CONCORD - The New Hampshire State Senate today unanimously passed a
landmark bill requiring nearly 20 percent of our state’s electricity to come
from clean, renewable energy by 2020.
“This bill is a giant leap
forward for New Hampshire's energy future,” said Erika Staaf, Advocate for Environment New
Hampshire. “This Clean Energy Standard is one of the most
significant clean energy bills to pass in New Hampshire, and we are thrilled to see unanimous support for it in the Senate.”
House Bill 873, which also
passed unanimously through the Senate Energy, Environment, and Economic
Development Committee, requires electric companies to include a minimum
percentage of renewable, low emission power in the electricity they sell.
Sponsored by Sen. Martha
Fuller Clark, D-Portsmouth, and Rep. Suzanne Harvey,
D-Nashua, the bill establishes standards requiring any company selling
electricity to consumers in New
Hampshire to provide a portion of that electricity
from both existing and new renewable sources.
New
Hampshire was the only
state in New England that had not passed some
form of renewable portfolio standards legislation.
“This bill gives a strong
incentive to New Hampshire
to tap our home-grown energy sources such as wind, solar, clean biomass, and
small hydroelectric power,” said Staaf.
“We can now begin to move away from our traditional, polluting sources such as coal and gas, and toward a cleaner, more sustainable energy
future.”
The governor has publicly
stated he would sign the bill into law.
“Now we must turn our
attention to Congress to ensure federal passage of a Renewable Energy Standard as strong as New Hampshire's,” added
Staaf.
