Abstract
The City of Burlington, Vermont was the first city in America to power 100 percent of its electricity from renewable resources that include wood, hydroelectricity, wind, and solar. This achievement was accomplished over decades through a series of interconnected factors that include strong governmental leadership, regional and state regulatory frameworks for renewable energy and climate change, and innovative policies from the local electric utility, Burlington Electric Department (BED). Many lessons could be learned from this achievement in this small city in the least populated state in the nation. However, significant challenges remain as society grapples with decarbonizing our energy supply which in the United States is still predominantly fossil fuel based.
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Further Reading
Burlington Electric Department General Information. https://www.burlingtonelectric.com/.
Burlington Electric Department’s Integrated Resource Plan (2016). https://www.burlingtonelectric.com/irp.
Burlington Legacy Plan.https://www.burlingtonvt.gov/Sustainability/Legacy-Action-Plan.
Burlington’s Climate Action Plan and District Energy Study. https://www.burlingtonvt.gov/Sustainability/CAP.
Efficiency Vermont Information. https://www.efficiencyvermont.com/.
PBS Special on Burlington, Vermont. http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/vermont-city-come-rely-100-percent-renewable-energy/.
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Garren, S.J. (2018). Sustainable Renewable Energy: The Case of Burlington, Vermont. In: Brinkmann, R., Garren, S. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of Sustainability. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-71389-2_6
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