LADWP tries to increase green power

The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power is attempting to increase its use of renewable power sources from 3% to 20%:

DWP officials refused to say Friday whether the proposals would provide electricity at a feasible cost, saying that they were just beginning their review.

They also refused to identify the companies that submitted proposals or the location of the proposed electricity plants.

The department would only say that the renewable energy proposals cover a broad spectrum of sources, including wind, geothermal, solar, small hydro, landfill gas, biomass and municipal solid waste.

"The majority of proposals involve wind and geothermal," Martinez said.

Some of the projects could be developed in the Los Angeles area and California, while others are proposed for out of state, officials said.

Martinez said he believed the proposals were enough to cover the 1.32 million megawatt-hours per year of additional renewable energy that the DWP would like to acquire by the end of 2010.

By then, the city hopes to meet an interim goal of having 13% of its power come from renewable energy.

With the Hahn administration's reputation for pay-to-play politics, let's hope these proposals are given a fair and open hearing before LADWP makes any decisions.