Energy
Blog
Will The Jones Act Cripple The Biden Administration’s Offshore Wind Farms?
Last week, the Biden administration announced the proposal to develop seven major offshore wind farms on the east and west coasts of the United States. Biden said he wants to build tens of thousands of wind turbines and generate 30 gigawatts of power by 2030. One gigawatt is the power ...
Blog
California Promotes Wind Energy, Ignores Market Forces
Windmills on the water. Get ready for them. They’re on their way, thanks to a recently signed bill. The new law requires the state’s Energy Commission “to evaluate and quantify the maximum feasible capacity of” offshore wind energy in federal waters, which “if developed and deployed at scale … can ...
Blackouts
California Desperate for Fossil Fuel to Keep the Lights On
The state that says it will be fully powered by renewables by 2045 has asked the federal government to find an electric reliability emergency which “requires intervention … to preserve the reliability of bulk electric power” in California. Following the request, the state’s grid operator issued two straight days of ...
Blog
Banning Gas-Powered Leaf Blowers Could Have Unintended Consequences in Next Power Outage
Californians who have been seen power supplies become more unreliable in recent years have increasingly turned to gas-powered electric generators to keep the lights on during “public safety power shutoffs.” According to the industry trade group, there are 1.5 million portable generators in use in California today. The average gas-powered ...
California
Green Building Mandates Will Increase the Cost of Housing in California
Despite the exorbitant cost of homes in California, Sacramento continues to chase policies that increase housing prices. Apparently, some pursuits, particularly the quest for a green future, are more important than others. The California Energy Commission, whose five unelected members clearly understand what is expected of them politically, unanimously adopted ...
Climate Change
History Repeats as Solar Power Oversold, Underperforms
Some stories in the world of energy are perennial. Pretty much every year, we read new advances in energy production or use that are going to revolutionize the world. And every year, that prediction doesn’t pan out. Other stories are decadal. Every 10 years or so, we hear about radical ...
Blackouts
Competitive Energy Markets, Not Monopoly, Delivers Affordable, Reliable, And Low-Emission Energy
Texas’ energy debacle during this past winter has led to a great deal of introspection regarding which energy market structure is the most appropriate. Most analysts would agree that energy market regulations should facilitate access to affordable and reliable electricity, while generating the lowest feasible emissions. The controversy arises with ...
Blog
Requiring Uber/Lyft Drivers to Go Green Is Costly and Unrealistic Virtue Signaling
In a state where residents are increasingly given orders rather than more choices, an unelected group has decided that by 2030, 90% of all rideshare miles must occur in electric cars. We’re expected to accept this as progress. It will turn out to be anything but. The California Air Resources ...
Agriculture
California Has Millions of Acre-feet of Water Waiting to Be Built
As part of its May Revise rollout, the Newsom administration announced $5.1 billion for water infrastructure and drought response. While the announcement invests on funding better data collection, continuing the implementation of Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, or SGMA, and maintaining current water infrastructure, nothing in Newsom’s proposed funding will solve ...
Blackouts
California’s Energy Policy Risks Tilting at Windmills as Electric Car Sales Grow
A cosmic policy convergence is brewing a nasty storm that will hit California hard in a few years. With deadlines for an all-renewable electricity grid as well as the end of sales of new gasoline-powered cars bearing down on the state, we’re facing a future of commonplace blackouts and energy ...
Will The Jones Act Cripple The Biden Administration’s Offshore Wind Farms?
Last week, the Biden administration announced the proposal to develop seven major offshore wind farms on the east and west coasts of the United States. Biden said he wants to build tens of thousands of wind turbines and generate 30 gigawatts of power by 2030. One gigawatt is the power ...
California Promotes Wind Energy, Ignores Market Forces
Windmills on the water. Get ready for them. They’re on their way, thanks to a recently signed bill. The new law requires the state’s Energy Commission “to evaluate and quantify the maximum feasible capacity of” offshore wind energy in federal waters, which “if developed and deployed at scale … can ...
California Desperate for Fossil Fuel to Keep the Lights On
The state that says it will be fully powered by renewables by 2045 has asked the federal government to find an electric reliability emergency which “requires intervention … to preserve the reliability of bulk electric power” in California. Following the request, the state’s grid operator issued two straight days of ...
Banning Gas-Powered Leaf Blowers Could Have Unintended Consequences in Next Power Outage
Californians who have been seen power supplies become more unreliable in recent years have increasingly turned to gas-powered electric generators to keep the lights on during “public safety power shutoffs.” According to the industry trade group, there are 1.5 million portable generators in use in California today. The average gas-powered ...
Green Building Mandates Will Increase the Cost of Housing in California
Despite the exorbitant cost of homes in California, Sacramento continues to chase policies that increase housing prices. Apparently, some pursuits, particularly the quest for a green future, are more important than others. The California Energy Commission, whose five unelected members clearly understand what is expected of them politically, unanimously adopted ...
History Repeats as Solar Power Oversold, Underperforms
Some stories in the world of energy are perennial. Pretty much every year, we read new advances in energy production or use that are going to revolutionize the world. And every year, that prediction doesn’t pan out. Other stories are decadal. Every 10 years or so, we hear about radical ...
Competitive Energy Markets, Not Monopoly, Delivers Affordable, Reliable, And Low-Emission Energy
Texas’ energy debacle during this past winter has led to a great deal of introspection regarding which energy market structure is the most appropriate. Most analysts would agree that energy market regulations should facilitate access to affordable and reliable electricity, while generating the lowest feasible emissions. The controversy arises with ...
Requiring Uber/Lyft Drivers to Go Green Is Costly and Unrealistic Virtue Signaling
In a state where residents are increasingly given orders rather than more choices, an unelected group has decided that by 2030, 90% of all rideshare miles must occur in electric cars. We’re expected to accept this as progress. It will turn out to be anything but. The California Air Resources ...
California Has Millions of Acre-feet of Water Waiting to Be Built
As part of its May Revise rollout, the Newsom administration announced $5.1 billion for water infrastructure and drought response. While the announcement invests on funding better data collection, continuing the implementation of Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, or SGMA, and maintaining current water infrastructure, nothing in Newsom’s proposed funding will solve ...
California’s Energy Policy Risks Tilting at Windmills as Electric Car Sales Grow
A cosmic policy convergence is brewing a nasty storm that will hit California hard in a few years. With deadlines for an all-renewable electricity grid as well as the end of sales of new gasoline-powered cars bearing down on the state, we’re facing a future of commonplace blackouts and energy ...
