A new FERC estimate says 18% of the electricity used by the United States in June came from renewable sources, and 98% of new electricity sources built in the same month were sources of renewable power, Zach from CleanTechnica reports.
While the change is indeed slow, the country is becoming less and less reliant on oil and gas for energy.
The total amount of electricity generated from renewable power sources has gone up since May, when it was estimated that the US was getting 15% of its energy from renewables.
The report uses the annual numbers released by the United States Energy Information Administration, but adds an estimate of residential solar, a number which the original report does not track. The addition of residential solar makes the numbers more accurate and relevant for those who do not directly work in the energy industry.
In May, solar power provided 1.3% of electricity, wind provided 5.3%, and hydro provided 6.2%. Wood and fuels that are made from wood also provided 1% to the total electricity generation.
In May of last year, electricity production was down overall, but solar was on the rise.
New electricity generating projects built in June were almost entirely renewable power sources, and oil and coal capacity has gone down in the first six months of 2015. Coal capacity may even be down an encouraging 26.6%.
44% of new June energy capacity comes from wind, 41.5% from solar, 13% from biomass and 2% from natural gas.
So, while the majority of the country’s energy still comes from burning coal, the United States is moving in the right direction. Of course, not as quickly as some other countries, including even the UAE, but in the right direction nevertheless.
