States, Regions May Take Lead on Energy, Climate Policies

With climate legislation failing to get traction in the Senate, sources said states and regions could take primary responsibility for changes in the energy industry and in developing climate change policies, ClimateWire reported.

For example, regulated utilities in the Southeast were seen as uniquely likely to build new nuclear plants in the absence of U.S. GHG emissions limits. Exelon Chairman and CEO John Rowe was quoted as saying: "I just don't think nuclear has a chance in a pure marketplace without a carbon price" that could leave nuclear out of unregulated markets in the Northeast, Texas and elsewhere.

So far, 29 states and the District of Columbia have renewable requirements and about the same number are rolling out smart meter programs. The Edison Foundation found that 17 states offered energy-efficiency incentives and another eight were considering incentives. However, regional GHG emissions pacts in the Northeast, Midwest and West were seen as vulnerable to changing political landscapes that could remove the support needed for their continuation.

D.C. Utility Commissioner Richard Morgan was quoted as saying: "It feels like we really do need a national program to limit carbon emissions. That would be far better than a series of state efforts. Until and unless we do, the state and regional efforts are about all we've got."