Ratepayers for Affordable Clean Energy is a partnership of over 25 organizations and citizens’ groups working towards a clean energy future for the West Coast of North America. We envision that in the coming years, the West Coast’s electricity supply will be increasingly clean, efficient, and affordable for all. RACE works to develop progressive energy policies, supports grassroots campaigns, analyzes and influences state and local energy policies, and works to influence lawmakers to make the best choices on energy issues.

RACE’s primary goals are to:

•    Ensure that an increasing percentage of the West Coast’s energy supply comes from emission-free, renewable sources.
•    Ensure that energy efficiency is maximized on the West Coast.
•    Empower local communities to make clean, affordable energy available for its residents.
•    Stop harmful new dirty energy projects such as Liquefied Natural Gas facilities.
•    Seek low-impact alternatives to harmful sources of energy such as Liquefied Natural Gas, and new sources of coal and nuclear.

How We Get There

It is the belief of RACE members that as decisions regarding power generation are largely made on a state and regional level, these are the best areas to advocate for clean energy. As California is the 8th largest energy market in the world and the 12th largest emitter of greenhouse gases, it is critical that the state rapidly develop clean energy while doing what it can to reduce energy consumption. What happens in the large California electricity sector reverberates far beyond the state’s borders, and clean energy policy and implementation in California can have a positive effect throughout the West Coast.

We are strongly encouraged by California’s Energy Action Plan loading order, which has the following rank order for the state’s energy needs:

1.    Energy Efficiency and demand response.
2.    Renewable energy and distributed generation
3.    New “clean” fossil fuels and infrastructure improvements.

While we agree with the first two as priorities, we are concerned that the state is not taking the necessary steps to ensure they are maximized before moving onto number 3, in particular new fossil fuels. The following is a short breakdown of power source by type, and where we believe they fit in California’s energy portfolio:

Liquefied Natural Gas: There is simply no need to import Liquefied Natural Gas into California, whether through an in-state terminal or by way of an intermediary location such as another state or country on the Pacific Coast. LNG imports will add to California’s greenhouse gas emissions, endanger communities with volatile facilities and pollution, and will promote poor environmental practices at the upstream sources for LNG.

Domestic Natural Gas: Natural gas delivered by pipeline from North American sources is the “least dirty” of the fossil fuels. California currently derives about 40 percent of our electricity from natural gas power plants, which is preferable to coal, LNG and nuclear power. Natural gas can be a viable back-up fuel for large scale renewable technologies, such as solar thermal. However, natural gas is a greenhouse gas, and its extraction has severe environmental downsides in Canada, Rocky Mountains and the U.S. Southwest. Natural gas power plants are often sited in poor communities, and contribute to illnesses such as asthma. California should continue its current trend of reducing natural gas usage through the shutting down of wasteful, aging power plants and other efficiency measures, and by not increasing generating capacity for natural gas.

Coal: California only gets 20 percent of its electricity from coal, compared to 50 percent for the U.S. as a whole. The electricity the state does derive from out of state coal is often contracted on a long-term basis. According to a new law (SB1368), new long term coal contracts must supply sources that do not exceed carbon dioxide emissions from natural gas power plants established by the California Energy Commission. There is no existing coal combustion technology that can come close to this standard without sequestering significant amounts of carbon dioxide, and there is much controversy about whether this is even possible.

The new limits on greenhouse gas emissions, combined with growth in total energy consumption, will work to slowly reduce the relative role of coal in California’s energy mix. This can be accomplished while at the same time reducing the use of natural gas. We do not support the development of any new coal facilities, and do not believe them necessary for the Western electricity grid.

Hydro-Electric Power:  The state is committed to electricity derived from large hydropower projects because of the infrastructure investments already made to build the dams decades ago,  and because it is a relatively inexpensive source of energy. Other than a few controversial hydro projects such as the Hetch Hetchy dam and those along the Klamath River with low generating capacity, there is no serious movement to decommission the large dams the state is now using for 19 percent of its electricity.

There is evidence that decommissioning of the Hetch Hetchy and Klamathj dams will have little effect on total energy supplies. One report showed how 90 percent of electric generation could be maintained from Hetch Hetchy power houses, even if Hetch Hetchy Dam is dismantled. The Klamath decommissioning would result in the loss of 200 megawatts of power, located in Oregon. This compares with over 14,000 megawatts of hydroelectric capacity in California. Nevertheless, growing energy demand and the effect of climate change may reduce the role of conventional hydroelectricity.  

Nuclear Power: We do not support new development of nuclear power. Nuclear power has not been proven to be safe, there is no safe way to dispose of its waste, and it is very expensive. It is not a viable solution to the climate crisis, and should be phased out of California’s energy portfolio over time.

Energy Efficiency & Conservation: RACE agrees with the State of California that the most prudent way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions while keeping energy rates affordable is energy efficiency. This is where the Western States should be directing most of their energy resources. Strategies employed include everything from the promotion of low-wattage lightbulbs to the decommissioning or repowering of natural gas power plants that are thirty years or older.

Renewable Energy: RACE also agrees with the State of California policy that development of renewable energy such as wind, solar, tidal, and geothermal should be a second priority. In particular, it is preferable that the energy source be as close to the market as possible to avoid transmission losses. RACE supports the wide variety of policies and laws which promote renewables, including the localization of energy encouraged by Community Choice Aggregation, the statewide Renewable Portfolio Standard for utilities, and incentive programs such as the California Solar Initiative and the many local incentive programs proposed or in place.

The 2025 Vision

If the clean energy laws that are currently on the books in California are fully implemented, then even by conservative estimates, we believe California can dramatically transform its energy portfolio. As of 2005, our energy portfolio looks like this: 

If California fully implements a 33 percent Renewable Portfolio Standard (as is the state’s policy, decommissions some nuclear, cuts in half the dependence on out-of-state coal, and drops natural gas usage by another 10 percent, our 2025 portfolio will look like this. This presumes less hydro due to reduced snow pack from global warming.

 How We Work

We hold monthly telephone conference calls to discuss our priorities and strategies. Representatives from RACE’s partner organizations and other energy activists and experts from throughout the West Coast come together to strategize on clean energy campaigns and stay up to date and active in the Coalition.

Partner Organizations

Our partners are critical to the success of RACE, determining RACE’s policies and priorities and demonstrating the breadth of our concerns. Partner organizations are eligible to give partner-only input on key policy issues. Partners sign RACE’s platform, and are expected to help shape and actively participate in RACE’s work.

Individuals

Many individual advocates, who are not associated with a partner organization, make valuable contributions to RACE through participation in meetings, information-sharing, and campaign activities.  

Decision-Making

RACE’s strength depends on our ability to join together around common goals. For major policy decisions, such as taking positions on proposed legislation, adopting new campaigns, or taking action on issues not in the above RACE Platform, RACE actively seeks input from representatives of Partner Organizations. Each Partner Organization designates a representative to give RACE feedback through communications with the facilitator, as well as at monthly meetings. To maintain RACE’s cohesion, decisions on matters not reflected in the platform will be arrived on through a vote of ¾’s of RACE’s partners, which will be arrived both from our monthly meetings, through one-on-one communication with the facilitator, or through the following on-line polling, according to the following steps:

-The proposal to be voted on is sent to RACE’s partners via the RACE list-serve no less than five working days before the decision is needed.

-A reminder email will be sent the day before the vote is due.

-Responses and/or sign-ons are sent to the lead facilitator of RACE.

-Failure to respond by any member in the allotted time nullifies that partner’s vote, and does not count toward the ¾’s of RACE’s partners needed for approval. In other words, if 12 out of 17 members respond, the issue would require at least 9 “yes” votes to pass.

Facilitation

RACE is currently facilitated by Pacific Environment.

Who We Are

For a current list of RACE’s partner organizations, see our website, www.raceforcleanenergy.org

To Join RACE

If your organization would like to join RACE, please contact Rory Cox at rcox "at" pacificenvironment.org, or by calling 415.399.8850 x302