by Jbs041109 c3 — April 20, 2009—The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has dispatched clean energy experts to Hawaii and Alaska to work as advisors to local policymakers and utilities.
NREL notes that at first glance, the two states appear quite different–tropical and small versus Arctic and huge. However, Hawaii and Alaska both have considerable renewable energy resources, including solar, wind, geothermal, biomass, and wave energy. Also, because of their remote locations, they have the nation’s highest energy costs and rely almost exclusively on fossil fuels.
DOE and NREL officials recognize that both states could serve as renewable energy models for the Lower 48, but integrating renewables into the states’ economies and infrastructures is a complex job needing on-site experts. The programs that will be used are modeled on successful recent DOE and lab clean energy efforts in Greensburg, Kansas, and New Orleans, Louisiana.
In Hawaii, two NREL senior engineers have started working directly with state officials, utilities, and the private sector to help implement the Hawaii Clean Energy Initiative (HCEI). The HCEI is a partnership between DOE and the state that was formed in January 2008 to help Hawaii generate 70 percent of its energy from clean sources by 2030. Hawaii currently ranks 46th in the amount of renewable energy flowing to its electricity grid, with more than 90 percent of its electricity and fuel coming from fossil fuels shipped to the islands.
In Alaska, the former development director for the Yukon River Inter-Tribal Watershed Council, a coalition of 64 Tribes and First Nations in Alaska and Canada, has been named the Lab’s representative. Alaska, one of the nation’s leading oil- and gas-producing states, ranks 39th in renewable energy on its grid, virtually all of which comes from hydroelectric dams. NREL will focus on bringing renewable power to a state that has among the nation’s highest energy prices–as much as $1 per kilowatt-hour in remote villages.
For more information about NREL’s work with state and local governments, visit the Lab’s State and Local Project Assistance Web site.
