Tag: Virginia

CONTACT:
Jamie Nolan
240.396.2022
jamie@chesapeakeclimate.org

Measure will provide low-cost loans for residential solar energy projects

RICHMOND – Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell today signed the Voluntary Resource Fund Bill (HB 2191 and SB 975), which sets up a revolving loan fund for residential solar energy projects. The loan program, which passed through the Virginia Senate and House of Delegates unanimously, will promote economic development and the production of clean, renewable energy at no cost to the state.

Environmentalists touted the bill as a win-win-win for all major parties involved: the citizens of Virginia who will receive the loans, the commonwealth’s solar energy industry, and utilities with an interest in distributed solar power.

Chelsea Harnish, Virginia Policy Coordinator for the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, said: “This program presents an exciting opportunity for Virginians who want to reduce their carbon footprint by powering their homes with renewable energy, but might not be able to afford the up-front costs associated with installing solar panels.”

Virginia possesses some of the mid-Atlantic region’s best solar energy potential as well as exceptionally strong consumer demand. The 2009 federal stimulus package included rebates to Virginia homeowners for renewable energy projects. Demand was so high that this fund was exhausted within a matter of just days and 500 households remained on the rebate list. To date, the Virginia state legislature has done very little to encourage the development of solar energy.

“This is a great start, but we hope that this is just the beginning of a new commitment on Governor McDonnell’s behalf to do whatever he can to support the development of renewable energy sources and make Virginia the CLEAN Energy Capitol of the East Coast,” Harnish said. “Virginia has two extraordinary natural resources – its solar and offshore wind energy potential – and both are vital to the commonwealth’s clean energy future.”

Delegate Adam Ebbin (D-49), patron of the House version of the bill, said: “Virginia has some of the highest solar energy potential in the region, but we’re being outpaced by neighboring states like Maryland, which only has two-thirds of our population but 13 times the number of homes powered by solar energy. This fund will ensure that more Virginians have the opportunity to power their homes with cheap, clean, renewable energy and help our companies stay competitive in the growing solar energy market.”  

The fund will grow over time as consumers repay their loans. If just one percent of Virginians give $5 a month during the fund’s first year, it will generate $1.8 million for loans.

The fund is expected to begin accepting donations in July 2011 and begin accepting loan applications in July 2012. To learn more about applying for a residential solar energy loan, consumers should contact the Virginia Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy.

The Chesapeake Climate Action Network (CCAN) is the first grassroots, nonprofit organization dedicated exclusively to fighting global warming in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. Our mission is to build and mobilize a powerful grassroots movement in this unique region that surrounds our nation’s capital to call for state, national and international policies that will put us on a path to climate stability.

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Participants include business leaders, environmentalists and political leaders

CONTACT:

Jamie Nolan 

jamie@chesapeakeclimate.org

410.463.9869

RICHMOND – Nearly two hundred notable leaders and grassroots activists from across Virginia gathered in Richmond Saturday to promote new jobs and clean energy at the commonwealth’s first citizens’ conference on offshore wind power—Energize Virginia. Political leaders and environmentalists sat next to investment partners with Google Inc. to make the case for offshore wind energy, ending with a colorful march to the steps of the State Capitol. 

“In a stalled economy, few industries have the potential to bring more jobs to the commonwealth than the renewable offshore wind industry,” said Terry McAuliffe, clean energy advocate and Chairman of GreenTech Automotive Corp. “Offshore wind relies on American ingenuity and innovation to provide the clean, domestically-produced energy we need, while offering an opportunity to provide thousands of quality jobs for Virginians.”

Sponsors and key participants at the daylong conference called on Dominion Virginia Power to include offshore wind energy in its 2011 Integrated Resources Plan, a ten-year plan laying out how the utility intends to meet future electricity demand. They also called on Governor Bob McDonnell and the General Assembly to remove policy barriers and create incentives for the development of offshore wind energy, working with Dominion to ensure that Virginia claims its position as a leader in the burgeoning offshore wind energy industry.

Participants included renowned business leaders and clean energy advocates Terry McAuliffe and Robert Mitchell of Atlantic Wind Connection, the Trans-Elect/Google, Inc. offshore wind transmission project, State Senator Donald McEachin, and notable environmental leaders like Mike Tidwell with the Chesapeake Climate Action Network and Jackie Savitz with Oceana, among others.

Studies show that Virginia could power 700,000 homes by the end of this decade with modern wind turbines placed ten miles or more off the Atlantic shoreline. This would create thousands of jobs and help stabilize electricity rates while reducing harmful global warming pollution.

“Rarely do you see such a strong coalition of environmentalists and political and business leaders united behind a common cause,” said Mike Tidwell of the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, one of the key sponsors of the event. “But when you’ve got the chance to create jobs, protect consumers from rising fossil fuel prices, and help fight climate change, you’ve got the ultimate win-win-win.

Energize Virginia: A Citizens’ Summit on Offshore Wind Energy was sponsored by the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, the Virginia Chapter of the Sierra Club, Green Jobs Alliance, Interfaith Power & Light, the Southern Environmental Law Center, and the Virginia Conservation Network.

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Initiative could create 10,000 jobs, provide power for 700,000 homes

CONTACT:

Jamie Nolan, jamie@chesapeakeclimate.org, 410-463-9869

RICHMOND – A coalition of Virginia environmental, labor, and business leaders today announced the creation of the VA4Wind coalition, which aims to make Virginia the offshore wind energy capital of the east coast. Because Dominion Virginia Power is the commonwealth’s largest electric utility, the coalition is calling on the company to develop a large-scale offshore wind energy project off of Virginia’s coast. VA4Wind’s primary members, the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, the Green Jobs Alliance, Interfaith Power & Light, and the Sierra Club Virginia chapter, formally announced the launch of their effort at a press conference this morning in Richmond. Representatives of Virginia’s labor, business, and faith communities joined VA4Wind leaders at the campaign launch.

At the event, VA4Wind leaders touted the plentiful benefits of offshore wind energy and the opportunities it provides for the commonwealth, including the addition of thousands of new jobs and a new revenue source for Virginia’s economy, cleaner air and water, and stable long-term energy prices. With plentiful offshore winds, a deepwater port and a skilled and experienced labor force, Virginia could easily be the east coast capital for America’s new offshore wind industry.

“It’s really incredible how much clean, domestic energy is untapped, right here off of Virginia’s coast,” said Beth Kemler, Virginia State Director for the Chesapeake Climate Action Network. “If the commonwealth takes action now, offshore wind could power 700,000 Virginia homes within a decade, while completely avoiding the risks associated with burning fossil fuels. Unlike conventional energy sources, wind power doesn’t explode, spill, or combust.”

In just a matter of weeks, VA4Wind has already collected more than 3,000 signatures from Virginians who want to see Dominion take concrete steps towards developing offshore wind power. In addition, more than 60 Virginia businesses and organizations have already pledged their support for offshore wind energy. Leaders applauded Dominion for its recent decision to study offshore wind transmission potential off the coast of Virginia Beach, but noted that research isn’t enough. As proof that offshore wind is a mature technology, the advocates pointed out that America’s first offshore wind farm, Cape Wind in Massachusetts, was given a green light by the federal government in April and plans to start construction as early as this fall.

Randy Flood, Executive Director of Green Jobs Alliance, said, “If we’re ever going to fully recover from this recession, the United States needs to return to making our own products. Developing an offshore wind industry right here in Virginia is a common sense solution to put Virginians back to work, and no other industry can promise the kind of job creation that offshore wind can offer.”

“Today, we’re calling on Dominion to join our team and work together with us to bring offshore wind energy to Virginia,” said Glen Besa, director of the Sierra Club Virginia Chapter. “We’d really like to see plans to build large-scale offshore wind in Dominion’s 2011 Integrated Resources Plan (IRP) as it moves forward with plans to retire its obsolete coal-fired power plants. Dominion’s interest in entering the offshore wind market should be reflected in its IRP filings before the Virginia State Corporation Commission this September.”

Trieste Lockwood with Virginia Interfaith Power and Light was on hand to discuss the importance of addressing climate change through clean energy. “Members of Virginia’s faith communities are legitimately concerned about climate change and how it will affect their children and grandchildren,” Lockwood explained. “It’s our responsibility to do all we can to protect the planet for future generations, and harnessing clean, renewable energy is a crucial part of this. By embracing wind technology, Virginia can truly become the energy capitol of the east coast.”

Learn more about the coalition of Virginians promoting wind energy at www.va4wind.com.

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