Innovative Environment:

Renewable Energy Usage

Key message

Oregon is a leader in renewable energy usage. As the world becomes increasingly focused on fossil fuel consumption states that are able to diversify sources of energy consumption will benefit from early adoption of innovative fuel sources and reduced reliance on fossil fuels.

Why is it significant?

Renewable energy—including hydropower, wind, solar, geothermal and biomass—usage is one measure of a state's ability to adapt to new challenges and reduce its dependence on fossil fuels. States that are able to utilize emerging technologies often become leaders in new industries and markets.

How does Oregon perform?

Oregon is the second largest user of renewable energy as a percentage of total energy consumption in the US. Oregon's performance in this measure is more than six times higher than the US average mostly due to the high level of hydroelectric power in the Pacific Northwest. See Figure 29 & 30.

Figure 30. Percent of Energy Consumed from Renewable Resources

State	2007 Rank	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007
Washington	1	44.7%	42.6%	41.1%	45.7%	42.9%
Oregon	2	37.5%	25.9%	33.7%	39.2%	35.5%
Idaho	5	23.5%	22.4%	22.8%	27.3%	22.5%
California	11	10.5%	10.1%	10.6%	11.5%	9.1%
New York	12	8.7%	8.5%	8.8%	9.7%	9.0%
Arizona	19	6.2%	5.7%	5.7%	5.6%	5.4%
Minnesota	21	3.5%	3.8%	4.4%	4.5%	5.3%
Colorado	34	1.6%	1.6%	2.5%	2.7%	3.0%
Utah	41	1.8%	1.7%	2.5%	2.3%	1.9%
United States		5.8%	5.7%	5.8%	6.1%	5.7%

Source: U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Information Administration