Posted on March 2, 2023March 2, 2023 by NancyStephenson

Yurok Tribe Joins Redwood Coast Energy Authority

Yurok Tribe, RCEA Aim to Increase Access to Clean, Renewable Energy

The Yurok Tribe is the first sovereign tribal government to become a member of the Redwood Coast Energy Authority.

“We joined RCEA because its mission to implement initiatives that increase access to affordable, clean energy aligns with our core values,” said Yurok Vice Chairman Frankie Myers “As an RCEA member, the Tribe will be able to participate at the government to government level in the planning and development of long term renewable energy projects. We strongly believe the transition to sustainable energy sources is essential to the long-term health and prosperity of our community.”

“It is exciting to have the Yurok Tribe joining RCEA,” said RCEA Executive Director Matthew Marshall. “Over RCEA’s 20 years of se rv ing Humboldt County we’ve worked with the Tribe on many projects, and we are very much looking forward to building on that relationship and having Tribal representation on our governing board.” RCEA’s Board of Directors and the Yurok Tribal Council passed separate resolutions approving a joint powers agreement which made the Tribe an agency member. “The Yurok Tribe wishes to provide input on the development of secure, sustainable, clean, and affordable energy resources, and participate as a stakeholder,” according to the Yurok resolution.

The Redwood Coast Energy Authority is a local government Joint Powers Agency. The agency was established to develop and implement sustainable energy initiatives that reduce energy demand, increase energy efficiency, and advance the use of clean, efficient, and renewable resources available in the region. RCEA members include: the County of Humboldt; the Cities of Arcata, Blue Lake, Eureka, Ferndale, Fortuna, Rio Dell, and Trinidad; and the Humboldt Bay Municipal Water District and the Yurok Tribe.

Yurok Vice Chairman Frankie Myers will represent the Tribe on the RCEA’s Board of Directors. Vice Chairman Myers has decades of experience in natural resources management, community development and cultural preservation. In addition to serving on the Yurok Tribal Council, he is the president of the Prey-go-neesh Construction Corporation, which performs infrastructure-building projects all over the United States. He is also leading the Tribe’s effort to equitably engage in the prospective floating offshore wind energy projects along California’s North Coast.

Last December, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) auctioned the development rights to 130,000 acres off the Humboldt coast for offshore wind energy production. Earlier this month, the Yurok Tribe, Cal Poly Humboldt and College of the Redwoods announced plans to prepare a local workforce to take advantage of future jobs in the new industry. This unique collaboration provides potential floating offshore wind developers an opportunity to support local workforce training.

Posted on January 25, 2023 by NancyStephenson

ELECTRIC VEHICLE
Infrastructure Training Program

Humboldt County electricians can get reimbursed for their EVITP certification.

Redwood Coast Energy Authority is offering scholarships for up to ten C-10 electricians to become certified to install EV charging stations.
If you are a state licensed or certified electrician, you may be interested in getting EVITP certified to bid on:

RCEA’s upcoming North Coast Phase 2 EVSE EV charging station projects
Public works projects across the state of California
EV charging stations at homes and businesses

Interested C-10 electricians can sign-up for the EVITP certification training and exam on-line, which takes approximately 20 hours to complete (plus the exam time). Once completed, up to 10 electricians can apply for a scholarship by:

Filling out an application
Presenting proof of completion of the training
Providing an invoice for the course

Funding for the North Coast Phase 2 EVSE EV charging stations is provided by RCEA and a Headwaters Fund Mini Grant.

For more information on EVITP training: https://evitp.org/training/
At RCEA contact Marianne Bithell (707) 382-2014. MBithell@redwoodenergy.org

Posted on January 17, 2023 by NancyStephenson

flyer for RCEA's heat pump workshop on Saturday, Jan. 21

Heat Pump Workshop
for Space and Water Heating

Join RCEA for two separate expert presentations on heat pump space and water heating on Saturday, January 21 at the Wharfinger Building in Eureka. There will be plenty of time for Q&A and a chance to talk with local heat pump contractors. This workshop is for the public and there is NO COST to attend. Attendees will learn about generous federal, state, and local rebates and incentives.

Complete details are on our EVENTS PAGE.

Posted on December 6, 2022 by NancyStephenson

California’s Offshore Wind Lease Auction is Underway

EUREKA, CA. December 6, 2022

At 7am this morning the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) initiated the auction of five California offshore wind energy area leases, two in the Humboldt Wind Energy Area and three in the Morro Bay Wind Energy Area.

Seven bidders are participating in the auction, with live results posted by BOEM at: https://www.boem.gov/renewable-energy/state-activities/california

For a detailed accounting of the auction’s progress, try this: https://renews.biz/82293/boem-to-auction-california-offshore-wind-sites-today/

Federal offshore wind auctions can last multiple days, and BOEM will announce the names of the winning developers shortly after the auction closes.

Since 2016, Redwood Coast Energy Authority (RCEA) has been actively planning and coordinating with private developers and stakeholders including local, state, and federal government leaders, local Tribes and commercial fishermen to prepare for responsible offshore wind development that provides community benefits and minimizes impacts, in addition to making a meaningful contribution to local and state renewable energy objectives. RCEA’s RePower Humboldt strategic plan establishes the goal of generating 100% of the county’s electricity needs from local renewable sources by 2030, and offshore wind could play a central role in achieving that goal.

“After many years of planning, this is an exciting milestone in the process,” said Matthew Marshall, RCEA’s Executive Director. “RCEA’s primary interest is to see good projects move forward, and we are committed to working with the developers that secure leases to ensure transparent and meaningful community engagement that puts our local interests and concerns front and center in the development process. The community benefits agreements and lease stipulations that BOEM will require of developers are a good starting point.”

The two Humboldt lease areas together encompass over 205 square miles and are 20-30 miles off the coast of Humboldt Bay. Combined with Morro Bay, the five California Wind Energy Area leases amount to approximately 528 square miles, which could potentially generate over 4.6 GW of offshore wind energy; enough to power more than 1.5 million homes. Due to our region’s grid transmission constraints, RCEA anticipates that the first phase of Humboldt development will be limited to around 150 MW and will primarily be for local consumption. New and upgraded transmission infrastructure is required to scale up to the full capacity that the Humboldt Wind Energy Area can accommodate and to export power to the state’s grid.

NOTE: While RCEA was listed on the list of eligible auction bidders, RCEA is not participating in the auction in any way. RCEA’s inclusion on the list is a legacy of submitting an “unsolicited lease request” to BOEM in 2018, which required RCEA to qualify as an eligible entity. BOEM subsequently absorbed RCEA’s proposed lease area into what is now the Humboldt Wind Energy Area.

News

Posted on January 21, 2022January 25, 2022 by NancyStephenson

RCEA Contractor and Vendor Network

One of the challenges that RCEA and our customers have had to deal with is that as a government agency, RCEA is not allowed to make recommendations for individual contractors or vendors. Our customers want to make improvements to their homes and businesses to make them more energy-efficient, but they don’t always know where to start.

In order to better serve our customers, RCEA invited contractors and vendors to submit an application to be included in our Contractor and Vendor Network. This new resource is for our customers who are looking for licensed contractors for their installation needs, and qualified vendors for their equipment needs related to RCEA program services or referrals made by RCEA.

Please visit our new webpage and be sure to visit again soon since we are going to be adding to it on an ongoing basis.

Contractor and Vendor Network

Contractors and Vendors – please join our network! You can get more information and learn more about how to apply by going to the Ongoing Opportunities section of our Contracting page.

Posted on January 18, 2022January 20, 2022 by NancyStephenson

RCEA 2021-22 Community REport

RCEA is excited to present our 2021-22 Community REport. We implement a variety of energy-related programs and projects on behalf of Humboldt County ratepayers. Public input shapes what we do, so we hope you’ll appreciate all that we’ve accomplished together. As our executive director Matthew Marshall says, “we couldn’t do this work without your ongoing support and commitment to our community’s renewable and resilient energy future.”

View full screen and then zoom in on sections of the document below as needed.

You can also:

View our PDF, which includes links for more information.
Click on the image to the left (or above) to enlarge and then scroll through all the images
Pick up a paper copy from the North Coast Journal’s racks January 20-26

Please let us know if you have any questions.

Net Energy Metering Proposed Changes

Posted on January 17, 2022February 10, 2022 by NancyStephenson

Proposed Changes to Net Energy Metering

RCEA recently provided a presentation to our Community Advisory Committee about the California Public Utilities Commission’s Net Energy Metering Successor Tariff and the Proposed Decision. You can view the slides here.

The RCEA Board of Directors will be discussing this at our January 27 Board meeting, and we encourage the public to attend to learn more, express their views, and hear our Board’s comments.

NEM Successor Tariff

Update:

On February 3^rd, the judge presiding over the Net Energy Metering proceeding issued the following statement:

“On January 11, 2022, the Commission reassigned Rulemaking 20-08-020 to President Alice Reynolds. The assigned Commissioner has requested additional time to analyze the record and consider revisions to the proposed decision based on party comments. Furthermore, the assigned Commissioner wants to ensure all five Commissioners participate in oral arguments. Accordingly, the oral argument hearing will be rescheduled at a later date. After additional analysis is conducted, I will issue a subsequent ruling providing information on the proceeding schedule and details regarding the oral argument hearing.”

In August 2020, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) initiated a proceeding to develop a successor NEM tariff (a.k.a. “NEM 3.0”) pursuant to the requirements of Assembly Bill 327 passed in 2013.

On December 13^th2021, the CPUC issued a Proposed Decision explaining what the new tariff provisions would be. The Commission is expected to vote on this Proposed Decision on January 27^th. If this Proposed Decision passes as written, the current NEM 2.0 tariff will sunset in late May 2022 (an estimated date of May 27^th).

While the sunset could change if the Proposed Decision is revised prior to the CPUC’s vote, the current guidance for customers interested in installing rooftop solar is to submit their interconnection applications as soon as possible if they wish to enroll in the current tariff. If the interconnection application is submitted prior to the sunset date, the customer can stay on the NEM 2.0 tariff for 15 years from their interconnection date.

For more information on the successor tariff, please read the customer explanation that the CPUC developed here.

To subscribe for updates and to submit comments on the successor tariff to the CPUC, please click here.

Background - AB1139

In February 2021, the Legislature introduced Assembly Bill 1139, which sought to expedite the current CPUC proceeding. Furthermore, if the accelerated timeline for the CPUC to establish a new NEM tariff was not met, the bill required specific provisions for the replacement tariff including additional interconnection fees, monthly fixed charges, NEM credits based on wholesale instead of retail rates, and a series of other provisions not favored by supporters of the current NEM 2.0 framework.

RCEA’s Board voted to oppose the legislation at its May 2021 Board meeting, deciding that the bill would harm current NEM customers and disincentivize new enrollment in the NEM program.

As of June 2021, this bill was not voted out of committee and is no longer active.