California has seen a recent surge in local municipalities establishing Community Choice Aggregation programs to choose their electricity portfolios. But how do these programs work and are they effective?
Electricity production is the second largest source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the United States, [1] with approximately 62.9% of our electricity coming from non-renewable fossil fuels. [2] In light of the federal government’s failure to enact comprehensive climate legislation, [3] municipalities across the country have begun to tackle climate change at the local level.
One such example is Community Choice Aggregation (CCA). Community Choice Aggregation allows local governments [4] to aggregate the electrical loads of the residents, businesses, and institutions in their geographic region to purchase energy on their behalf. [5] Since the first CCA was established in Massachusetts in 1997, [6] CCAs have continued to grow in popularity.
However, no state has seen more significant growth than California. Since the launch of Marin Clean Energy in 2010, nineteen CCA programs now exist in California and reports estimate that 16% of the state load will be serviced by CCAs in 2020. [7]
Community Choice Aggregation in California - An Opportunity for the Geothermal Industry [July/August 2016 Bulletin] by Paul Brophy, Past-President, Geothermal Resources Council, and Vice-Chair, Business Operations Committee, Sonoma Clean Power.
