Wednesday, Aug. 19, 2020
Has California increased its reliance on renewable energy over the past two decades?
California draws 32% of the electricity it consumes from renewable sources, up from 20% in 2014. It has moved to shut nuclear power sources in the state, with its last plant scheduled to close in 2025, and reduced its use of oil and natural gas over the past 30 years.
Some experts say the shifts have left the state more vulnerable to supply interruptions, pointing to rolling power blackouts during a recent California heat wave. Experts have said that ample storage is necessary to ensure reliability as solar and wind power peaks and ebbs. Amid a region-wide heat wave, the state was unable to get power from neighboring states, one backstop used previously. The California Independent System Operator, which oversees most of the state's supply, blamed state regulators for poor planning, calling the system "broken."
This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
- US Energy Information Administration: California state profile
- California Energy Commission: 2014 electricity system power
- Cal Matters: Blackouts reveal our power shortage
- San Diego Union-Tribune: What caused California's rotating power outages
- Mercury News: Blackouts expose shortfalls of California's energy grid
- Union of Concerned Scientists: Up close with California's power grid operator
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Fact briefs are bite-sized, well-sourced explanations that offer clear "yes" or "no" answers to questions, confusions, and unsupported claims circulating online. They rely on publicly available data and documents, often from the original source. Fact briefs are written and published by Gigafact contributor publications.
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