Voluntary buyers are increasingly interested in the impact of their REC procurement strategies on the deployment of new renewable energy projects. The impact of voluntary REC markets is also a key focus in shaping regulations and standards for how organizations track and report greenhouse gas emissions from purchased electricity. New research from Dr. Eric O’Shaughnessy …
United States Residual Mix Guidance: Clearing Up the Confusion
by Lucas Grimes, CRS The term “residual mix” is used heavily in the world of clean energy reporting, but is subject to varying interpretations among government organizations, voluntary standard-setting bodies, and market participants. In the U.S. this leads to a lack of standardized definitions, calculation methodologies, and comprehensive generation tracking data. Residual mixes represent unclaimed …
Purchasing Clean Energy for Impact: Understanding Opportunities
by Lucas Grimes, CRS; and James Critchfield, U.S. EPA Green Power Partnership Aggressive expansion of clean energy is critical for the U.S. to achieve its climate and energy goals. A major prerequisite for this transition is customers’ ability to procure clean energy. Customers who have access and choose to purchase clean energy are not …
CRS Statement on Recent Supreme Court Decision
Yesterday’s ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court in West Virginia v. EPA is a dangerous and disappointing blow to climate action at the federal level. Urgent action by Congress, FERC, EPA and other federal agencies is more critical now than ever. This decision also underscores the importance of bold leadership from state and local government …
Just Released: 2021 Green-e® Verification Report (2020 Data)
We just released the 2021 Green-e® Verification Report (2020 Data), which showed an over-30% increase in certified MWh over the previous year. There were significant gains in solar, and pandemic-related spending shifts as many businesses were shuttered. The annual Verification Report aggregates year-end reporting data from participants in the three Green-e® programs—Green-e® Climate, Green-e® Energy, …
Accounting For All Renewable Energy Use: What’s Possible and What’s Needed
by Peggy Kellen Many companies today are increasing the ambition of their climate and renewable energy leadership to meet the need for global “net zero” by 2050, in line with the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC’s) recommendations. Historically, renewable energy leadership has meant voluntarily purchasing renewable energy beyond what would have otherwise been …
Oregon Encourages Use of Green-e Certified RECs for EV Charging
by Todd Jones On March 26, 2021, the Oregon Environmental Quality Commission (EQC) adopted new rules for the state’s Clean Fuels Program (CFP), which reduces greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with transportation fuels. Like California’s Low-Carbon Fuel Standard, Oregon’s CFP recognizes electricity as a low-carbon transportation fuel with the average carbon intensity of the statewide …
Happy Holidays from CRS
As this extraordinary year comes to a close, the staff and board of Center for Resource Solutions would like to wish you happy holidays and best wishes for the coming year. We’re closing out a year of unprecedented challenges and uncertainty. Nevertheless, we made solid progress on the clean energy transition, with record-breaking capacity …
Protesting in Support of Equality and Racial Justice
Center for Resource Solutions stands with those protesting the devastating murder of George Floyd on May 25th, 2020, and the entrenched culture of racism in which it took place. Our employees, board, and families join together with people and communities who are impacted by systemic racism, and support all who are raising their voices during …