The city of Austin is looking at making some major changes that will make it one of the greenest cities in the country. Although the changes will result in an estimated 20% increase in energy bills over the next decade, city leaders maintain that the change will payoff in the long run as the use of traditional power sources such as coal continues to rise.
The new plan isn’t something that the city is entering into lightly. In fact, the proposed plan has been developed over the past two years with the help of online surveys and numerous public meetings. At the heart of the plan, the city will be taking steps to wean itself off of the use of coal. Despite the fact that coal is relatively cheap and the city is part owner of a coal plant in Fayette County, many scientists maintain that the carbon gases created while burning coal are a major contributor to global warming. As such, the city wants to significantly reduce the amount of electricity it obtains from the plant over the next ten years. The city would also like to either close the Fayette plant or sell its share of the plant.
Although the new plan still calls for obtaining electricity from coal during the day, the city wants to switch to wind power during the nighttime while also adding on some wood-waste and solar energy as well as energy derived from other renewable sources. Currently, renewable sources provide about 11% of the city’s energy, but the city’s goal is to increase that number to 35% by 2020.
“We think this plan strikes the right balance between affordability, reliability and environmental stewardship,” said Roger Duncan, Austin Energy’s general manager.
According to Austin Energy, the switchover will likely result in a 20% increase in household energy bills over the next ten years. As such, those who are paying $100 per month on their electric bills can expect to start paying around $120 per month by 2020. Austin officials feel strongly that the change will put the city ahead of the curve, however, as they anticipate that the federal government will put caps on coal emissions by 2020 that will either increase the costs significantly or require cities to make some significant changes in the way they create energy.
“My usual response when people ask what’s affordable is, ‘affordable when?’” Duncan said. “What’s affordable now may not be in 2020, and what’s affordable then may not be in 2030. What we’re recommending raises prices a little in the short term but we think better prepares us for the long term.”