California's energy crisis, whether real or contrived, has fueled nationwide fears of power shortages, sent energy prices soaring, and illustrated the danger of over-reliance on fossil fueled power. The events of September 11, 2001 and the instability in Southwest and Central Asia underscore the dangerous vulnerability that our dependence on fossil fuel creates. Renewable energy and energy efficiency offer California, and the United States as a whole, the most direct path to a clean, secure and reliable energy future.

A Pivotal Moment
With natural gas prices spiraling out of control throughout the winter of 2000 and the spring of 2001, California – desperate to avoid rolling blackouts – bought electricity at extortionate prices, exhausting the largest state budget surplus in years and leaving underfunded many educational, social and environmental programs. Now we are at a pivotal moment: huge sums of money will be spent to build new capacity, locking in infrastructure for the next 50 years. More than 70 new gas-fired power plants are now proposed for California, alone, threatening to leave the state even more vulnerable to future natural gas price shocks and possible interruptions in supply.

But the need for increased power reserves can be redirected toward renewable energy and efficiency. Over the past year California has authorized funding for $135 million worth of programs promoting renewable power generation and energy efficiency; California’s Consumer Power and Conservation Financing Authority is requesting bids from potential providers of 30 megawatts of photovoltaic power cells, and the 2002 State legislature is expected to consider a Renewable Portfolio Standard requiring retail power providers to ensure that 20% of the power they sell comes from renewable resources by 2010. Choices made now will determine whether energy production for the next half century is dominated by fossil-fuel, hydro power, and nuclear plants, or by clean renewable power.