{"id":15043,"date":"2017-03-01T14:19:10","date_gmt":"2017-03-01T19:19:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/?p=15043"},"modified":"2017-03-02T13:12:26","modified_gmt":"2017-03-02T18:12:26","slug":"4-signs-texas-could-lead-the-clean-energy-economy-but-will-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2017\/03\/01\/4-signs-texas-could-lead-the-clean-energy-economy-but-will-it\/","title":{"rendered":"4 Signs Texas Could Lead the Clean Energy Economy \u2013 But Will It?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"\u201cIf you want to know how wind works for America, just ask a Texan.\u201d That\u2019s according<\/a> to Tom Kiernan, CEO of the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), which just released its newest wind industry market report<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The AWEA report shows Texas is the nation\u2019s indisputable wind powerhouse, including serving as home to nearly a quarter of America\u2019s wind jobs. But wind is just one piece of the puzzle, and recent reports confirm the pieces are in place for Texas to blaze the clean energy trail.<\/p>\n

Wind is thriving in Texas and solar is growing, while the electric grid remains reliable and billions in savings await. But the Lone Star State can do more: California has more than 10 times as many solar jobs with less<\/a> than a quarter of Texas\u2019 solar potential. When it comes to clean energy, will lawmakers during this 85th<\/sup> Texas Legislative Session position the state to lead the nation?<\/p>\n

Mounting evidence<\/strong><\/p>\n

In a span of a week, four reports came out with significant findings for Texas\u2019 clean energy economy:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Wind juggernaut<\/strong>: AWEA\u2019s report is full of Lone Star wind tidbits. In addition to accounting for four times<\/a> as many jobs as the next state (Iowa), Texas is now home to roughly one-fourth of the nation\u2019s wind capacity, with more on the way. Additionally, wind projects are providing private landowners with millions in land lease payments \u2013 more than $60 million for Texas farmers and ranchers, to be exact. The state also has acquired nearly $40 billion<\/em> in wind energy investment. Clearly, wind is checking the jobs, growth, and investment boxes.\u00a0[Tweet “4 Signs Texas Could Lead the Clean Energy Economy \u2013 But Will It?”]<\/li>\n
  2. Solar surge<\/strong>: The Solar Foundation\u2019s new census<\/a> shows Texas solar jobs experienced 34 percent growth last year, significantly surpassing the 12 percent projected<\/a> growth and propelling Texas to the number three spot. Although undeniably impressive, the \u201csolar jobs per capita\u201d tells a less sunny story: Texas is in the 37th<\/sup> place (California is in 4th<\/sup>). As solar grows, so will the job numbers.

    Wind and solar are accounting for more Texas jobs than ever before, while bringing substantial investments into the state.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/li>\n

  3. Grid reliability<\/strong>: Closing coal plants doesn\u2019t mean the lights will go out. Looking at data from Texas\u2019 main grid operator, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), a new study<\/a> from Public Citizen examined what would happen if Dallas-based Luminant shut down two of its largest coal plants. Conclusion: Wind, solar, and natural gas will fill any gap left by coal, and potential issues will be mitigated \u201cwithout the need for additional transmission upgrades beyond what is currently planned by ERCOT.\u201d In other words, Texas already is well-equipped for coal shutdowns.<\/li>\n
  4. Amazing savings<\/strong>: Prioritizing clean energy will lead to hefty Texas savings, as evidenced in the new Environmental Defense Fund report<\/a>. Lower pollution means billions of dollars avoided in healthcare costs. At the same time, enhanced energy efficiency results in billions of power savings. Increasing the use of wind and solar PV, which need virtually no water to create energy, avoids the need for billions of additional power-sector water. And focusing on homegrown energy sources, rather than coal imported from other states, translates to billions of avoided import costs.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    When it comes to Texas\u2019 clean energy economy, what\u2019s not to like? Wind and solar are accounting for more Texas jobs than ever before, while bringing substantial investments into the state. The growth of cleaner power sources means less reliance on imported coal, a transition that won\u2019t harm our electric grid\u2019s reliability.<\/p>\n

    These four reports show Texas clean energy is primed and ready to go. The state has a thriving competitive electricity market that benefits people and the economy thanks to forward-looking policies put in place years ago. As Texas\u2019 current legislative session continues, we hope policymakers will keep that market in place and allow the growing clean energy economy to flourish.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    \u201cIf you want to know how wind works for America, just ask a Texan.\u201d That\u2019s according to Tom Kiernan, CEO of the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), which just released its newest wind industry market report. The AWEA report shows Texas is the nation\u2019s indisputable wind powerhouse, including serving as home to nearly a quarter …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":69166,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[42996,203,181,699],"tags":[],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-15043","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-smart-power","category-solar-energy","category-texas","category-wind-energy"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n4 Signs Texas Could Lead the Clean Energy Economy \u2013 But Will It? - Energy Exchange<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2017\/03\/01\/4-signs-texas-could-lead-the-clean-energy-economy-but-will-it\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"4 Signs Texas Could Lead the Clean Energy Economy \u2013 But Will It? - Energy Exchange\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"\u201cIf you want to know how wind works for America, just ask a Texan.\u201d That\u2019s according to Tom Kiernan, CEO of the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), which just released its newest wind industry market report. 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