Pennsylvania is at risk of being left in the dust in the renewable energy revolution. According to the Environment America Research & Policy Center, Pennsylvania ranked 49th in the nation for renewable energy growth as a whole from 2013 to 2023, lagging behind only Alaska. The reason for this is simple — Pennsylvania’s outdated Alternative Energy Portfolio Standard (AEPS).
In the early 2000s, Pennsylvania was relatively forward-thinking when it came to renewable energy targets. Most states began mandating that a certain percentage of their power come from sources other than fossil fuel power plants, calling the mandates Renewable Portfolio Standards. Some well-intentioned citizens brought the same idea forward in Pennsylvania in 2004, but it was renamed the Alternative Energy Portfolio Standard. This opened the door for many non-renewable sources to be included in the portfolio.
Pennsylvania’s alternative standard divided energy resources into two tiers and mandated that each would make up a certain percentage of the state’s total power generation by 2021. Tier 1 resources include solar PV, solar thermal, wind, low-impact hydropower, geothermal energy, biogas, fuel cells, biomass, electricity from pulping and wood manufacturing industries, and coal mine methane.
Renewable energy commitments of neighboring areas compared to Pennsylvania
As the list progresses, each source gets further away from what one would consider “renewable.” The AEPS mandated that Tier 1 resources would make up 8% of Pennsylvania’s total energy production by 2021, and Tier 2 would make up 10%. Of the 8% required to be Tier 1, only 0.5% was required to be solar.
At the time, this was quite forward-thinking and certainly better than nothing. The AEPS mandated enough solar that Pennsylvania got a head start. Six years after it was passed, in 2010, Pennsylvania was one of the Top 5 states for solar energy. Sadly, Pennsylvania has since fallen far down the rankings. PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center found that Pennsylvania is the fourth worst in the country for solar growth percentage.
Since the AEPS was signed into law in 2004, Pennsylvania’s renewable energy target has not been updated. Neighboring New York implemented a Renewable Energy Standard in 2004 that required 25% renewables by 2013, and the state met that mark. New York then updated its renewable target to 30% renewables by 2015, met that goal and is now shooting for 70% renewables by 2030.
Pennsylvania is a different beast. Pennsylvania met its 8% alternative energy target in 2021, so power companies don’t have incentive to expand their renewable energy efforts any further. As the second-to-last ranking state in terms of renewable energy development, Pennsylvania needs to update the AEPS. Taking action will protect and create energy jobs, address climate change, and ensure reliable access to power for all Pennsylvanians.
How the state is rising to the challenge
Last month, Governor Shapiro proposed his PRESS and PACER plans, which, if passed, would bump the renewable energy requirement up to 35%. But the fight to update the AEPS has a long history.
Last year, several state representatives, including Carolyn Comitta and Steve Santarsiero, minority chair of the state senate’s Environmental Resources and Energy Committee, introduced Senate Bill 230 and House Bill 1467. The two bills are being presented as “30 by 30” or updating the AEPS to 30% renewable energy by 2030.
Within this 30% requirement, 14% would be dedicated to solar energy — up from the original 0.5% set aside in 2004 (a 2,800% increase). The bill pushes for the full development of the Pennsylvania solar industry, recognizing its pivotal role in achieving a greener, more sustainable future. Senator Comitta, the minority chair of the Senate Energy & Environment Committee, recently wrote an op-ed in the Delaware County Times on the need to update the AEPS, as well as how we can address this issue.
Renewables are the future of energy. They now make up 17% of our total electricity in the United States. Pennsylvania, in the last decade, only brought online enough renewable energy to power 2% of the state’s homes and only purchased 3% renewable energy from outside the state. According to data gathered by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Pennsylvania possesses enough solar capacity to power the state five-times over.
The AEPS was progressive for its time. Pennsylvania was one of the first states in the union to mandate that any percentage of total power must come from renewable sources. But the fact remains, “alternative” is not “renewable.” It’s time for the people of Pennsylvania to stand up to a stagnant power industry and demand to walk hand in hand into the future of energy with the rest of the country.
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Aaron Nichols is a NABCEP-certified climate-tech copywriter. Aaron currently writes for Exact Solar in Newtown, Pennsylvania, working to create the best free, honest source of residential solar information for homeowners on the internet.
