The draft
2012 Comprehensive Energy Strategy issued by the Department of Energy and
Environmental Protection (DEEP) in October 2012 presents a series of policy proposals
intended to expand energy choices, lower utility bills, improve environmental
conditions, and create clean energy jobs. It focuses on five, sometimes
overlapping, energy strategy sectors: natural gas, energy efficiency,
electricity, industry, and transportation. Although the strategy contains
significant research findings, this report focuses mainly on the
recommendations proposed as a result of those findings within each sector.
In
discussing the natural gas sector, the strategy concludes that natural gas is a
cheaper, cleaner, and more reliable fuel for heating, power generation, and
possibly transportation. It recommends a variety of proposals intended to
encourage (1) people to convert their homes and businesses to natural gas and
(2) gas utilities to expand their infrastructure.
For energy
efficiency, which the strategy identifies as the most cost effective way to
reduce energy bills, the strategy recommends improving funding for efficiency
programs and expanding the programs to include more potential customers. The
recommendations for the electricity sector similarly stress the importance of
efficiency measures, but also propose measures to reduce electricity use,
promote and expand renewable energy systems, and increase system reliability.
Recommendations for the industry sector generally focus on adapting the gas,
efficiency, and electricity proposals to the specifics of industrial needs, but
also include suggestions to encourage water conservation and create an Advanced
Energy Innovation Hub.
The
strategy's recommendations for the transportation sector focus on reducing the
amount of gasoline and diesel fuel consumed in the state while encouraging the
availability of a diverse refueling infrastructure.
For more
information, read the
full report.
