“The U.S. renewable energy industry is focused on Hawaii as the island state takes a pivotal position in advancing clean generation technologies, serving as a test bed of what other states might do as the nation moves rapidly toward more sustainable energy technologies.
In the not-so-distant past, Hawaii depended solely on high-priced imported oil to generate most of its electricity, but today it gets about one-quarter of its power from renewable sources. It’s one of about 30 states with high targets for renewable energy production, and along with New York and California, it plans to achieve 50% renewables by 2030 and 100% by 2045 – and Hawaii Electric Industries says they can do it by 2040.
Achieving a higher penetration of renewable energy isn’t simply an environmental or economic issue in Hawaii, it’s also a survival tactic. With self-contained electricity grids on each major inhabited island, the state is isolated from any other power sources, and its grids are subject to the destructive forces of hurricanes, volcanoes, earthquakes, tsunamis and other natural disasters.”
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