Swipe right to learn the basics about Renewable Energy Credits and their impact.

RECs are certificates used to track renewable energy. Every megawatt-hour of renewable energy that enters our regional power grid is assigned 1 corresponding REC. These RECs can be sold together with their corresponding energy, or separately—aka “unbundled.” Whichever utility buys unbundled RECs may use the credits to meet their renewable-energy obligations even if the actual power they buy comes from fossil fuels.

For example, if you buy 100 megawatt-hours of power from a coal plant, you can claim to be using renewable power as long as you also buy 100 RECs from a solar farm. Moreover, since the 100 RECs have been unbundled from the solar farm energy, the purchasers of the solar energy itself may not claim to be using renewable energy: the credit for the renewables has already been taken.

• Buying RECs from pre-existing renewable sources makes it seem like Vermont is achieving our emissions goals without actually reducing the total amount of fossil fuel burned to supply our region's power.

• Most of our RECs come from large hydro power, which is not actually a just, carbon-free source of energy. Counting large hydro as renewable (which no other state does) creates a falsely low picture of VT’s emissions.

• Less than 10% of RECs from energy produced in Vermont are currently counted toward our own goals; the rest are sold at a profit to other states, who can then claim to be renewable while burning fossil fuels.

• End unbundled RECs, especially from problematic sources like Hydro-Quebec.

• Make sure we are meeting our goals by adding new renewables (“additionality,” in policy-speak), not simply taking credit for existing renewables.

• Enact climate legislation that prioritizes and incentivizes development of local solar, wind, and networked thermal projects that benefit our communities.