EcoWatch
Santa Fe Aiming for 100% Renewable Energy by 2025
Lorraine Chow September 1, 2017
PNM, the largest electricity provider in New Mexico, has more than 1 million solar panels at 15 different solar sites to provide clean energy for the state.
New Mexico’s capital has joined the growing movement of U.S. cities committing to 100 percent renewable energy.
On Wednesday, Santa Fe’s City Council unanimously adopted Mayor Javier Gonzales’ resolution directing City Manager Brian Snyde to develop a feasibility study on how the city can transition to renewables by 2025. Snyde will report the findings in 90 days.
“The City of Santa Fe has historically been a leader in the fight against global warming and has a responsibility to continue to set a positive example for other cities, states and countries to follow,” the resolution states.
“Such a transition to utilizing 100 percent renewable energy will promote employment opportunities and economic growth in our community, facilitate local control and ownership of the city’s energy options, and bring tangible benefits of using renewable energy to the community as a whole,” it adds.
Gonzales celebrated the city’s ambitious clean energy goal with a tweet saying there is “work to do, but here we go!”
The New Mexican reported that a quarter of the city’s energy already comes from renewable sources, mostly from solar.