U.S. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
DOE Partners With 9 Island and Remote Communities to Boost Resilience and Plan for Low-Cost Renewable Energy Systems

Unreliable power, lack of robust connections to mainstream power grids, and threats from strengthening storms are among the energy challenges faced by remote and island communities. On July 25th, 2023, the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Energy Transitions Initiative Partnership Project (ETIPP) is announcing nine new projects with remote and island communities building local energy systems that are sustainable, resilient, and reliable year-round.

These nine projects have been identified to help remote communities tailor the clean energy transition that makes the most sense for them. The communities stretching across the entire United States from Hawaii to Maine will join 23 other projects that are already working toward clean energy solutions as part of the ETIPP network.

"Ownership and collaboration within communities is at the heart of the ETIPP," said Acting Assistant Secretary Alejandro Moreno. "For hard-to-reach communities that have historically felt out of sight and out of mind, the DOE hears and sees you, and is here to work with you on your vision of a clean energy future."

Through ETIPP, communities work with regional partner organizations and national laboratory experts to address local energy challenges. Driven by local energy priorities, ETIPP supports the Biden-Harris Administration's goal of decarbonizing energy and achieving a zero-emissions economy by 2050.

More information about the nine communities joining ETIPP this year and the projects they each plan to tackle through the program is below.

• Block Island, Rhode Island.

Block Island is looking to identify renewable energy sources that can be used to generate electricity on the island and reduce reliance on imported electricity and fuels. The community will engage in energy planning to shore up its resilience, particularly in the face of sea-level rise. Specifically, the community will work to lower energy costs for marginalized populations.

Deer Isle and Stonington, Maine.

Stonington, a fishing town on the southern end of Deer Isle, Maine, frequently experiences power outages that last up to a week. The community will conduct an energy assessment to understand how renewable and resilient energy options like microgrids, energy storage systems, and other technologies can integrate with its current grid, especially as its population grows, energy demand increases, and weather increasingly affects energy delivery.

• Molokai, Hawaii.

The island of Molokai has developed a Community Energy Resilience Action Plan, which outlined 10 key energy projects. Building on the priorities laid out in the plan, the community will model and assess the feasibility of solar energy, identify renewable energy sources to support critical infrastructure, and explore pumped hydropower as an option for energy storage.

• Nooksack Tribe, Washington.

The Nooksack Tribe sits at the end of power distribution lines in Deming, Washington, where it experiences frequent winter power outages that require emergency shelters. The community will conduct strategic energy planning to explore renewable and resilient energy technologies, including battery storage, microgrids, electric vehicle charging stations, and wind generators. The tribe will use their plan to prioritize renewable energy projects and  pursue grant funding, with an aim to combat prolonged power outages.

• Oak Bluffs, Edgartown, and Tisbury, Massachusetts.

Storms often threaten the electricity, water, and food supply across multiple townships on Martha's Vineyard. Members of the year-round island community want to better understand how to reduce their reliance on fossil fuels as a backup power source for water pumping and supply. They will also continue exploring opportunities for electric buses to provide mobile power sources for water pumps, a project already underway.

• Port Gamble S'Klallam Tribe, Washington.

In Northwest Washington, the S'Klallam Tribe is often isolated from other communities by storms that take out power lines and wash out their single road for utility repair crews' access. The tribe will conduct energy planning, assessing their local energy resources, setting energy goals, identifying energy projects, and increasing the capacity of their staff to address the community's energy needs.

• Shelter Island, New York.

Situated at the eastern end of Long Island, Shelter Island is considering a range of renewable technologies to bolster its resilience. The community will work with the ETIPP network to optimize solar arrays, understand whether a geothermal heating and cooling system would be appropriate for the town's government buildings, and explore options for generating energy from its tidal resource.

• Sitka, Alaska.

Sitka, an island community in southeast Alaska accessible only by boat or plane, projects that its load will exceed available capacity for electricity generation within the next decade. Sitka will analyze and compare future forecasted energy demand, accounting for increased loads from heating electrification, electric transportation, and other decarbonization technologies. The outcomes of the analysis will help Sitka match previously identified renewable energy opportunities to meet forecasted energy demand.

• Vieques, Puerto Rico.

The Puerto Rican islands of Vieques and Culebra will study the feasibility of achieving energy independence and resilience using rooftop and community solar power to provide the islands renewable energy. The islands will work with ETIPP partners to conduct modeling and analysis to understand the full potential of decentralized solar when combined with utility-scale solutions.

These tribes, islands, and remote towns mark the third cohort of communities joining ETIPP, which launched in 2021 with 11 communities. In 2022, 12 additional communities were selected for ETIPP. Existing ETIPP communities are working on projects ranging from electrifying diesel fishing vessels to planning microgrids that will provide communities with power during storm outages.

ETIPP communities work with five regional partner organizations academic institutions and nonprofit groups that have deep knowledge of local energy ecosystems, needs, challenges, and priorities. ETIPP's regional partners include the Coastal Studies Institute, Island Institute, Hawaii Natural Energy Institute, Renewable Energy Alaska Project, and Spark Northwest.

The communities also partner with researchers at four national laboratories including Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, and Sandia National Laboratories to find solutions tailored to local energy challenges.

"Rural communities like Stonington and Deer Isle face enough challenges day-to-day, and keeping the lights on shouldn't be one of them," said Rep. Jared Golden (ME-02). These important grid investments will give families across the peninsula reliable energy, valuable peace of mind, and make these already strong communities just that much more resilient."

"I am thrilled to see this important project and new jobs coming to Shelter Island and the East End. As our country continues to find ways to become energy independent, we must take on an all-of-the-above energy plan," said Rep. Nick LaLota (NY-01). "These projects will create hundreds of good-paying jobs and boost the local economy. I will continue to fight to bring federal dollars and jobs back home to Suffolk County."

"Transitioning to clean energy is key to lowering energy costs, creating good-paying jobs, and supporting remote communities like Block Island," said Rep. Seth Magaziner (RI-02). "This federal funding will help ensure Block Island has access to affordable and reliable energy year-round and reduce reliance on imported electricity and fossil fuels."

"Vieques and Culebra have had to face greater challenges than the other municipalities in Puerto Rico. Even when the programmed improvements to our general energy grid are carried out, both island municipalities will remain especially susceptible to the impacts of hurricanes, and the auxiliary generation systems on the ground will be limited by the capacity of fuel storage facilities," said Rep. Jenniffer González-Colón (PR-01). "On these islands we have the greatest need to evaluate how best to incorporate community-level renewable energy sources into the grid. I am counting on this project to be carried out diligently to produce results that will guide us to concrete actions."

These ETIPP projects are funded by the DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. Visit the ETIPP website to learn more about the program.