Clean Coalition briefs Sacramento staff on DG policy - Clean Coalition

Clean Coalition briefs Sacramento staff on DG policy

Local wind and solar can provide significantly more power to California’s grid and put the state on track to meet its clean energy goals.

Craig Lewis


Ted Ko, Associate Executive Director of the Clean Coalition, briefed legislative and regulatory staff on current California policies impacting DG while in Sacramento on April 11. Given the significant turnover in the capitol this year, the briefing was designed to educate new legislators on the technological feasibility and tremendous economic potential for clean local energy in California.

Local wind and solar can provide significantly more power to California’s grid and put the state on track to meet its clean energy goals, as long as smart policies enable the DG market to expand.

Presentations by FloDesign Wind Turbines and Foundation Windpower highlighted examples of distributed wind power already online in California and the potential for significantly more growth. For example, Foundation Windpower recently installed two wind turbines at a Cemex cement plant in Victorville, CA (below). Collectively, the turbines will stabilize energy costs for the factory and reduce carbon emissions by producing an estimated 6,500 megawatt hours of electricity annually.The Clean Coalition would like to thankA10 Networks– the technology leader in Internet Application Networking, helping organizations of all sizes to accelerate, optimize and secure their Internet applications – for sponsoring the event.

Craig Lewis

Founder and Executive Director

Craig founded the Clean Coalition in 2009 and has over 30 years of experience in policy and technology innovation, including the proliferation of Solar Microgrids and Community Microgrids. Prior to founding the Clean Coalition, Craig held numerous positions in the wireless, semiconductor, banking, and renewable energy industries. Previously VP of Government Relations at GreenVolts, he was the first to successfully navigate a solar project through California’s Renewable Portfolio Standard solicitation process. Craig was energy policy lead on Steve Westly’s 2006 California gubernatorial campaign. His resume includes senior government relations, corporate development, and marketing positions at leading wireless, semiconductor, and banking companies such as Qualcomm, Ericsson, and Barclays Bank. Craig received an MBA and MSEE from the University of Southern California and a BSEE from the University of California, Berkeley.