Green Power 2: Power Sector Reform

The power grid. Most of us don't think too much about what's behind the switches and the wires and the circuits. Will the lights come on when you flip on a light switch at home or will you be left in the dark? Will those electrons come from a solar farm or from an aging coal power plant? Well, some among us do think a lot about these questions, and more: how can we make our power sector run more efficiently and cleanly? How can we reduce the carbon and pollution footprint of the power sector?

In the second episode in our Green Power mini-series, we chat with Christopher James, a Principal with the Regulatory Assistance Project (RAP), about China's latest round of power sector reform. We learn why "regional balancing," "economic/green dispatch," and a shift in the utility business-model paradigm are key to decarbonizing China's power sector. Chris joins us with over 30 years' experience working on implementing environmental regulations, and has been in and out of China for over a decade helping to translate this experience into practical improvements in China's power sector management system. To learn more about RAP and Chris' work, check out the RAP website at raponline.org.