Chris Mooney:
Google, a trendsetter in the field of corporate purchases of wind and solar energy, made a striking proclamation Tuesday — by next year, it forecasts that it’ll be purchasing as much renewable electricity as it uses across its vast operations.
“Essentially what it means is that we will be buying as many renewable energy megawatt hours as we’ll be consuming at our facilities,” said Gary Demasi, Google’s head of global infrastructure and energy. “Add them up at the end of the year, and they will match.”
Google is using power purchase agreements to reach renewable energy parity with its needs: While not all facilities can be matched precisely with renewable energy sources, Google will purchase renewable energy to offset non-renewable power it does use.
To reach this goal we’ll be directly buying enough wind and solar electricity annually to account for every unit of electricity our operations consume, globally. And we're focusing on creating new energy from renewable sources, so we only buy from projects that are funded by our purchases.
Over the last six years, the cost of wind and solar came down 60 percent and 80 percent, respectively, proving that renewables are increasingly becoming the lowest cost option. Electricity costs are one of the largest components of our operating expenses at our data centers, and having a long-term stable cost of renewable power provides protection against price swings in energy.
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At Daily Kos on this date in 2008—Obama: Biggest public works investment since Eisenhower planned:
Make public buildings more energy-efficient. Our government now pays the highest energy bill in the world. We need to change that. We need to upgrade our federal buildings by replacing old heating systems and installing efficient light bulbs. That won’t just save you, the American taxpayer, billions of dollars each year. It will put people back to work.
Second, we will create millions of jobs by making the single largest new investment in our national infrastructure since the creation of the federal highway system in the 1950s. We’ll invest your precious tax dollars in new and smarter ways, and we’ll set a simple rule – use it or lose it. If a state doesn’t act quickly to invest in roads and bridges in their communities, they’ll lose the money.
Third, my economic recovery plan will launch the most sweeping effort to modernize and upgrade school buildings that this country has ever seen. We will repair broken schools, make them energy-efficient, and put new computers in our classrooms. Because to help our children compete in a 21st century economy, we need to send them to 21st century schools.
On today’s Kagro in the Morning show: Another weird Taiwan call story, and some new perspective on it. More on the #HighNoon proposal to confirm Garland. What if the POTUS blocks you on Twitter? A bot that trolls trolls. Your new NSA believes the Comet Pizza nuttery. Michigan recount woes.
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