Waxman-Markey’s Renewable Energy Standard: Tough Enough?

I’m one of the contributors over at the National Journal’s Energy & Environment Experts Blog. Here’s the question posed today:

Does the [Waxman-Markey] proposal go far enough to promote the use of renewable electricity? Would all states reasonably be expected to meet the 15 percent renewable mandate? How would it affect the electricity industry? Will it create winners and losers? Is there a better way to push for more renewable electricity?

Here’s how I started my response:

The latest renewable energy standard in the Waxman-Markey Bill (20 percent by 2020) would be an important step forward for creating high-paying domestic jobs while reducing our reliance on fossil-fuels. The National Wildlife Federation would like to see a stronger RES, as this proposal would allow states to meet as much as 8 percent through energy efficiency. This is expected to result in slightly more renewable electricity than what the existing state requirements would accomplish in the best case.

I hope you can take a minute to visit the National Journal blog to read my full response.


— Larry Schweiger