Senior Obama Administration officials Monday announced a number of steps meant to help the West to tap its clean energy potential and create green jobs.
The announcements, made at the annual meeting of the Western Governors’ Association (WGA), includes initiatives to advance the development of a smarter electric grid and more reliable transmission system, protect critical wildlife corridors and habitats, promote the development of renewable energy sources, and lay the groundwork to integrate these energy sources onto the national electricity grid.
Obama Administration officials participating in the meeting included: Department of Energy Secretary Steven Chu, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, Council on Environmental Quality Chairwoman Nancy Sutley, U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, and Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Chair Jon Wellinghoff.
“Our collective presence here demonstrates the Obama Administration’s commitment to working with the Western governors as we begin to meet the challenge of connecting the sun of the deserts and the wind of the plains with the places where people live,” Salazar said.
Sutley said, “The areas covered during this meeting, from water supplies and renewable energy, to fostering international cooperation on energy and the environment, are issues we are also focused on at the White House under the leadership of President Obama. We look forward to working together to meet these challenges.”
Announcements included:
$80 Million for Regional and Interconnection Transmission Analysis and Planning
The Department of Energy (DOE) announced $80 million in new funding under the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act to support long-term, coordinated interconnection transmission planning across the country. Under the program, state and local governments, utilities and other stakeholders will collaborate on the development and implementation of the next generation of high-voltage transmission networks.
The continental United States is currently served by three separate networks or “interconnections”–the Western, Eastern and Texas interconnections. Within each network, output and consumption by the generation and transmission facilities must be carefully coordinated.
Secretary Chu announced the release of a $60 million solicitation seeking proposals to develop long-term interconnection plans in each of the regions. The remaining $20 million in funding will pay for supporting additional transmission and demand analysis to be performed by DOE’s national laboratories and the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC).
$50 Million for Assistance to State Electricity Regulators
Secretary Chu announced $50 million in funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to support state public utility commissions and their key role in regulating and overseeing new electricity projects, which can include smart grid developments, renewable energy and energy efficiency programs, carbon capture and storage projects, etc. Public utility commissions in each state and the District of Columbia are eligible for grants.
Nearly $40 Million to Support Energy Assurance Capabilities for States
The DOE also announced that $39.5 million in Recovery Act funding will be available for state governments to improve emergency preparedness plans and ensure the resiliency of the country’s electrical grid. Funds will be used by the cities and states to hire or retrain staff to prepare them for issues such as integrating smart grid technology into the transmission network, critical infrastructure interdependencies, and cyber-security. Funds will be available to all states to increase management, monitoring and assessment capacity of their electrical systems.
$57 Million for Wood-to-Energy Grants and Biomass Utilization Projects
The Department of Agriculture announced $57 million in funding for 30 biomass projects. The projects–$49 million for wood-to-energy grants and $8 million for biomass utilization–are located in 14 states, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, North Dakota, New Mexico, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington.
These Recovery Act funds may help to create markets for small diameter wood and low value trees removed during forest restoration activities. This work will result in increased value of biomass generated during forest restoration projects, the removal of economic barriers to using small diameter trees and woody biomass, and generation of renewable energy from woody biomass.
Memorandum of Understanding to Improve State Wildlife Data Systems, Protect Wildlife Corridors and Key Habitats across the West
Secretaries Salazar, Vilsack and Chu agreed to partner with the Western Governors’ Association to enhance state wildlife data systems that will help minimize the impact to wildlife corridors and key habitats. Improved mapping and data on wildlife migration corridors and habitats will influence the decision-making process across state and federal government as new renewable and fossil energy resources and transmission systems are planned.
Western Renewable Energy Zones Report Identifies Target Areas for Renewable Energy Development
The DOE and the WGA released a joint report by the Western Renewable Energy Zones initiative that takes first steps toward identifying areas in the Western transmission network that have the potential for large-scale development of renewable resources with low environmental impacts. Participants in the project included renewable energy developers, tribal interests, utility planners, environmental groups, and government policymakers. Together, they developed new modeling tools and data to facilitate interstate collaboration in permitting new multistate transmission lines.
Under the Initiative, renewable energy resources are being analyzed within 11 states, two Canadian provinces, and areas in Mexico that are part of the Western Interconnection.
Additional information is available at the link below.
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