Will the Solution to the Energy Crisis Come From Local Power Generation?

There are two main alternatives to meet this demand. The first is to build new transmission capability (or to increase the capacity of existing transmission) and to build large new central generation facilities. This has been the most common approach for many years and is the strategy generally favored by Wall Street and most major utilities.

The second strategy is to build new distributed generation (DG) where, or near where, it is needed, avoiding the need for new transmission. These DG facilities are normally smaller and scattered throughout a region to meet the needs of local customers. This strategy is supported by a growing number of local community activists and other local business interests who tend to view electricity as a basic public necessity rather than a commodity. Considering the huge cost of the first strategy, much of which would probably be borne by ratepayers, the second approach would seem to make a lot of sense, especially since transmission expansion is already severely limited in most urban areas in the United States.

AlterNet