Nick Cahill| Courthouse News Service Link to article
Lawmakers clear a proposal intended to jumpstart floating wind farms off the coast, saying the technology could prop the state’s buckling power grid and create more than 10,000 new jobs.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (CN) — Caught again in an energy crisis and facing another summer of rolling blackouts, California lawmakers are trolling the coast for a new power source.
With renewed interest in offshore wind and financial support en route from the federal government, a state Senate committee on Tuesday advanced legislation that would help spur an armada of floating wind farms off California’s coast.
Proponents said the state can’t afford to miss out on a golden opportunity to buffer its increasingly strained electrical supply and advance its ambitious goal of a wholly green grid.
“After a year of heatwaves, wildfires, rolling blackouts and the loss of over 1 million jobs, we have a once-in-a-generation opportunity just 20-30 miles off our coast to address climate change and put people back to work,” said Assembly Bill 525 author David Chiu.
Tuesday’s vote by the Senate Natural Resources and Water Committee comes as the state is once again crossing its fingers and urging residents to conserve power this summer.