Georgetown, Texas plans to be the first city in the State to go completely green, with an aim toward getting 100% of its energy from renewable sources, namely solar and wind power. Through a 25-year deal with SunEdison, the city of Georgetown will purchase 150 MW of energy, beginning in 2016. This power will be provided by solar farms that SunEdison, the world’s largest renewable energy company, plan to construct in West Texas. Georgetown also contracted EDF Renewables to provide 144 MW of wind energy from the Spinning Spur 3 wind farm, under construction outside Amarillo. That deal, inked last year, will run through 2039.
Texas has an already-burgeoning wind power industry and has the potential to be a national, if not global, leader in solar power, as well, considering its size and solar exposure. Solar power hasn’t had an easy time getting a foothold without much support and financial incentives in a state more known for oil than practically any other commodity. But now that costs have decreased dramatically for solar power production, the winning factor that made the decision easy for Georgetown turned out to be not so much environmental ideals as price.
Yes, that’s right–the renewable option was also the most economically feasible one. There’s a bit of a “gold rush” on currently to develop the West Texas area for solar and wind power, and municipalities may start to reap the benefits soon, as costs drop lower and lower. Georgetown isn’t waiting, and it plans to join other such forward-thinking cities as Burlington, Vermont, already in the 100% club. Not all Texas cities have their own utilities, as Georgetown does. In most areas, consumers buy power directly from retailers, some of whom do offer power provided by 100% renewable energy. (See “Organic Power Promo” by Bounce Energy and this Green Mountain Energy) As solar and wind power continue to become more affordable, correspondingly lower utility rates are likely to increase consumers’ preference for renewables, possibly to a tipping point that will make fossil fuels look like a last resort.
Another benefit of investment in renewables for Texas is that solar and wind power do not require the use of water, as the production of power from fossil fuels does. This is a legitimate concern for an area that can suffer from crippling drought. A switch to clean energy can provide a one-two punch in this area, though; not only does it reduce water consumption on an immediate basis, the reduction in greenhouse gases caused by large-scale adoption of renewables could possibly help mitigate the drought-producing effects of climate change, over the long term.
The combination of wind and solar are anticipated to be particularly successful because they are complementary to one another. The blazing afternoon Texas sun traditionally puts peak demand on the grid, but the use of solar power allows that very sun to provide the supply, as well. Wind, on the other hand, tends to occur at times that the sun doesn’t, so energy from wind power can supplement solar energy conveniently. And unlike fossil fuels, whose price and availability can’t be predicted over any kind of long term, the sun and wind are locally produced, so to speak, and as reliable as anything ever gets. The fact that these energy sources are also non-polluting and water-saving, as well as being cheap and reliable, is just icing on the cake.