Why We Should Democratize the Electricity System - Part 1

Why We Should Democratize the Electricity System - Part 1
By John Farrell August 23, 2011
A serialized version of ILSR‘s new report, Democratizing the Electricity System, Part 1 of 5

The 20th century of electricity generation was characterized by ever larger and more distant central power plants. But a 21st century technological dynamic offers the possibility of a dramatically different electricity future: millions of widely dispersed renewable energy plants and storage systems tied into a smart grid. It’s a more democratic and participatory paradigm, with homes, businesses and communities becoming energy producers as well as consumers actively involved in designing the rules for the new electricity system.

Decades ago, several people – Amory Lovins in Brittle Power, David Morris in Self-Reliant Cities – explored the implications of this decentralized vision. Most importantly, this vision represents a transformation in the ownership and control of the electricity system. Instead of a 20th century grid dominated by large, centralized utilities, the 21st century grid would be a democratized network of independently-owned and widely dispersed renewable energy generators, with the economic benefits of electricity generation as widely dispersed as the ownership.

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In the last two years a number of events have forced policymakers at the local, state and national level to grapple with the implications of a decentralized grid system and how the policies they adopt help or hinder such a 21st century energy system:
-Sixteen (16) states of the twenty-nine (29) that have renewable energy mandates have added mandates for solar and other distributed energy technologies.
-Germany installed an astonishing 7,400 megawatts (MW) of distributed solar PV in 2010. It has begun to change its incentive program to not only maximize solar power but on-site self-reliance via a combination of distributed generation, demand shifting and storage.

In this country’s largest solar market...