By 2003, suppliers must provide an additional 450 MW of electricity from renewable resources, and by 2009 they must have a total of 2,000 MW of new renewable generating capacity. The state utility commission will supervise these changes. As noted above, the Texas restructuring legislation requires implementation of renewable technologies, partly in the hope that by 2009 those technologies will be mature enough to compete in the market without government assistance. A preference for distributed energy. Because distributed energy resources tend to increase the efficiency and decrease the environmental impact of the electric utility system, they should be encouraged.
Distributed energy faces a complex web of regulatory, statutory, and practical barriers, however.
For example, regulations for connecting these technologies to the power grid differ not only among states but also from utility to utility, making it difficult for manufacturers to develop products for national or regional markets. Similarly, the spread of residential photovoltaic systems and other distributed energy technologies is limited by neighborhood covenants that prohibit homeowners from altering their property in any visible way. In many cases, public policymakers can remove such barriers by requiring standardized approaches. Comparable environmental standards. Some states have begun attacking the highly polluting power plants that have survived largely due to grandfather clauses in environmental laws.