Marine and Hydrokinetic Renewable Energy Bill Introduced in Senate

On March 17th, Senators Lisa Murkowski and Mark Begich of Alaska introduced the "Hydrokinetic Renewable Energy Promotion Act of 2011” (S. 630), which would authorize the Department of Energy (DOE) to expand its research and development on marine and hydrokinetic renewable energy. The bill calls for the creation of three testing facilities to be developed by states, universities, or non-profit entities to test marine hydrokinetic technology, and would establish a Federal Marine-Based Energy Device Verification program to certify the performance of new marine technologies. The bill would also authorize the Federal government to set up an adaptive management program and a fund to help pay for the regulatory permitting and development of new marine technologies.

Marine and Hydrokinetic Renewable Energy Act Introduced in House

On September 29th, Representatives Jay Inslee (D-WA) and Brian Baird (D-WA) introduced the “Marine and Hydrokinetic Renewable Energy Promotion Act” (H.R. 6344), which would establish a series of competitive demonstration grants to support the research, demonstration, and commercial application of marine hydrokinetic renewable energy technologies, and identify ways to address potential environmental impacts. The bill would also expand an existing Department of Energy program to create test facilities that will demonstrate a variety of technologies at a range of scales to evaluate the viability of each technology.

Salazar Signs Agreement with 10 East Coast Governors to Establish Atlantic Offshore Wind Energy Consortium

Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar and the governors of 10 East Coast states signed a Memorandum of Understanding on June 8 that formally establishes an Atlantic Offshore Wind Energy Consortium to promote the efficient, orderly, and responsible development of wind resources on the Outer Continental Shelf.

Salazar announced the agreement at Capitol Hill Oceans Week 2010, where he also announced the establishment of a new regional renewable energy office to coordinate and appropriately expedite the development of wind, solar and other renewable energy resources on the Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf.

Several wind energy projects for the Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf have been proposed for East Coast states, positioning the region to tap into the enormous potential of wind power in the U.S. Developing this resource could create thousands of manufacturing, construction and operations jobs and displace older, inefficient fossil-fueled generating plants, helping significantly to combat climate change.

“Renewable energy resources hold great economic promise,” Salazar said. “By one estimate, if our nation fully pursues its potential for wind energy on land and offshore, wind can generate as much as 20 percent of our electricity by 2030 and create a quarter-million jobs in the process.”

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