31 States can be Self-Sufficient with In-State Renewable Energy

PR Log (Press Release) – Oct 12, 2009 – States donʼt need to seek energy imports to meet their renewable energy goals.  Thatʼs the conclusion of a new report from the 35-year-old Institute for Local Self-Reliance.  Energy Self-Reliant States finds that almost the entire country west of the Mississippi and parts of the Eastern Seaboard (a total of 31 states) can serve all their electricity needs with in-state renewable power, and that every state could reach its renewable mandate with domestically available renewable resources.  

“Renewable energy is available everywhere,” explains John Farrell, co-author and ILSR Senior Researcher. “This report shows the potential to harvest it economically in nearly every state.”

The report shows that many states can reach their renewable energy goals without waiting for a controversial new nationwide, high-voltage transmission grid.  

“Transmission advocates have suggested that East Coast states should welcome the opportunity to import cheap renewables from the Heartland – and should be happy to help pay for the transmission lines” notes Farrell, “but for meeting most state renewable energy goals, local resources provide comparable cost and greater economic benefits than long-distance imports.”

The report shows that states can meet their renewable energy needs with domestic onshore and offshore wind, rooftop solar PV, geothermal, combined-heat-and-power, and micro hydro.  Its 15 multi-colored maps allow the reader to quickly compare their stateʼs commercial renewable energy potential with that of other states.

The energy self-reliant states from the report are: Alaska, California, Colorado, Delaware, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin, Wyoming.  

To see a map illustrating the renewable energy potential of each state, or to download the report, go to www.newrules.org.

The expanded second edition of Energy Self-Reliant States is available online at http://www.newrules.org/.  

About ILSR and the New Rules Project: Since 1974, ILSR has worked with citizen groups, governments and private businesses in developing practices that extract the maximum value from local resources.  A program of ILSR, the New Rules Project focuses on local, state and national policies that enable that goal.