Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 48

Introduced by Senators McGuire and Hueso

(Principal coauthors: Assembly Members Dodd and Wood)

(Coauthors: Senators Hertzberg, Stone, and Wolk)

(Coauthors: Assembly Members Dahle, Cristina Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, and Rendon)

April 27, 2015

Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 48—Relative to geothermal awareness.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SCR 48, as introduced, McGuire. Geothermal Awareness Month and Geothermal Awareness Day.

This measure would recognize the month of May 2015, as Geothermal Awareness Month and May 21, 2015, as Geothermal Awareness Day.

Fiscal committee: no.

WHEREAS, California contains the largest amount of
geothermal generating capacity in the United States due to its
location on the Pacific “Ring of Fire” and the tectonic plate
junctions; and

WHEREAS, There are 25 Known Geothermal Resource Areas
located in California, 14 of which have temperatures of 300 degrees
Fahrenheit or greater for commercial geothermal production of
electricity; and

WHEREAS, There are major geothermal electrical production
locations throughout the State of California in the Counties of
Sonoma, Lake, Imperial, Inyo, and Mono; and

WHEREAS, California currently has 2,565.5 megawatts of
installed electric generation capacity from geothermal resources
with an additional 4,000 megawatts of potential for development;
and

WHEREAS, Geothermal energy is a reliable baseload renewable
energy source that has been commercially operating in California
since 1960 at the Geysers, the world’s most developed geothermal
resource area, which has been providing Californians with clean,
reliable, and affordable electricity for more than 50 years; and

WHEREAS, Geothermal energy produces electricity 24 hours
a day, seven days a week, with a high availability record and is
important to balance the needs of the state’s transmission grid
system; and

WHEREAS, Geothermal energy is a clean renewable energy
resource. The operation of the Geysers and operations in Imperial
County help avoid the emissions of 11.6 billion pounds of carbon
dioxide annually, which is equivalent to greenhouse gas emissions
from more than 1,050,000 cars being taken off the road, that would
otherwise be emitted by fossil fuel plants to meet baseload energy
needs; and

WHEREAS, In comparison to other existing renewable
technologies, geothermal energy has many unique benefits,
including consistent, predictable production, a relatively small
land footprint, and low integration costs; and

WHEREAS, Imperial County’s Salton Sea Known Geothermal
Resource Area is considered to have a significant near-term growth
opportunity of over 2,000 megawatts of electric generation from
additional geothermal resource development and additional
geothermal resource development opportunities exist in the
Counties of Sonoma, Modoc, Mono, and Lake; and

WHEREAS, The geothermal industry is a major employer in
the local communities where projects are located, providing a
diverse range of full-time employment opportunities as well as
contractor jobs throughout all phases of development and operation;
and

WHEREAS, Construction of the two proposed projects in
Sonoma County is expected to require about 900,000 hours of
labor by 190 construction workers, as well as hundreds of millions
of dollars in materials, supplies, and services during construction.
This new construction would result in an estimated $12 million in
one-time sales tax revenue, $7 million in new annual property tax
revenues, and millions of dollars in additional royalties paid to
state, federal, and private leaseholders. Once operational, the new
plants could create up to 19 full-time jobs; and

WHEREAS, Fully developing Imperial County’s Salton Sea
Known Geothermal Resource Area could produce 5,214
construction jobs, and up to 1,093 long-term operating and
maintenance jobs, substantially improving the economy of one of
the most impoverished counties in the state, where over 22 percent
of the population is unemployed; and

WHEREAS, Geothermal power contributes to the tax revenue
in local communities, serving as the largest property taxpayers in
the Counties of Lake, Sonoma, and Inyo, as well as representing
10 percent of all property tax revenue in Imperial County; and

WHEREAS, Geothermal development, from exploration through
construction, spurs local economic growth through jobs, sales tax
revenues, materials and supplies purchase, and purchase of other
associated goods and services; and

WHEREAS, California has one of the most ambitious
renewables portfolio standards in the country with a mandate to
procure 33 percent of energy from renewable sources by 2020,
and geothermal energy is a major contributor to achieving this
goal; and

WHEREAS, Governor Brown has proposed expanding
California’s Renewables Portfolio Standard Program to require
50 percent of our energy from renewable sources by 2030, further
increasing the importance of geothermal energy to achieve our
renewable energy goals; and

WHEREAS, California is on course to meet the near-term 2020
greenhouse gas emissions reduction target under the California
Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 (Division 25.5
(commencing with Section 38500) of the Health and Safety Code),
but more emissions reductions from the use of clean energy like
geothermal and other technological innovations will be needed to
maintain and make further reductions in carbon emissions; and

WHEREAS, Geothermal energy presents a unique opportunity
to address other environmental issues, such as the Geysers’
partnership with the City of Santa Rosa and Lake County to use
their treated wastewater to recharge the Geysers. This innovative
partnership is helping to keep local waterways clean and reduce
carbon emissions from the wastewater, all while sustaining this
important source of reliable, affordable, and renewable energy;
and

WHEREAS, Geothermal energy is essential and complimentary
to California’s environmental and economic policies, yet new fully
permitted geothermal projects have failed to keep pace with the
procurement of other renewable resources; and

WHEREAS, According to the State Air Resources Board, the
State Energy Resources Conservation and Development
Commission, and the Public Utilities Commission, existing
geothermal generation production is expected to drop significantly
by 2020, a result of renewable procurement policies that have
failed to fully capture the benefits of geothermal generation and
the costs associated with other renewable technologies; and

WHEREAS, A diverse renewable energy portfolio fits with
California’s energy demand profile and lowers costs; and

WHEREAS, The preservation of California’s existing
geothermal generation and the development of new geothermal
generation could facilitate the achievement of the state’s post-2020
energy and environmental goals; now, therefore, be it

Resolved by the Senate of the State of California, the Assembly
thereof concurring, That the Legislature recognizes the month of
May 2015 as Geothermal Awareness Month to raise awareness of
the significant contributions geothermal energy makes to
California’s Renewables Portfolio Standard Program and toward
meeting the state’s environmental goals to reduce greenhouse gas
emissions; and be it further

Resolved, That the Legislature recognizes May 21, 2015, as
Geothermal Awareness Day in California, and urges all citizens
to show their support on that day by learning more about
geothermal energy in California and supporting public events
planned by the geothermal industry; and be it further

Resolved, That the Legislature considers geothermal resources
important to California’s future and recognizes the environmental
and economic values of existing and future geothermal energy for
the state and local communities; and be it further

Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of
this resolution to the Governor, the members of the Public Utilities
Commission, the State Energy Resources Conservation and
Development Commission, the Independent System Operator, the
State Air Resources Board, and to the author for appropriate
distribution.