Report Argues for a Decentralized System of Renewable Power Generation

[Rick Rowlands]

Dan Rivers was talking today about the possibility of enemies hacking into our electrical grid and bringin it down.  A decentralized system of generation from many smaller sources would be much harder to shut down, as long as it is not all tied into one computer system.

The price of solar and wind energy has got to come down big time to make these technologies viable! When the day comes that the average homeowner can put a 10 KW system on their property and afford to do it without a second mortgage or a massive government subsidy is the day when these renewable sources will come of age. 

[irishbobcat]

Report Argues for a Decentralized System of Renewable Power Generation
By Jim Witkin
Institute for Local Self-Reliance A new report argues that a decentralized electricity generation scheme — using a variety of renewable resources — is achievable and advantageous.
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 percent 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 percent 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.
The argument for centralized generation is cost: It's typically cheaper to generate electricity from renewables in regions abundant with these resources, like the windy Midwest and the sunny Southwest.
The report's authors argued, however, that the more important measure is the ultimate retail price to the consumer:
f Ohio's electricity came from North Dakota wind farms – 1,000 miles away – the cost of constructing new transmission lines to carry that power and the electricity losses during transmission could result in an electricity cost to the customer that is about the same, or higher, than local generation with minimal transmission upgrades."
Building a large national transmission system also invites absentee ownership of these assets, while local ownership of energy facilities and transmission lines provides more than double the economic benefit to the local community, according to institute calculations.
John Farrell, the report's author, said he believed that the federal government must play a role in this transition to renewables, but primarily to "level the playing field" by rebalancing fossil fuel and renewable energy subsidies and putting a price on carbon.
For states that can't meet their demand completely from renewables, Mr. Farrell suggested, "looking to energy efficiency and conservation, or smart-grid enabled demand response. Next, they should look at distributed generation using natural gas," Mr. Farrell said. "Then, if their neighbors have the resources, by importing from nearby states. If all else fails, new long-distance imports may be required."
Mr. Farrell warned that "transmission legislation moving through Congress would pre-empt longstanding state regulatory authority over transmission-line approval and siting."
"We don't need to pit one state against another as we pursue a sustainable energy future," Mr. Farrell said. "As this report shows, there is more than enough renewable energy at competitive prices to go around."
Ohio needs to become a leader in solar technology!
Dennis Spisak
Mahoning Valley Green Party
Ohio Green Party
www.ohiogreens.org
www.votespisak.org/thinkgreen/