Connecticut Will Buy 17% of Power from Renewable Sources
State Makes Green Power Partner Top-50 List
June 2009
In 2009, 17% of the electricity used by the Connecticut state government will come from renewable resources, close to Governor M. Jodi Rell’s goal of 20% by 2020.
Credit: Martin McKenzie
About 17% of the electricity used by the State of Connecticut in 2009 will come from renewable resources, moving the state toward its goal of 20% by 2020 and putting it on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Green Power Partner Top-50 List.
In the spring, Connecticut Governor M. Jodi Rell announced green power purchases of more than 98 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity, which the EPA estimates is enough to power about 9,000 homes. The governor's announcement was part of her goal called "Energy Vision for a Cleaner, Greener State," which is for state agencies to purchase 20% of their electricity from renewable energy resources by 2020.
The EPA Green Power Partnership is a voluntary program that includes more than 1,000 public and private organizations, as well as colleges and universities, across the nation. Green power is generated from renewable resources such as solar, wind, geothermal, and biomass. The EPA monitors the annual green power purchases (U.S. resources only) of the institutions and issues top partner rankings.
In 2007, Connecticut became the first New England state to join the Green Power Partnership. (See the EPA March 19, 2007 press release.) In that year, about 12% of the state's electricity, roughly 84 million kWh, came from renewable energy resources through green power purchases.
For more information, read the governor's March 19 news release.
See more Connecticut project descriptions published in Conservation Update.
Read recent Connecticut news stories about state involvement in renewable energy and energy efficiency projects published on the EERE Web site.