Hawaii enacted a law this week that requires all of the state's electricity to be produced from renewable energy sources no later than 2045. The new policy, Act 97, makes Hawaii the first state in the USA to adopt a 100 per cent renewable requirement.
Hawaii's renewable energy use has doubled in the past five years, with the islands currently generating about 22 per cent of their electricity from wind, solar, geothermal, and other renewable energy resources. The new law also increases an interim requirement, targeting at least 30% renewable electricity by 2020. Failure to achieve the new standards could cost Hawaii utilities two cents for each kilowatt hour of excess fossil fuel electricity.