Focusing on incentives and using a lot of key data to support them, Finlayson laid out their approach -- "a lot of clean energy, not a lot of climate." That, in a nut shell, illustrates the way many governments are going about spurring innovation and development. And, for better or worse, the "New Energy Economy" (see Colorado and Governor Bill Ritter) has had serious traction across the US. But the "new energy" economy is not only about "new energy", it is also about using less energy, incentivizing energy efficiency, and deploying renewable energy resources. In Massachusetts, like in many forward looking states and regions, efficiency comes first and renewables deployment follows. One example is especially noteworthy here. The forward capacity market, an incentive based program, seeks to ensure that Massachusetts will be able to meet energy demand by providing financial incentives for energy users and providers to increase energy efficiency. Basically (and the legislation is far more complicated than this), Massachusetts will pay users to demand less energy by financially compensating companies and providers that can reduce consumption at the current cost of power generation. So, if Anheuser-Busch, for example, reduces energy consumption by 30% over three years the company will be reimbursed for the amount of their reductions. The goal here, in general terms, can be described as allowing building energy efficiency incentives and real-time demand response to compete effectively and provide an alternative to increased generation and price increases.
The other concern in Massachusetts to highlight here is the issue of heating. Renewable heating, as of yet, has not become a political or price issue, but winter in New England is cold, oil prices are increasing dramatically, and policy initiatives are starting to catch up with a new interest in biomass heating in the New England region. Until now, however, biomass has largely been perceived as a means of increasing electricity generation. But, Massachusetts is taking the lead in trying to develop a comprehensive strategy to increase biomass development in the heating sector. The biomass potential in New England is at least 300 MW through sustainable forestry, and 6 x 50 MW electricity vs heating vs CHP. For an example of how this can be done, one need not look much further than Upper Austria.
For an overview of Massachusetts' mitigation strategies: Massachusetts - Mitigating Climate Change
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