Patrick-Murray Administration Shows Clean Energy Leadership

Heading toward tenfold increase in solar and wind power over four years, Massachusetts provides fitting backdrop for President Obama speech

BOSTON - With national energy and climate legislation sponsored by U.S. Representative Ed Markey and Senator John Kerry pending in Congress and President Barack Obama giving a major speech on American leadership on clean energy at M.I.T. tomorrow, Massachusetts is providing national leadership in the transition toward a clean energy economy, Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Ian Bowles said today. Under Governor Deval Patrick, and in full partnership with the Legislature, Massachusetts has become a national leader in clean energy, capitalizing on the Commonwealth’s advantages in technological expertise, venture capital, and workforce skills, said Secretary Bowles.

“Massachusetts has the strongest legal framework for clean energy in the nation, and it is the national leader in energy efficiency investment and greenhouse gas reductions,” said Secretary Bowles. “We are poised to reap the benefits of jobs and economic growth from the transition to a clean energy economy. Where President Obama is taking the country, with leadership from Senator Kerry and Congressman Markey, Governor Patrick is taking Massachusetts.”

“Governor Patrick has been a superb leader on reducing greenhouse gases and investing in clean energy technologies in our state. His leadership has ensured that we put thousands of folks in our state back to work, invest in homegrown innovation, safeguard our children’s health and our environment, and secure our state’s place as a leader in clean energy technologies. I have an enormous amount of respect for his energy and commitment on this issue. He’s been a terrific partner as we work on the national level to address climate change and work towards a clean energy future,” said Senator Kerry.

“From the American Revolution to the Industrial Revolution, and now the Clean Energy Revolution, Massachusetts continues to lead America forward,” said Rep. Markey, co-author of the Waxman-Markey American Clean Energy and Security Act, which passed the U.S. House in June. “From increasing energy efficiency to save consumers money, to promoting clean energy to create jobs and increase innovation, Governor Patrick perfectly exemplifies Massachusetts’ history of leadership.”

Secretary Bowles took note of five nation-leading pieces of legislation that became law last year that have established the legal framework for clean energy in Massachusetts and are now being implemented:

Green Communities Act, a comprehensive reform of the state’s electricity marketplace that promotes a dramatic expansion in energy efficiency, supports the development of renewable energy resources, creates a new greener state building code, removes barriers to renewable energy installations, stimulates technology innovation and helps consumers reduce electric bills. Also creates a new Green Communities program, now up and running, that encourages and helps municipalities go green through energy efficiency investments and renewable energy development. First three-year utility plan that puts efficiency into competition with power generation for meeting power needs will triple our energy efficiency investment and generate savings of $5 billion for consumers and reduce greenhouse gas emissions; it is due for submission to the Dept. of Public Utilities in October. Efficiency plan makes Massachusetts the number one state in the country in energy efficiency investment and savings per capita.
Clean Energy Biofuels Act, which exempts cellulosic biofuels from the state’s gasoline tax (first tax incentive in the nation for next-generation, non-food-based gasoline alternative); sets minimum biofuel content for diesel and home heating fuel (the latter a first-in-the-nation requirement), subject to strict lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions reduction standards; and commits the state to developing a Low Carbon Fuel Standard on a regional basis. Massachusetts is leading this regional effort with 10 Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states involved.
Green Jobs Act, which created a new Massachusetts Clean Energy Center to support R&D, entrepreneurship, and workforce development in an industry of the future. Pathways Out of Poverty Grants and Energy Efficiency Skill Training Initiative Grants have been awarded, creating job-training infrastructure for green jobs. Expansion of clean energy companies based in Massachusetts this year include Evergreen Solar (700+ manufacturing jobs), Brookfield Power, Beacon Power, Boston-Power, and GreatPoint Energy. CEC is the only sole-purpose state authority in the nation for comprehensive development of the clean energy sector.
Global Warming Solutions Act, which combats global climate change by requiring Massachusetts to cap greenhouse gas emissions across the economy by up to a nation-leading 25 percent by 2020, ultimately reducing emissions by 80 percent by 2050, and stimulating the development of clean energy technologies and jobs. This law is the strongest in the nation and builds on Massachusetts’s first-in-the-nation requirement of greenhouse gas emissions analysis in the state environmental review process.
Oceans Act, which requires a first-in-the-nation comprehensive plan to manage development in state waters, balancing natural resource preservation with traditional and new uses by December 31, 2009. Draft plan issued June 30 provides additional environmental protections for 63 percent of planning area and identifies sites as appropriate for wind energy development. Draft plan is now in public comment period.

With this framework in place, Massachusetts is aggressively moving toward creating a clean energy future for the Commonwealth, Secretary Bowles said. In September, Governor Patrick received the Charles H. Percy Award for Public Service from the Alliance to Save Energy, a national organization, and Massachusetts was recently named number two in the nation, after California, on energy efficiency by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE), up from seventh the year before. But that ranking did not take into account the $1.6 billion three-year energy efficiency plan recently agreed to by electric and natural gas utilities and Attorney General Martha Coakley, which will generate more than $6 billion in savings from reduced energy use. This is three times the size, per capita, of California’s recently announced $3.1 billion three year efficiency plan, ensuring that Massachusetts will be the nation’s energy efficiency leader going forward.

Massachusetts is also in the midst of a tenfold increase in solar and wind power installations over Governor Patrick’s first four-year term. Commonwealth Solar, the rebate program created by Governor Patrick to reduce the cost of solar installations, is on track to reach its initial target of 27 MW of installed solar power a full year ahead of schedule. Additional solar installations supported by American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds on water treatment facilities and other public buildings will bring the state to at least 40 MW by the end of 2010, up from less than 4 MW when Governor Patrick took office.

Similarly, the Commonwealth had just 3.1 MW of wind power installed in January 2007, and will have more than 30 MW in place by the end of next year. Massachusetts won a national competition to host a new wind technology testing center, and construction is due to begin shortly, funded by a U.S. Department of Energy grant of $25 million. This testing center will make the Commonwealth a hub for wind energy research and development.

Massachusetts has also seen expansions and jobs from companies like Beacon Power, Evergreen Solar, Greatpoint Energy and many more. In a recent industry survey, employment in solar manufacturing and installation doubled from 2007 to 2008, and is expected to grow 50 percent this year; employment in energy efficiency firms jumped 40 percent last year, and will likely grow 50 percent this year.

“With Ed Markey in the House, John Kerry in the Senate, and Governor Patrick in the State House, Massachusetts is leading the way toward a clean energy economy,” said Secretary Bowles.