Close to Home: Clean power promotes national security

Russia’s war on Ukraine is a sharp reminder that oil and gas are still prizes of war. Our allies in Europe are feeling the pain and rethinking their dependency on Russian oil, gas and coal. But energy is global. When prices go up in Europe, we feel the effects in the U.S., too.

Sonoma Clean Power was launched in 2014 to build renewable power systems faster, and we’ve made remarkable progress. Using only the proceeds from selling electricity, Sonoma Clean Power has built more than $1 billion in new renewable power and slashed greenhouse gas emissions from electricity by more than 30%. We accomplished this while averaging lower rates than PG&E. But when we look at the situation in Ukraine, we realize that we have far to go.

California remains profoundly vulnerable to economic and military attacks on our energy supply, which today’s gasoline prices make obvious. While Sonoma Clean Power was formed to help address the climate crisis, we’re seeing how building an energy system that uses wind, sunlight, water and geothermal heat is vastly more secure than depending on global commodities like oil and gas. To this end, we are embarking on an initiative to eventually develop 500 megawatts of geothermal capacity in Sonoma and Mendocino counties. This effort will help the state transition off natural gas and improve power reliability.

The climate crisis is, of course, still critical to address, but it’s reassuring to see that our efforts also are paying dividends for national security.

Nationally, the effort to resurrect and pass the climate provisions from President Joe Biden’s Build Back Better Act must be prioritized. Included in the potential $555 billion for renewable energy and clean transportation are two tax credits that could push forward adoption of electric vehicles. The proposal would increase the electric vehicle tax credit from $7,500 to $12,500 for lower and middle-income families and create a new credit of up to $4,000 for used zero-emission vehicles. Factoring in high gasoline prices, these measures would make electric vehicle purchases more financially feasible for many Americans.

If you haven’t already, I encourage you to test drive an electric car. They’re fun, fast and much less expensive to maintain than gas-powered vehicles — no radiator, no transmission, no fuel pump. And less expensive to fuel. You’ll not only save time and money, but by making the switch to clean renewable power, you can save the planet, create energy independence and make a stand for peace and national security.

David King, a Petaluma city councilman, is chairman of Sonoma Clean Power’s board of directors.

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