Renewable energy is focus of meeting

Governors in 11 states and officials from Mexico and two Canadian provinces will be working on what the Western Governors Association is calling the Western Renewable Energy Zones project.

The association announced this week it has started the WREZ initiative to come up with the best ways to develop and deliver renewable energy in the Western Interconnection. The energy produced would include solar, geothermal, wind, biomass and hydro and hydrokinetic resources.

A kickoff meeting for the WREZ steering committee is set for May 28, 1 p.m., at the Sheraton City Center in Salt Lake City. Federal officials from Energy, Interior and Agriculture departments and the Energy Regulatory Commission will be serving as ex-officio members on the committee.

The WREZ project will unfold in four phases, starting with identifying zones of renewable energy. After that, the group will develop transmission plans for the energy and support development of a regional market for renewable energy. The last phase will be to build interstate cooperation to facilitate permitting and resolve "multistate cost-allocation issues."

Last month Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. formed a task force to map out Utah's most likely zones of renewable energy, with the goal of producing 20 percent of the state's energy needs using renewable sources by 2025.