Community Renewable Energy Sparks in California

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Legislation introduced in the California Senate would enable community
renewable energy systems for customers of the state's major utilities: PG&E,
SCE and SDG&E.

Customers - homes, businesses, schools and public agencies - that choose to
participate would receive credit on their utility bills for their portion of
the clean power generated, much as if those systems were located on site.

The Wolk Community Shared Solar Bill (SB 843), sponsored by Senator Lois
Wolk (D-Davis), would create 12,000 local jobs, and $7.5 billion in economic
activity by expanding access to the state's renewable energy market, says
Vote Solar, which analyzed the plan.

Clean energy is one of the fastest growing sectors of California's economy,
yet three out of four energy customers - including the state's millions of
renters - can't generate their own on-site power from solar, wind and other
renewables.

Without requiring any public funding, the bill is expected to deploy 2
gigawatts (GW) of new renewable energy capacity, equivalent to 4
conventional fossil fuel power plants and about double the amount of rooftop
solar currently installed in the state.

"In very real terms, SB 843 would be the job creation equivalent of one of
California's largest employers, putting more people to work in the state
than Cisco or Applied Materials," says Hannah Masterjohn, Policy Advocate at
Vote Solar. "By simply enabling more Californians to invest in and receive
the benefits of renewable energy systems, the state can unleash tremendous
economic activity without using any precious state funds."

Specifically, SB 843 would deliver:

-- At least 12,000 direct and induced local jobs. It would create thousands
of construction-related jobs each year, in addition to long term operations
and maintenance jobs. These are high quality local employment opportunities
across a broad range of education requirements, salary levels and fields.

-- $230 million in state tax revenues through sales taxes on renewable
energy systems.

-- $7.5 billion in total economic output. This includes wages, salaries and
revenues that can be reinvested into the state economy.

Download the report.

Here's the SB 843 campaign website.

San Diego Forming Electricity Coop

Another community effort in California is a possible energy coop in San
Diego.

The San Diego Energy District Foundation would create a local energy coop,
enabling people to choose whether to purchase local green energy through
Community Choice Aggregation or to continue receiving it from the utility.

Under Community Choice Aggregation, energy demand is pooled under a
non-profit structure, giving members the ability to get bulk rates an an
opportunity to accelerate local energy development.

San Diego's plan is to prioritize electricity from customer-owned rooftop
solar arrays to make sure members are the primary beneficiaries of increased
renewable energy production.

"CCA is an off-the-shelf alternative to the status quo, which creates a
structure open to innovation and local involvement in electricity
generation," says Bill Powers, a co-founder of the San Diego Energy District
Foundation.

Six states have authorized municipalities to use coops, and the option is in
play in five of them.

If you're in the area, The San Diego Energy District is hosting a conference
on the subject, June 21, 8:30 a.m. - 1 p.m.

Here's a guide to Community Solar and read Investing in Solar as a Community

Read more about Community Choice Aggregation in the US:

Website:
http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/blog/post/2012/02/community-choice-a
ggregation-lets-cities-buy-cleaner-and-local-electricity-in-bulk

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