Published 07/11/21 in ABQ Journal
The Santa Fe Green Chamber of Commerce has publicly and enthusiastically expressed its support for expanding New Mexico’s footprint in the growing renewable energy industry and reaping the tremendous economic and environmental benefits such a move represents.
Fortunately, we’re already moving in that direction thanks to dozens of renewable projects that have chosen to invest in New Mexico. One of those projects is the SunZia southwest transmission line, which will deliver solar and wind-generated energy from New Mexico and Arizona to homes, offices and industrial customers throughout the western U.S.
As the federal government continues to review the project and currently seeks public comment, the Santa Fe Green Chamber of Commerce reiterates its support for SunZia.
Our organization is dedicated to increasing sustainable and clean jobs in Santa Fe and throughout our state, and SunZia’s investment in New Mexico checks all the boxes.
For years, we’ve worked to empower local businesses to conserve water and energy and seek other measures to ensure the best, most efficient use of our state’s natural resources while continuing to benefit local communities.
The SunZia project will accelerate those and other efforts at a much larger scale. The additional transmission capacity will benefit the environment, help diversify New Mexico’s economy and create high-paying jobs now and into the future.
And, with more than 300 days of sunshine each year and abundant wind, New Mexico is ideally suited to become a leader in the renewable energy sector.
What’s missing now is the ability to safely and reliably move the clean energy to where it’s needed. Large parts of our current transmission infrastructure are nearly 100 years old and were built to accommodate smaller populations. The SunZia line will have the capacity to deliver up to 4,500 megawatts of renewable energy and begin addressing the needs of our growing population.
We’re confident the SunZia transmission project stands to benefit communities across our state for years to come. For that reason, the Santa Fe Green Chamber of Commerce again offers its full support.
By Glenn Schiffbauer, Executive Director of Santa Fe Green Chamber of Commerce