LIHU‘E — I was reminded of a valuable lesson Tuesday at the presentation on the Hawai‘i Clean Energy Initiative (HCEI). We will need to forget about business as usual and create transformational approaches to major challenges we face. We have
LIHU‘E — I was reminded of a valuable lesson Tuesday at the presentation on the Hawai‘i Clean Energy Initiative (HCEI). We will need to forget about business as usual and create transformational approaches to major challenges we face.
We have entered a new era of scarcer resources, changing climate and economic uncertainty. The need to respond decisively is upon us. In this era, our resilience and innovation will be tested. The energy discussion laid out a framework that can guide us.
Joshua Strickler, who works at Hawai‘i Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism (DBEDT), reported that Hawai‘i is the most petroleum-dependent state in the nation. HCEI contains a bold new goal to have 70 percent of our energy come from renewable sources by 2030. Bill Parks from the U.S. Department of Energy and working presently with DBEDT, stated that while this goal is very ambitious, it is achievable.
We heard that we will need four “legacy drivers” to overcome the barriers that support the status quo. These include revisions to our policy and regulatory framework; the need for technology development and integration at the system level; new rate structures, financing and capital to support needed investments; and critically important, system planning that takes into account the inter-relationships within the energy sector. I would add the inter-relationships with energy also extend to land use, transportation and other sectors. Added to this will be the need for each of us to change some of our own behaviors.
But why should we give up the status quo? Parks talked about four HCEI goals that provide some incentives. First, generating our own renewable energy increases the security of Hawai‘i, including our energy delivery and defense capabilities. Second, it creates economic opportunity at all levels of society and leaves our energy dollars in the local economy. Third, we can foster and demonstrate innovation through the technology, financial, organization and policy models that are created as we move toward a clean energy future. These models can be adapted or replicated for other sectors. And fourth, it will build a new type of workforce for our future, as we create educational and employment opportunities to sustain the clean energy economy.
Hawaiian Electric Company (HECO) provides energy for the other three counties in the state. HECO’s Robbie Alm reported on the agreement developed with DBEDT that includes a wide array of significant changes to their energy production, distribution and business models. How HCEI will impact Kaua‘i is still unfolding. Kaua‘i Island Utility Cooperative’s current goal is to have 50 percent of our energy derived from renewable sources by 2023. On Tuesday, Randy Hee, KIUC President, reported he is working on an HCEI agreement for our island.
The replicability of the HCEI model for other sectors of the economy intrigues me. On Kaua‘i, we have been talking about how to foster an agricultural renaissance where we can increase our food security and self-sufficiency. After all, about 90 percent of our food is presently imported. Thinking about the four legacy drivers of the HCEI may help move that effort forward. Are changes needed in the policy and regulatory framework to better support agriculture? Is there a need for technology development and integration at the system level? Do we have the financing and capital in place to invest in this industry? Finally, are we taking a system planning approach?
There may be other parts of our economy where new models are needed. Let’s learn from the work already done and see how the lessons may be applied. I am certain that in Hawai‘i, and most especially here on Kaua‘i, we have the capability of finding the new paradigms needed. In some cases we may call upon traditional practices to guide us. In other circumstances we may have to create new ways of doing things. At the Tuesday event, I was struck by the number of innovative thinkers, advocates and entrepreneurs who attended, people who already have ideas about how we can move toward clean energy on the island. We need to encourage this creativity for our renewable energy solutions, as well as for other parts of the economy.
It will not always be easy, but as a Samoan colleague reminds me, “The richest part of the reef is where the waves break.” From our diverse ideas and spirited discussion on how to move forward will come the solutions we need.
The speaker presentations given at the HCEI Forum are available on the KPAA Web site, www.kauainetwork.org
• Diane Zachary is president and CEO of Kaua‘i Planning & Action Alliance and can be reached at dzachary@kauainetwork.org
