Report Details Key State Efforts to Expand Clean Energy since 2015
Vermont Business Magazine Vermont’s Clean Energy Development Fund is highlighted in the newly released report, Returning Champions: State Clean Energy Leadership Since 2015, by the Clean Energy States Alliance (CESA), a national, nonprofit coalition of state agencies and other public organizations. The report provides a comprehensive look at the ways in which states are advancing clean energy and suggests how to further encourage growth. The report highlights that Vermont’s strategic focus on advanced wood heating across state government is building support for wood heat throughout disparate governmental departments. Together, these agencies and departments are presenting a unified vision for the sustainable development of a long-term market that will support clean energy, forest health, economic development, and improved air quality.
View the Full Report: https://www.cesa.org/resource-library/resource/returning-champions-state-clean-energy-leadership-since-2015
Returning Champions describes the many important ways that states across the nation are supporting clean energy generation and markets. The report highlights 21 case studies from 19 states, covering a variety of state programs such as r community solar, low-income solar access, bioenergy, renewable heating and cooling technologies, energy storage, offshore wind, and renewable thermal.
“Vermont’s increased efforts to promote wood heating across state government in a coordinated and strategic way are providing real benefits to Vermonters” said Vermont Public Service Department Commissioner June Tierney. “We are proud of our efforts in this sector and glad to see it recognized in the CESA Report.”
The report’s four thematic chapters emphasize the most important issues that the states have been focusing on over the past few years:
- Setting more aggressive goals for renewable energy electricity generation, for carbon-free energy, and for energy storage.
- Supporting markets for emerging technologies, including offshore wind, electric vehicles, air source heat pumps, battery storage, microgrids, hydropower from irrigation systems, and advanced biomass and biogas systems.
- Modernizing the electricity grid to incorporate variable sources of electricity generation, distributed generation, and electric vehicles efficiently and cost-effectively, as well as efforts to replace fossil fuels for heating.
- Focusing on fairness and equity for clean energy to ensure that low- and moderate-income households can access the benefits of clean energy and to put appropriate consumer protection measures in place.
CESA Executive Director Warren Leon, the report’s lead author, summarizes the overall role of the states: “The United States is experiencing a transition to clean energy in great part because states have been able to propel clean energy policy implementation, and because governors, legislators, and state agency staff have provided leadership, innovation, and funding to support the transformation of the energy sector to cleaner and more reliable technologies.” He added, “It is important to recognize the achievements of Vermont’s clean energy programs and those of other states so that public support for these programs continues and additional progress is made.”
For more information on Vermont’s clean energy industry, please visit: https://publicservice.vermont.gov/renewable_energy/cedf
About The Vermont Clean Energy Development fund.
2005, the Vermont General Assembly established the Vermont Clean Energy Development Fund (CEDF) (30 V.S.A. § 8015). The CEDF is administered by the Public Service Department. The purpose of the Fund is to increase the development and deployment in Vermont of cost-effective and environmentally sustainable electric power resources, primarily with respect to renewable energy resources, and the use in Vermont of combined heat and power technologies. The Vision for the CEDF is to serve the citizens of Vermont by increasing local small-scale renewable energy generation while maximizing associated economic development. The Fund coordinates with other state programs and private entities to integrate and advance renewable energy across all sectors of the State’s energy economy.
About CESA
The Clean Energy States Alliance (CESA) is a national nonprofit coalition of public agencies and organizations working together to advance clean energy. CESA members—mostly state agencies—include many of the most innovative, successful, and influential public funders of clean energy initiatives in the country. CESA works closely with states as they develop clean energy policies, programs, and finance tools. CESA facilitates information sharing, provides technical assistance, coordinates multi-state collaborative projects, and communicates the positions and achievements of its members. Additionally, CESA develops reports, webinars, and other informational resources on topics of interest to policy makers, clean energy stakeholders, industry, and academics. For more information, visit www.cesa.org.