Huntsman said he is seeking establishment of a renewable portfolio standard, a state policy requiring utilities to produce a minimum percentage of their power from sources such as wind, solar and biomass by a certain date.
"Let's get serious about air quality," Huntsman said, calling on the blue-ribbon panel to make "aggressive" recommendations for a renewable portfolio in a report he said should be completed soon. He did not say how aggressive, only that "if it has a two in front of it, I will be very happy."
The governor appeared to be referring to a renewable resource mix of at least 20 percent, which would parallel his current initiative to reduce energy use statewide by 20 percent by 2015. Other Western states including Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona, have RPS standards ranging from 15 to 20 percent by 2020.
If Huntsman's efforts are successful, Utah would become the 22nd state to create a renewable portfolio standard.
The governor said the move is necessary to clean up the state's air, which at times during the winter ranks among the worst in the nation and endangers the health of state residents, particularly children.
The biggest health threat comes from vehicle traffic, but electric plants also contribute because burning coal releases vast quantities of carbon dioxide, the main emission responsible for climate change. Adding renewable resources to the mix would prevent some pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.
A statewide greenhouse gas inventory released in February found that while Utahns use less energy per capita than elsewhere in the nation, the electricity used here creates more greenhouse gases because nearly all of it comes from coal-fired power plants.
Kathy Van Dame, director of the Wasatch Clean Air Coalition, welcomed Huntsman's announcement, which has been expected since he signed a pact with California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger 11 days ago to join the Western Regional Climate Action Initiative. Governors of Arizona, California, New Mexico, Oregon and Washington created the pact rather than wait for the federal government to take serious actions to reduce global warming.
Van Dame said she and other air activists are hoping Huntsman's renewable standard would be 20 percent by 2015.
Aside from the obvious air-quality benefits, she said, would be the psychological perk that comes from being a state that is joining a movement for mutual benefit.
"The more states that adopt renewable standards, the more that raises the bar on what is standard procedure," Van Dame said. "There is such a feeling of ripeness, such a feeling of people being ready to move on this. It feels like barriers are falling."
Other states have enacted portfolio standards through legislative action or an executive order. Huntsman declined Friday to say which route he would choose. In an interview May 17, he said many of his plans do not require the Legislature's approval.
The Blue Ribbon Advisory Council on Climate Change, made up of representatives of mining to electric power, government, environmentalists and lawmakers, has been meeting since August. The panel has reviewed more than 200 options for dealing with climate change and is expected to make recommendations by fall.
"This is a commitment we've all talked about a lot," said Dianne Nielson, the former executive director of the Department of Environmental Quality who Huntsman named his energy czar just days ago.
During a news conference Friday, Huntsman called on individuals to reduce their own energy use and signed a contract with Rocky Mountain Power to buy enough blocks of Blue Sky wind power to offset all the electricity - 320,000 kilowatt hours - consumed annually in the Governor's Mansion. That will reduce the mansion's greenhouse gas emissions by more than 345 tons per year, he said.
An energy survey of the mansion determined 90 percent of all the light sources could be switched to efficient compact fluorescent bulbs. Mansion thermostats will be set higher in the summer and lower in the winter to save energy.
Huntsman also has converted his GMC Suburban to run on natural gas.
portfolio standards?
A renewable portfolio standard is a state policy that requires electricity providers to obtain a minimum percentage of their power from renewable energy resources by a certain date.
As of November, 20 states and the District of Columbia had established renewable portfolio standards. This week, Oregon's Legislature approved a bill requiring utilities to generate 25 percent of their power from renewable sources by 2025.
Together these states account for about half of the electricity sales in the United States.
Two other states, Illinois and Vermont, have nonbinding goals for adoption of renewable energy instead of an RPS.
Source: U.S. Department of Energy, Oregon Legislature. Maps and information available at http://www.eere.energy.gov/states/maps/renewable portfolio states.
