29 Governors joined together to call for a national standard with regards to renewable power. They believe such a standard could "spur job growth and economic development and make the U.S. less dependent on foreign fuel [,]" reports Tiffany Hsu for the Los Angeles Times online.The governors feel that the current structure of different state standards and inconsistent national regulations makes investment in renewable energy difficult. These concerns are stated in a report compiled by the bipartisan Governor's Wind Energy Coalition (Coalition) that was given to both Congress and President Obama on Tuesday.
The Coalition recommends in the report that utilities be required to "obtain at least 10% of their electricity from alternative sources such as wind and solar by 2012." The governors also request "an expanded interstate transmission system with major high-voltage lines that would have a wider reach than fragmented network of smaller lines."
Additionally, the governors requested more federal funding for researching offshore wind technology that could be used along the country's coast lines, similar to what is done in Europe and China. Finally, the governors would like to see the process for getting wind projects off the ground streamlined.
To read the LA Times article click here.
To visit the Governor's Wind Energy Coalition website click here
To see a copy of the Wind Energy & Green Jobs Brief, click here.
Posted: 03/17/10
