Honolulu is taking a greener approach to energy, with Governor Josh Green pushing for faster renewable energy progress amid federal uncertainty. In January, he signed an executive order to accelerate Hawaii's shift to renewable resources, aiming for 100% renewable energy in neighbor island communities by 2035, a decade earlier than planned. This move aims to lower energy costs and stabilize the grid for residents.
State departments are instructed to streamline and expedite permits for renewable developments as part of the effort to get 50,000 distributed renewable energy installations by 2030. The plan stems from a year-long collaboration with the Hawai’i State Energy Office and a range of energy stakeholders. According to an announcement from The Governor's Office, a part of Green’s executive order pushes for support from the Hawaii Public Utilities Commission and Hawaiian Electric Company to tackle inefficiencies and prioritize cost reductions, as well as energy stability that importantly serves the residents of Hawaii.
Gov. Green, expressing concern over the state's current energy situation, stated, "Hawai‘i needs to take some drastic steps to reduce energy costs, which have continued to rise contributing to the high cost of living for our people." He pinpointed the reliance on oil for electricity and outdated infrastructure as central issues that the new executive order seeks to address, as per The Governor's Office website.
The governor's climate advisor, Chip Fletcher — also the interim dean of the School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa — lauds this move as a significant leap toward energy independence, Chip Fletcher praised the governor's actions by saying, "This EO represents the start of real action to lower costs, support a stable energy system, and reduce emissions," as he told the governor's office.
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