Western Governors' Association

Clean Energy, a Strong Economy and a Healthy Environment...

Agricultural residue, such as these walnuts, is just one form of biomass that can be used to produce electricity.
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Under the leadership of Govs. Bill Richardson (NM), Arnold Schwarzenegger (CA), Dave Freudenthal (WY), Jon Huntsman (UT) and John Hoeven (ND), western governors are working collectively and individually to move the region toward a cleaner more diverse energy future.

Through these efforts, the Western Governors are encouraging the region to utilize it's diverse resources to produce affordable, sustainable, and environmentally responsible energy. The Governors priorities were outlined in a resolution that the Governors passed at their 2006 Annual Meeting. The resolution is based on the Governors' Clean and Diversified Energy Advisory Committee's report, which identified the necessary changes in state and federal policy to achieve:

30,000 megawatts of new clean and diverse energy generation by 2015
A 20 percent increase in energy efficiency by 2020
Adequate transmission capacity for the region over the next 25 years

A report tracking progress on achieving these goals was released in June 2007.

Building an Energy-Efficient Future
Western Governors have recommended policies and best practices for energy-efficient building that could dramatically reduce the demand for energy and water, while providing a boost to the region’s economy. The recommendations included in the report, Building an Energy-Efficient Future, were developed during a 2007 workshop, which included stakeholders representing building industries, utilities, public interest groups, all levels of government and energy service companies.

Participants were tasked with developing strategies that would achieve a 30 percent or greater improvement in energy efficiency over current International Energy Conservation Code standards. WGA Chairman, Gov. Dave Freudenthal (Wyo.), and Vice Chairman, Gov. Jon Huntsman, Jr. (Utah), said the report can serve as a valuable tool to governors, legislators and other public and private entities seeking to craft larger and more effective efficiency and conservation programs.

The governors noted in a joint letter accompanying the WGA report that energy efficiency and conservation represent “a vast and still underutilized” domestic energy resource.

Deploying Near Zero Technologies for Coal: A Path Forward
This workshop was held Oct. 23 - 24, 2007 in Denver. The purpose of the workshop was to determine the path to achieving full commercial scale deployment of near-zero emissions coal technology, including carbon capture and sequestration.
--workshop summary and resource document

Summit on Increasing Renewable Energy in the Western Grid
An executive leadership forum was held Sept. 27 and 28, 2007 to consider actions needed to integrate large amounts of renewable energy into the Western Grid. WGA co-hosted the event.
-- video from meeting
-- speaker presentations
-- press release from first day

Western Governors are continuing to make energy issues a priority and are in the midst of several other related initiatives, which address issues such as climate change, transportation fuels, and carbon capture and sequestration.