Climate Desk has created a way to visually explore state-by-state renewable power use based on recent statistics compiled by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
The statistics indicate how influential state policy is on renewable energy consumption. From the article:
The gap is partly explained by the relative size of states’ energy markets, but not entirely: Washington uses less power overall than New York, for example, but far outstrips it on renewables (the exact proportions won’t be available until EIA releases total state consumption figures later this month). Still, the actual availability of resources—how much sun shines or wind blows—is far less important than the marching orders passed down from statehouses to electric utilities, says Rhone Resch, head of the Solar Energy Industries Association.
Karin Wadsack, of Northern Arizona University’s Institute for Sustainable Energy Solutions, explained, “If you have all these utilities sticking with gas, coal, and nuclear, then you create a situation where 20 years from now they aren’t prepared to deal with the increased climate risk.”
Community Renewable Energy is based out of Ohio, so we paid particular attention to how our home state stacks up.
We were proud to see that Ohio made it to the top 20 in solar and geothermal, with an overall total of 9,800 billion+ BTUs derived from green power. We were also reminded how important it is to advocate for responsible energy policies from our legislators and elected officials if we want to continue on the path toward clean power and energy independence.
How does your state rank?