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UPDATE December 18, 2024: Thank you to all who acted on TAS’ request that you contact your Austin City Council Member regarding their vote for amendments to the Austin Energy Resource, Generation and Climate Protection Plan 2035 update. City council voted on Dec 12 and, to sum up, they passed many amendments to the plan that made it less contributory to climate change, a win for birds as well as humans. The plan is always susceptible to change, so it’s an issue to keep eyes on. For more details, please read this Austin Monitor article.
Austin Energy is proposing a Resource, Generation and Climate Protection Plan that promotes additional utility solar, local solar, energy efficiency, demand response, some (more needed) batteries, potentially microgrids, and new methane gas burning peaker plants.
Peaker plants are less efficient and more polluting than combined cycle base load gas plants. Peakers are used mostly when energy on the grid is tight, and electricity is expensive, so owners of these plants can fire them up for fairly short periods of time to make lots of money.
Austin City Council passed a previous plan for our electric generation that disavowed any new fossil fuel-burning plant. We are asking the Austin City Council to stick with this promise by increasing the amount of clean, renewable energy in their/our new plan and forgoing any new gas plant. Here are ways you can help with this effort:
- Sign a petition to Austin City Council HERE
- Attend these Austin City Council Meetings at Council Chambers, 301 W 2nd St. Sign up and speak, hold signs, support speakers. Free parking with validation.
City Council Work Session Dec 10, 9 am
City Council Meeting (Council will vote on plan) Dec 12, 9 am - Email your Council Member and urge them to support a new generation plan that does not include any new gas plants HERE
- Meet with your Council Member virtually and tell them why the climate crisis is important to you. Ask that they support clean, renewable energy in the new Austin Energy resource plan.
Sources
1 Survival by degrees
