Central Valley
Overview
On this page you will find information relating to our work and outreach in the region, as well as information relating to the cities and counties that make up the San Joaquin Valley. We welcome your thoughts & suggestions.
The Central Valley, famous as the agricultural hub of the California, is a prime region for clean energy and Community Choice Aggregation (CCA, also known as Community Choice Energy) programs.
The Valley has a wealth of diverse energy resources, human resources, and the available land, rooftops, parking lots, and other suitable sites needed to develop these energy resources. Local control of energy dollars enabled by Community Choice may offer the best solution to boost the local economy, increase employment, and achieve environmental goals, while potentially lowering electricity generation rates.
Unfortunately, the Valley is also known as a region with some of the worst air quality in the U.S. Accelerating renewable energy deployment will help address this over the long term, while operational Community Choice agencies are demonstrating through support of electric vehicles and charging stations, air quality can be improved in the near term via Community Choice as well. For greater detail on how and why we chose to work in the Central Valley, read “Our work in the California’s San Joaquin Valley: Empowering Historically Disadvantaged Communities with Community Choice Energy.”
Events
Past Events
- Stockton City Council Votes to Secure a Community Choice Energy Technical Study – March 19, 2019
- Community Choice Workshop , Fresno City Council – February 14th, 2019
- Fresno Community Meeting: Community Choice Energy – November 13th, 2018
- CPX Webinar – Community Choice Energy: Central Valley Focus – October 17th, 2018
Community Choice Energy — In the News!
- Community Choice Energy a Plus, by Jimmie Rodriguez, Letter-to-the-Editor, Fresno Bee, April 3, 2018
- It is time to revisit Community Choice Energy for the Central Valley, by Al Galvez, The Fresno Bee, March 22, 2019.
- Hanford’s Community Choice Journey to be Detailed at Fresno Workshop, Fresno Business Journal, October 12, 2018
- Survey: Majority of Valley Residents Want Choice in How Their Electricity is Made, The Fresno Business Journal, August 26, 2016
Central Valley Webinars
Community Choice Energy – Central Valley Focus
October 17, 2018. This webinar focused on challenges and opportunities of establishing Community Choice in California’s Central Valley. Click HERE for the recording and associated materials for this webinar.
Economic Impact of Community Choice Energy Purchasing of Renewable Energy: San Joaquin Valley Case Study
June 29, 2017. This webinar presented the findings of an independent analysis of the economic impacts that can be expected over a six-year period when a CCA is established and increasing increments of renewable energy are procured for customers. Click HERE for the recording and associated materials.
Recordings, PowerPoint slides, and related materials for all webinars are available on our dedicated CPX Webinars Page. If you have questions about CPX webinars, and/or to suggest a webinar topic, please email: webinars@climateprotection.org
Central Valley Videos
Earth Day Fresno 2020
On April 22, 2020 the California State University of Fresno’s Sustainability Club students partnered with The Climate Center in a Digital Earth Day for the community. Click HERE to view.
Central Valley Team
Friends of Community Choice, Central Valley
If you support evaluating Community Choice Energy in your community, please sign on to the growing Friends of Community Choice, Central Valley list to help advocate for clean and local energy!
For the list of current Friends of Community Choice – Central Valley, please click here. If you would like to download a PDF copy, please click the image to the right.
Central Valley Fact Sheet
Click here to download the Central Valley Fact Sheet
CPX Report: “Community Choice Energy: What Is the Economic Impact of Local Renewable Power Purchasing? A San Joaquin Valley Case Study”
This paper, prepared for the Center for Climate Protection by Ben Foster, Fosterra Clean Energy Consulting, examines the economic benefit potential afforded by Community Choice.
Highlights:
- Community Choice could serve nearly 2 million people in San Joaquin, Fresno, and Tulare Counties
- If just 10% of energy procured by a CCA came from new, local solar sources, over 845MW of new projects would be developed in 5 years
- This level of deployment would create over 8,000 jobs and drive nearly $850M in new economic activity. It could also result in shutting down fossil energy generation, the holy grail for this area with some of the worst air quality in the nation.
Download the full report
Central Valley Energy Survey
In August 2016 Clean Power Exchange, a program of the Center for Climate Protection, released new survey results about local and renewable energy preferences in the San Joaquin Valley. According to the survey, electric utility ratepayers in the San Joaquin Valley – from San Joaquin County to Tulare County – are interested in alternatives to the current energy system.
Survey results for cities: Stockton, Fresno, Visalia
Survey results for counties: San Joaquin, Fresno, Tulare
In the news:
Mapping Lands to Avoid Conflict for Solar Power in the San Joaquin Valley
California’s policy to achieve 100 percent of our electricity from renewable sources by 2045 will entail a significant deployment of large-scale solar photovoltaic (PV) installations. But in places like the San Joaquin Valley, proposed installations have engendered conflicts with agricultural and conservation groups, who fear a resulting loss of valuable lands and the species and farming and ranching that depend on them.
To address the challenge, Berkeley Law’s Center for Law, Energy and the Environment (CLEE) partnered with Conservation Biology Institute (CBI) and Terrell Watt Associates to develop a new process to find “least-conflict” lands in the eight-county San Joaquin Valley region. The project team convened leaders from the agricultural, conservation, and solar PV development communities, and included tribes and key agencies. We asked the groups one question: from your perspective, where are the least-conflict lands for solar PV development in the Valley?
Download the full report
Cultivating Climate Resilience in Farming
California Climate and Agriculture Network (CalCAN) released a publication reviewing and summarizing the impacts of climate change on California’s farms and ranches, complete with farmer profiles and resources to ensure they thrive in the face of climate change.
The publication “Cultivating Climate Resilience in Farming,” provides a science-based review of some of the most significant impacts of climate change on California agriculture and what is predicted in the coming decades. It also provide stories of California farmers and ranchers coping with climate impacts, some strategies they are using, and recommendations for needed resources and tools to keep California producers viable and thriving in the face of the sobering challenges ahead.
Download the full report
Local Government Links (by county)
- Fresno City Council and Fresno County Board of Supervisors email list
- Writing an email to your representative or a letter to the editor? Here are some talking points to consider. For a Word doc click HERE and for a googledoc click HERE.
