Follow the Leader? Evaluating California as an electricity model for the future
While there would be significant reductions in CO2 emissions and other gases associated with coal combustion by transforming the US electricity system to one like California’s, the costs and impacts of such changes make the transition unlikely. Greatly increased dependence on natural gas would lead to higher prices and the use of coal would need to be tightly controlled. On the bright side, the disparity in price between the US and California indicates that as prices rise in the rest of the country, there may be a substantial demand response. In addition there is potential for further demand reductions by implementing the most effective efficiency programs such as decoupling and the re-investment of utility profits. There are many important lessons that can be learned from the experience in California but the path that the US takes to lower CO2 emissions will likely be implemented differently than how it was in California.
School Location:USA - North Carolina
Source Type:Master's Thesis
Date of Publication:04/23/2009