Accelerating Use of Renewable Energy

Posted: 03/29/2014 1:22 pm EDT Updated: 03/29/2014 1:59 pm 

US energy policy is stuck on reliance on natural gas. Most Americans understand that by the middle of the century most of our energy will have to be supplied by renewables -- wind, water and solar -- but we seem content to use natural gas for the foreseeable future. Unfortunately, this is not a realistic policy.

We're running out of time. Writing in Rolling Stone, environmentalist Bill McKibbenwarned that humans can only emit 564 gigatons of carbon dioxide by 2050 and still have a reasonable chance of keeping the temperature increase below 2 degrees Celsius (the threshold for catastrophic consequences). Nonetheless, last year we pumped a record 36 gigatons into the atmosphere; at this rate we'll exceed 564 gigs in about a decade. Writing in the Washington Post, Brad Plumer observed that if we are serious about averting horrific climate change, "[Then] the world can use natural gas for only a brief period before transitioning to carbon-free power. Global gas consumption would have to peak by 2020 or 2030."

What will it take to get us to move aggressively to sole reliance on renewable energy?

First of all, it has to be feasible to move to water, wind and solar. Fortunately, there's a lot of evidence that it is. Speaking on The David Letterman Show, Stanford University Professor Mark Jacobson touted his plan to move the US off of fossil fuels by 2050. Jacobson's Solutions Project has developed a detailed plan for each state.

The narrative differs depending upon where you live. The Solutions Project has a plan for California, where 95 percent of our electricity would be generated by renewables by 2050. In the most recent California energy estimates renewables generated 17 percent of our electricity (in-state -- we import some energy). Today, more than 60 percent is developed using natural gas.

Fortunately, California state policy is behind our transition to renewables: by 2020, California plans to generate 33 percent of its electricity from wind, water and solar. Recently, Pacific Gas & Electric, the second largest California public utility, announced that it has "delivered 22.5 percent of its power from eligible renewable resources in 2013 and is on track to meet the state's clean energy goals for 2020 and beyond."