Southwest Energy at the Crossroads

The right path is energy efficiency and renewables, not coal

Posted: 29-Jan-2007; Updated: 27-Aug-2007

The Southwest is at a critical crossroads. It can trudge down the old path of outdated coal plants and add to the growing concerns of water shortages, wildfires and droughts. Or it can take a new path to reduce global warming dangers and enter the new carbon economy. The choice is clear. Energy efficiency and renewable resources are the bold way forward for the Southwest.

Dirty power plants threaten the Southwest

What's in store if the old road is followed? If more than a dozen planned coal-fired power plants begin operating in the region, they wil add as much heat-trapping pollution equal to 12 million more cars, according to Climate Alert: Cleaner Energy for the Southwest [PDF], a new joint report from Environmental Defense and Western Resource Advocates.

The Southwest already has a large stock of dirty, coal-burning utilities. Power plants last a long time and emit tons of heat-trapping emissions. Their pollution adds to the atmospheric mix of greenhouse gases that is warming the climate and threatening the Southwest with

increased flooding,
more frequent and intense wildfires,
infectious disease outbreaks,
poorer air quality and increased respiratory problems,
prolonged droughts,
the disappearance of fragile alpine and desert habitats,
and the loss of billions of dollars in outdoor recreation.

The new coal-fired power plants on the drawing boards guarantee that the Southwest will contribute more to this growing burden of global warming pollution unless Arizona, Utah, Nevada, New Mexico and Colorado insist on an urgent change of course. An additional 70 million tons of CO₂ is not something the area needs, especially when nonpolluting alternatives are available to the region?

Moving toward the new energy future

Energy efficiency by itself can go a long way toward meeting rising demand for electricity. And unlike coal, energy efficiency does not result in increased heat-trapping pollution. Tapping renewable resources is another way to slake the region's thirst for energy.

Our new report lists immediate steps Southwest states and tribes can take to reduce global warming pollution and position themselves for the new energy future. These include:

Limiting emissions of global warming pollution
Maximizing energy efficiencies to address growing electricity demand
Requiring all new coal plants to meet performance standards for heat-trapping emissions
Focusing expanded transmission capacity on projects involving renewable resources.

Without these efforts, the Southwest is in a precarious situation. Extremely hot summer temperatures are pushing the boundary of livability in many parts of the desert Southwest. The huge electrical demands from air-conditioning use in cities like Phoenix and Las Vegas will only go higher with increasing temperatures, further straining electrical supplies challenged by a growing population.

On the other hand, the Southwest is uniquely poised to grow economically and improve the environment by embracing clean energy full-on. California has charted a course to reduce global warming pollution that southwestern states can follow. The proposed power plants would cancel out some of California's green initiatives. The Southwest can and must do better. And the United States needs more pioneering efforts to tackle global warming and become energy secure.

Economic opportunity: A head start on new energy markets

Far-sighted political leaders in Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico and Utah see the economic opportunity of embracing policies that reduce heat-trapping pollution. To combat the threats that a warming climate poses on fast-growing cities dependent on scarce water resources, lawmakers are crafting policies with tough emissions reductions targets. These efforts are laying the foundation for a competitive Southwest in emerging new energy markets.

Table: Western state global warming pollution reduction timetables adopted by executive order

State	Pollution reduction target	Year to be achieved
Arizona (E.O. 2006-13, September 7, 2006)	Return to 2000 levels Reduce to 50% below 2000 levels	2020 2040
California (E.O. S-3-05, June 1, 2005)	Return to 2000 levels Return to 1990 levels Reduce to 80% below 1990 levels	2010 2020 2050
New Mexico (E.O. 05-033, June 9, 2005)	Return to 2000 levels Reduce to 10% below 2000 levels Reduce to 75% below 2000 levels	2012 2020 2050

Spending many billions of dollars on new coal-fired power plants that do not reduce or control carbon dioxide emissions is both financially irresponsible and environmentally reckless. The Southwest’s abundant solar, wind, geothermal and biomass resources are available now to meet new electricity demand.