much bigger role than most models predict. So far, official predictions have fallen woefully short of the rise of solar photovoltaic (PV) energy:
If lawmakers approve Senate Bill 100 before the end of their session in September, it would make California the biggest economy on earth committed to getting 100 percent of its power from wind, solar and other clean alternatives.
Key findings from the current survey:
The Golden State has soaked up enough rays to generate 67.2 per cent of its energy from renewable sources last month, smashing previous records. When combining California’s largest grid with hydropower facilities, renewable energy rose even further to 80.7 per cent of total energy generation on 13 May.
What disturbs the old guard…is that cities are endorsing a future in which coal and natural gas are obsolete. The doomsaying from fossil fuel defenders will only get more shrill as that inevitable fate gets closer.
California’s clean energy sector keeps smashing records, as clean energy jobs in California alone outnumber coal jobs nationwide by an order of magnitude. In March, solar supplied more than half of the state’s power for a few hours.
Kevin de León and Jerry Brown are determined to show the world that California's energy future will not be dictated by the sitting president.
