Energy Exchange

A Roundup of Energy, Water, and Climate Bills in the 84th Texas Legislative Session

By Kate Zerrenner / Published: March 19, 2015

We’ve almost made it to the midway point of the 84^th Session of the Texas Legislature. As many already know, the Texas Legislature only meets from January to May every other year, so a lot has to get done in these few months.

This midway point is critical because it marks the deadline for Representatives and Senators to file bills, and it signals the rush to the finish line. Once we pass this point, the speed picks up substantially, as do the working hours and pressure.

Most bills that are filed will not make it to the Governor’s desk – for any number of reasons. But it is a good time to check in to see which climate, clean energy, and energy-water nexus bills have been filed this Session. Here’s a look at a few that are likely to rise to the top, and ones we hope will cross the finish line by June 1st. Read More »

Posted in Clean Energy, Clean Power Plan, Energy Efficiency, Energy-Water Nexus, Texas / Comments are closed

Keeping PACE in Texas: Revitalizing Industry, Saving Water, Guiding Better Policy

By Kate Zerrenner / Published: January 20, 2015

As the Texas legislative session begins ramping up, I am reminded of smart policies from sessions past that holistically benefit Texas, had bipartisan support, and brought unlikely allies together. As we head into the session, it’s important to remember that no matter which side of the aisle you are on, clean energy solutions make sense for Texas – economically and environmentally.

This week, Environmental Defense Fund and R Street Institute, with support from Google, hosted a breakfast roundtable at the Texas Capitol to highlight one of those bills. The panel highlighted the potential for Property-Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) and other commonsense, market-driven financing policies to be game-changers for accelerating the deployment and adoption of clean energy resources and water conservation practices across the state of Texas.

PACE, an innovative financing tool that allows people to repay loans for clean energy projects (like rooftop solar and energy efficiency upgrades) through their property tax bill, has the potential to unlock a considerable amount of private funding for clean energy projects in the state. This agreement simultaneously offers building owners cheaper financing options and lenders secure repayment terms. With benefits for all, it’s no wonder the PACE bill passed last legislative session with support from both sides of the aisle, environmental groups, and industry alike. Read More »

Posted in Energy Efficiency, Energy Financing, Energy-Water Nexus, Texas / Read 3 Responses

Is Water the New Bottom Line for the Private Sector?

By Kate Zerrenner / Published: December 8, 2014

Business and the energy-water nexus

On December 11^th, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation (USCCF) Corporate Citizenship Center will host The Energy-Water-Food Nexus: Risks and Opportunities for the Private Sector, the second in a series of roundtables based on a report released earlier this year. The USCCF’s report and surrounding events are highlighting success stories and, more importantly, opportunities for the business community to address the energy–water nexus: the idea that energy and water use are fundamentally intertwined. In order to accurately address water risks across operations and supply chains, businesses must take a more holistic look at their water and power usage.

The business world is quickly beginning to understand the intersection of these two sectors and the significant impact they have on business operations.

In the commercial, industrial, and institutional sectors, energy efficiency and other measures could save as much as 15-30 percent of water use without reducing operations. This is particularly important as businesses consider how they manage water risks in areas where they operate. The 2014 Carbon Disclosure Project Water Disclosure Global Report, conducted on behalf of 573 investors with assets of $60 trillion, reported that 68 percent of responding companies say water is a substantial risk to their businesses, but only 42 percent have publicly demonstrated a commitment to water efficiency. Interestingly, 43 percent of reporting businesses said that water stress and/or scarcity was a top risk driver versus 16 percent that said drought was a top risk driver. This indicates that companies are more focused on longer-term risk management, as opposed to reacting primarily to drought conditions and concerns about short-term profits. Read More »

Posted in Clean Energy, Energy-Water Nexus / Read 1 Response

U.S. Climate Assessment Report Warns of Energy Challenges – All of which We’re Ready to Meet

By Cheryl Roberto / Published: May 13, 2014

Photo by DAVID ILIFF. License: CC-BY-SA 3.0

There’s been plenty of attention paid to the recent release of the Third National Climate Assessment report – and appropriately so. The lead paragraph of New York Times reporter Justin Gillis’ story put it rather bluntly:

“The effects of human-induced climate change are being felt in every corner of the United States, scientists reported Tuesday, with water growing scarcer in dry regions, torrential rains increasing in wet regions, heat waves becoming more common and more severe, wildfires growing worse, and forests dying under assault from heat-loving insects.”

Even for those of us that have been urging U.S. action on climate, the assessment was pretty stark and the message was clear: the time to act came a long time ago. We need to get busy catching up.

But the optimist in me was excited about a chapter in the report that hasn’t yet gotten much attention. Chapter 4 focuses on Energy Supply and Use, and though the energy challenges caused by climate change are formidable, the U.S. is very well positioned to meet them if our leaders will get behind some practical solutions. There are five key takeaways in the Energy chapter: Read More »

Posted in Air Quality, Clean Energy, Climate, Demand Response, Energy Efficiency, Grid Modernization, Renewable Energy / Comments are closed

On World Water Day, Why Talk About Energy?

By Kate Zerrenner / Published: March 20, 2014

Source: UN Water

The theme of this year’s World Water Day on March 22nd is the “energy-water nexus,” and the timing couldn’t be better. According to the United Nations (who first established World Water Day in 1993):

780 million people worldwide lack access to safe drinking water.
1.3 billion people worldwide lack access to electricity.
90 percent of the power generation in the world comes from water-intensive fossil fuels.
As countries progress and develop, there is an increased risk of conflict between power generators, other water users, and environmental concerns.
By 2035, global water withdrawals for energy are predicted to increase by 20 percent, and water consumption for energy is expected to increase by 85 percent.

For the past year, I’ve been trying to bring awareness to the connection between energy and water in Texas, but this issue is much bigger than a single state. Energy and water are both basic components of life and economic progress, and they are also inextricably linked. Energy is used to secure, deliver, treat, and distribute water, while water is used (and often degraded) to develop, process and deliver energy. Read More »

Posted in Clean Energy, Climate, Energy Efficiency, Energy-Water Nexus, Utility Business Models / Tagged World Water Day | Read 2 Responses

Is Texas the Next Global Leader in Water? It’s Up to State Leaders to Decide.

By Kate Zerrenner / Published: January 28, 2014

This commentary originally appeared on our Texas Clean Air Matters Blog.

The Texas Comptroller, Susan Combs, recently released the Texas Water Report: Going Deeper for the Solution, which proposes a sort of revolution to solve Texas’ water woes. As Combs notes, Texas is a global energy leader, but the state should be a global water leader too. And her initiative couldn’t come fast enough. Texas, already prone to cycles of drought, is facing new water pressures, including population growth and a changing economy, which only make it harder to preserve our diminishing water supply. To rouse the state’s water recovery plan, the report prioritizes water-saving technological innovations (while stressing the need for conservation) and lauds various Texas cities for water management practices. But the report misses some key elements that are essential to keeping our water flowing. In the same way that new energy technologies have brought us closer to a cleaner, more reliable electric grid, innovations in the water arena can seamlessly reduce our water use and set the state on a sustainable path.

The report says conservation is not enough, and it’s right. However, efficiency is the most significant first step and conservation achieved through technology is a welcome counter to the infrastructure-heavy plans typically heard at the Capitol and in the State Water Plan. (What good is a new reservoir, if there’s no water to put in it?) Some of the technologies evaluated in the report include aquifer storage and recovery, inter-basin transfers, low-water fracking technologies and desalinization – what some call “game changers.” These technologies could potentially relieve our future water woes, but these projects are expensive and don’t alleviate our immediate or even mid-term water stresses. Read More »

Posted in Climate, Energy Efficiency / Tagged Clean Energy, Energy-Water Nexus, texas | Comments are closed