California axes proposed geothermal legislation
Downtown LA in smog, California (source: flickr/ ringey, creative commons)
Francisco Rojas
3 Sep 2014
Last Saturday, SB 1139 was stuck down setting once again geothermal on the back seat of renewables in California.
Last weekend saw the demise of Senate Bill 1139 that would have ordered the state’s major investor-owned utilities to buy up to 500 MW of geothermal generated electricity, according to local news.
Utilities and other renewables have opposed this legislation stating that it would have a significant cost to the taxpayer or that it gives preferential treatment to geothermal over other renewables.
It could be argued that the costs of burning fossil fuels are difficult to put a price on and that other renewables, such as solar or wind have already significant weight and representation in the state of California.
Source: UT San Diego Website
