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In Washington State, we get a large fraction of our electricity from hydroelectricity (over 60% in 2023). Meanwhile, for-profit utilities Puget Sound Energy and Avista still use a large amount of fossil fuels for generation.
In Washington State, we get a large fraction of our electricity from hydroelectricity (over 60% in 2023). Meanwhile, for-profit utilities Puget Sound Energy and Avista still use a large amount of fossil fuels for generation.
Could Washington generate sufficient power from solar and wind to run the state? Yes.
Could Washington generate sufficient power from solar and wind to run the state? Yes.
Electricity generation from hydroelectricity in 2024: 60.6%.
Carbon footprint of investor-owned utilities was significantly larger than most public and co-op utilities: Puget Sound Energy (1052 lbs CO2/MWh) and Avista (647 lbs CO2/MWh).
Even assuming the most limited siting restrictions, Washington could generate over 10 times its current electricity generation from solar and wind alone.
Solar availability in Washington is particularly large in summer. This is useful because hydroelectricity generation is expected to decrease in summer due to climate change. Streamflows will decrease in summer and increase in winter because more precipitation falls as rain in a warmer climate.
When used in microgrids in particular, solar power can provide resilience to power outages caused by natural disasters. Many of these natural disasters are increasing with global warming, and two of the most important are particularly intense in summer: heat waves and forest fires.
Sources
Sources
Used for utilities data, sourced from the Clean Energy Transition Institute.
Used for electricity general facts, sourced from the EIA.
Used for capacity data, sourced from the NREL.
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