CA’s Electricity Mandate is Now 100% Carbon-Free

Just a couple days ahead of his Global Climate Action Summit, Gov. Jerry Brown signed legislation setting a 100 percent carbon-free standard for the state’s electricity sector to be reached by 2045.

Sen. Kevin de León’s SB 100 also advances by five years the 50 percent alternative energy mandate from 2030 to 2025 and sets a 60 percent renewable mandate for 2030.

Also during a Sept. 10 signing ceremony, which was announced the day before, Brown autographed a complimentary executive order aimed at having California become carbon neutral by 2045. It seeks to ensure as many greenhouse gas emissions are removed as produced.

“This is the way to go,” Brown said. “California is committed to doing whatever is necessary to meet the existential threat of climate change.”

“Transitioning to an entirely carbon-free energy grid will create good-paying jobs, ensure our children breathe cleaner air and mitigate the devastating impacts of climate change on our communities and economy,” said de León.

The Los Angeles Democrat is running for the U.S. Senate against incumbent Sen. Dianne Feinstein.

The fate of SB 100, a two-year bill, was uncertain earlier this year. After failing passage last year, it sat in the Assembly Utilities & Energy Committee for months. The committee had no plans to plans to consider the measure in the near future as of late spring.

It managed to advance and then passed on the Assembly floor late last month. But, that was only after an extended debate that featured procedural wrangling on the legislative floor.

SB 100 had initially opened the door to large hydropower resources, allowing them to count towards the last 40 percent of the clean energy standard. But, Assembly floor amendments directed state energy and environmental agencies to develop a plan to achieve the final 40 percent increment. Their plan must go back to the Legislature for review before it can carried out.

On Monday morning, Brown also pledged to sign other climate protection bills this week. “But have no illusions,” Brown said, noting, “California and the rest of the world have miles to go before we achieve zero-carbon emissions.”

Brown’s Executive Order -55-18 aims to attain carbon neutrality in 27 years. It even calls for “net negative” greenhouse gas emissions after that.

The order directs the California Air Resources Board to develop an implementation framework with sister agencies and to track progress towards emissions reductions. Measures enacted are to support climate adaptation and biodiversity.

Brown’s order came as the World Resources Institute issued a series of papers that review various strategies for removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and the oceans. The papers found industrial scrubbing of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere is both energy-intensive and expensive.

The state chief claims his order sets the most ambitions carbon neutrality commitment of “any major economic jurisdiction.”

Brown’s long planned Global Action Climate Summit begins this Thursday and runs through Friday. Climate protection meetings, activities and protests are slated for the entire week.

Earlier, he signed legislation to prohibit oil drilling off California’s coast to protect marine ecosystem from the Trump Administration’s plan to open the coast to drilling. — Elizabeth McCarthy

Over 11K Stories!

| Independently Powered Energy News

CA’s Electricity Mandate is Now 100% Carbon-Free

William J. Kelly

Related Posts

Op-Ed: Before and After Net Energy Metering 3, A Thought Experiment

Auld Lang Zine

Air Regulators 2022 Scoping Plan to Slash Emissions is a Go

Shorts