Sonoma Clean Power offers good choices for Petaluma

Why do I want my electricity from Sonoma Clean Power? PG&E has delivered energy to my home for over half a century - safely, reliably and affordably. I don’t always agree with their policies. But PG&E has been a national leader among investor-owned utilities, especially with their efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. I was a part of those efforts, working at PG&E for 19 years.

PG&E has a rich history of change. They supplied gas to light the streets during the gold rush in San Francisco. They grew steadily, acquiring and building facilities across northern California. This monopolization of power supply and delivery, taking place all over the country, made sense - not just for PG&E, but for society. The electrical grid of the 20th century was energized by large power plants that carried kilowatts over long distances. Having production and distribution controlled by a single entity was critical to safety, reliability, and affordability.

That energy landscape shifted in the 1970s. The environmental and national security costs of fossil fuels and nuclear power - along with the promise of “alternative energy” - became ever more apparent. In the early 1980s, PG&E responded with a “market-driven” approach, joining California’s leadership in creating conservation and efficiency programs. For decades, these programs flattened the state’s energy consumption while the economy continued to grow.

Today, energy is entering a revolution as profound as the high-tech revolution that created smart phones and Google, enabled by some of the same technology. Electricity generation, powered by renewable sources, will be more localized. Those sources will be networked on a smart grid that optimizes the production, storage, distribution and use of energy in a manner not unlike the way a tree manages sunlight, water, and nutrients. Just in time, too. Big fossil fuel power plants are disrupting our climate, undermining the foundations of our economy, if not the planet.

The institutions that evolved to support centralized generation now must quickly adapt. That’s a challenge for the big utilities. One way to help this evolution proceed quickly is through competition, in the form of “community choice.”

On Monday, the Petaluma City Council will vote on whether to join Santa Rosa, Sonoma, Cotati, Windsor, Sebastopol, Cloverdale and the county in making Sonoma Clean Power (SCP) an option for their citizens.

This is a win-win proposition for Petaluma. First of all, PG&E will continue to maintain the lines, issue bills and offer state-mandated assistance for low-income customers. SCP now has a six-month track record of supplying electricity that is both cheaper and greener than PG&E. SCP conservatively estimates Sonoma County will save $6 million in 2014 alone.

They offer local clean energy generators more favorable terms for their surplus power, whether it’s a cottage with a few solar panels or a commercial building with a few hundred. Growing this energy sector helps the local economy, providing head of household jobs and keeping money circulating in our community.

There’s no reason why PG&E couldn’t fight back – not with another attempt to ban community choice, but by matching or exceeding SCP’s value. Customers who choose SCP can return to PG&E any time they wish. Should PG&E overwhelmingly prevail in this competition, forcing SCP out of business, neither the county, the cities nor SCP customers will be liable for debt coverage. Customers would automatically return to PG&E, without any interruption of service. SCP posted a $100,000 bond with the CPUC to pay for this switch.

But this scenario is extremely unlikely for the simple reason that SCP appears to be a well-run nonprofit with a robust business model. They are already producing net income, and have increasing opportunities to save money and keep rates low. They are capable of quickly taking advantage of opportunities created by the increasing competitiveness of energy efficiency and low-emissions energy technologies. They are on the leading edge of energy evolution. That’s a smart choice for Petaluma.

(Bruce Hagen is a volunteer for Citizens’ Climate Lobby.)