THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that The Council of State Governments encourages states to continue to evaluate the energy efficiency and demand reduction opportunities that can be achieved with electric utility grid modernization efforts, subject to the unique and specific circumstances that exist in their respective state.

Attendees at this session learned what’s next for state leaders with regard to energy and the environment. Former Wyoming Gov. Dave Freudenthal shared his experiences as leader of one of the most active states for natural resource development. He also discussed the challenges facing states in the coming months and years. This session also featured a discussion about the growing role sustainability plays in the management and balance sheets of private sector companies.

One solution to the growing challenge of siting interstate transmission lines may be the formation of an interstate compact governing transmission line siting.   The Energy Policy Act of 2005 granted states advance congressional consent to create regional interstate compacts and CSG, through the National Center for Interstate Compacts, and with the assistance of a drafting team comprised of subject matter experts has developed model language for state consideration.  

Stateline Midwest ~ November 2012
 

When it comes to promoting energy efficiency, Minnesota ranks highest in the Midwest, thanks in large part to the state’s strong efficiency standards and the conservation plans that it requires of utilities, according to a national scorecard released in October.

In October 2012, the Obama administration passed an important milestone in siting 10,000 megawatts of renewable energy projects - three years ahead of the objectives laid out in federal law - to encourage the development of vast resources on public land. Constructing large amounts of expensive electric transmission lines and concerns over habitat impacts to endangered species pose potential hurdles for these and other large-scale renewable energy projects.