Thread by @electronecon

Getting on a plane for New Orleans to present a primer on Renewable Portfolio Standards. DC and New Orleans are the only two cities that can pass such a law so it is exciting to work on this effort. Here's a preview of the presentation. thread 1/x

RPS policies have been around for 36 years and have been regularly updated by those states that have passed them. @UCSUSA has been helping craft and analyze these policies since 1991! 2/x

29 states + the District have a mandated RPS, 8 have voluntary renewable goals. The policy really hasn't gained tracking in the southeast. 3/

No two RPS policies are the same. One way they differ is through carve-outs and multipliers that help create an extra incentive (or mandate) for specific types of resources like solar or distributed renewables. 4/

Renewable energy is often tracked by the formation of a renewable energy credit (REC) that can be traded and retired for either voluntary or compliance purposes. Different regions use different programs and in MISO the dominate program is MRETS. 5/

Have RPS policies driven demand for renewables? Yes, Over half of wind and solar have been built as part of compliance for an RPS. 6/

And those RPS policies are expected to continue to drive renewables demand 7/

But RPS's aren't just about renewables, they help avoid pollution which has major health benefits. The monetary value of those health benefits is about $100 Billion. 8/

Other benefits include:
- direct and indirect employment
- reduced nat gas use and other fossil fuels
- reduced water consumption
- reduced toxic air pollution
- reduced greenhouse gasses
9/

Most policymakers worry about the costs of an RPS, and so there are lots of different ways to control those costs. Some more popular than others and to learn more you should read @brendanpierpont's paper on the subject. 10/ climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/upl…

Cost caps (either explicit or implied) have been effective. 11/

The average bill impact of an RPS is 2.2% and that is before you start to account for the benefits. What happens when you account for the benefits you ask? 12/

Well, RPS policies are consistently shown to provide a net benefit to consumers. Here is a graph of the range of estimates (orange bar) and the central estimate (blue bar). Positive numbers translate to a consumer benefit (reduced costs). 12/

Perhaps that is why states with RPS policies keep doubling down on them, updating them with more aggressive targets. Recently lots of states (and DC) have set out ambitious 100% targets. @Ben_Inskeep @EQresearchEQ 13/

New Orleans is at a crossroads. It can continue to rely on expensive, legacy coal and nuclear power or it can switch to cleaner more affordable resources: 14/14