A Green Future

When Gov. Andrew Cuomo outlined his latest budget proposal last month, his energy agenda laid out steps aimed at meetin the state’s goal of reducing carbon emissions 80 percent by 2050, largely through his “Reforming the Energy Vision” initiative.

But while many industry experts agree that the goal is a step in the right direction for a greener future, they also warn that a significant investment in the state’s energy infrastructure cannot wait until 2050—yet how the state should invest in energy in the meantime is still being debated.

Environmental advocates say the governor should invest more aggressively in green energy and push up the state’s carbon emission reduction goal. Conor Bambrick, air and energy director for Environmental Advocates of New York, said Cuomo’s plan doesn’t seem to have a clear “path of action.” Bambrick called for more investment in “clean, carbon-free” technologies.

“We have system in place where there are enough folks that are making money off of the current grid using traditional sources of power and it’s resulted in a system that is going to be unsustainable,” Bambrick said. “I think the governor’s initiatives to reform the utility sectors are positive as long as we get to a point where we are emphasizing carbon reductions.”

Along with promoting renewable energy, environmental advocates argue the state should focus on energy efficiency to revamp New York’s old, wasteful energy system. Instead of investing in new non-renewable energy sources during the transition period to a greener system, they advocate for a focus on reducing usage.

“The good thing about being a wasteful society is as we become more efficient we don’t have to produce more energy,” Steven Cohen, executive director of Columbia University’s Earth Institute, said. “Some people do believe that natural gas is one of those transition fuels and it might be to some degree, but I think the focus at this point should be on just trying to reduce.”

However, representatives of the traditional energy industry argue the state must make an immediate investment to be able to efficiently handle periods of peak demands, and that the cheapest, most effective way to meet immediate demand is through reinvesting in the state’s current energy sources.

“I think REV is looking to promote energy efficiency and increase existing energy resources—that is all in there to address your average daily load,” said Matthew Schwall, communications manager at Independent Power Producers of New York. “However, what the problem is is that it doesn’t address those peak demand periods. And that’s when you really need large-scale energy investment.”

Natural gas is seen by many as one of those transition resources. In December, Cuomo announced a state ban on hydraulic fracturing, a method of drilling for natural gas, but there are still two proposed natural gas pipelines to run through New York from other states: the Algonquin pipeline in the lower Hudson Valley and the Constitution pipeline in the Southern Tier.

The Cuomo administration has to sign off on water quality and air pollution permits for the two pipelines by the end of February for them to go forward.

“The backyards of New York are destined to become very dark and the houses inside if we do not do something dramatic,” said Jerry Kremer, the chairman of the Affordable Reliable Electricity Alliance, an industry group. “More and more businesses are converting to gas. Businesses … homeowners are converting to gas and there’s no place that this increase in demand can come from unless we have these pipelines expanded.”

One thing both sides agree upon is the need to reinvest and restructure the state’s electric grid to deliver the power, whether it be renewable or non-renewable energy.

“These transmission lines are incredibly old and inefficient,” Bambrick said. “We’re always going to need a mix going forward and if we want to be able to upgrade our generation and move on to cleaner energy, there has to be a way to deliver that power.”

Because of its age New York’s grid is overly centralized, with large central station power plants that deliver power all across the state. In 2012, Cuomo announced his $1 billion Energy Highway initiative to run transmission lines around the Hudson Valley to meet downstate energy demands. However, community backlash has stalled the effort and its fate is unclear.

The Cuomo’s administration’s REV initiative is seen as an alternative to his original Energy Highway plan as it focuses on smaller power sources—such as solar and wind power plants—and more local use. That idea has also met with some skepticism.

“If we want to really maximize the state’s wind power, all the onshore wind sites are located throughout upstate New York. They’re not being developed because that power can’t be delivered where it is actually needed and it won’t be developed until we have these upgrades in the transmission,” Bambrick said.

The Cuomo administration has projected that it will have to invest about $30 billion in the future for the state’s energy grid to harden it and make sure it doesn’t fall apart. The goal is to spend that money not just patching up the current grid, but to spend it on new technology to spur innovation.

“Fossil fuels are the energy of the current era and of the past,” Cohen said. “It’s not the energy of the future.”

UPDATE: Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Thursday a round of reforms to New York's energy utility industry seeking to compel utilities to partner with other companies to provide more diverse and clean power for customers. Read the full press release here.

CORRECTION: The orignal version of this story incorrectly attributed a quote by Matthew Schwwall from the Independent Power Producers of New York to his colleague at IPPNY Chris LaRoe.