The California renewable portfolio standard: Best hope for the future of the biomass energy industry?
- Future Resources Associates, Inc., Berkeley, CA (United States)
In 1994, California touched off a nationwide movement to deregulate the electric utility industry. The original {open_quotes}restructuring{close_quotes} proposal in California provided for competition among electrical generating sources on the basis of price alone, which would preclude the operation of most biomass power and other renewable generators in the state. This would represent a major loss in terms of the environmental services provided by the biomass energy industry, which include not only the avoidance of fossil fuel use, but also a superior disposal alternative for a variety of wastes and residues. The California biomass energy industry has pioneered an effort to establish a set-aside for renewable energy generation in the state. This concept has been incorporated in the current version of the restructuring proposal at the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), which specifies the creation of a {open_quotes}minimum renewables purchase requirement.{close_quotes} The details of how the policy will be implemented have yet to be worked out. The first phase in this effort is being carried out by a CPUC-sanctioned Renewables Working Group, which has broad stakeholder participation. This group has identified and analyzed the major issues that must be addressed in the development of an effective policy for the promotion of renewable energy within the context of electricity deregulation.
- OSTI ID:
- 478703
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-960958--
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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