Fellow Story

Wisland quoted on need for renewables uptake beyond California

Fellow(s): Laura Wisland

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Yet, when it comes to the challenge of global warming, California cannot go it alone. There are economic considerations. As White cautioned in La Jolla, "If California remains something of a green island, then it will be that much harder and more costly. The ISO expansion project shows that." In political terms, he added, "it will also be much easier to be picked off… by those who want to see us fail." That could happen at any number of federal venues, suggested White — the EPA, FERC or Congress with budget decisions.

CEERT’s own legacy — pioneering options for deep decarbonization — is also on the line. "We won’t be able to use this expertise if we don’t get to a much higher penetration of renewables in other markets. That may now be slowed," said Laura Wisland, an energy analyst at the Union of Concerned Scientists and the co-chair of the CEERT’s board.

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