An Exploration of Options and Opportunities for the San Joaquin Valley’s Clean Energy Future

The report outlines a vision for the San Joaquin Valley (SJV) to leverage its land and industrial base to become a hub for clean energy, focusing on solar, bioenergy, and hydrogen. Using modeling from the RAND Corporation, it argues that a diverse energy portfolio can create thousands of high-wage jobs and reduce local pollution. The authors emphasize the need for a coordinated, valley-wide community benefits framework to ensure that rural and disadvantaged communities receive equitable economic gains from new developments.

• The San Joaquin Valley possesses immense resource potential for clean energy, particularly in solar, which is the region's largest potential electricity source by a factor of 10 compared to wind and bioenergy.
• Land and water availability are not primary constraints for clean energy development in the SJV; theoretically, the remaining low-conflict land could generate enough electricity to serve all households in California and Texas combined.
• Clean energy deployment is projected to create thousands of jobs annually in the region, with roughly half being permanent. While utility-scale solar is a major job creator due to its scale, technologies like hydrogen and bioenergy produce more jobs per kWh.
• The region's existing workforce is generally sufficient in size and skill, but workers will require specific training to pivot to clean energy roles, necessitating a formal gap analysis.
• A coordinated, valley-wide framework for Community Benefit Agreements (CBAs) is recommended to prevent a "race to the bottom" where developers seek out areas with the fewest requirements.
• To maximize economic impact, the SJV should focus on attracting clean energy manufacturing and supply chain industries, which would provide more significant high-road job growth than generation infrastructure alone.
• Immediate action and a diverse initial mix of clean energy projects are advised to maintain future flexibility and secure first-mover advantages in the industry.

APA

Breckel, A., Manitius, N., Wheeles, D., Watt, T., & Linney, D. (2024). An Exploration of Options and Opportunities for the San Joaquin Valley’s Clean Energy Future. Clean Air Task Force. https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/22145139/San-Joaquin-Valley-Clean-Energy-Transition.pdf

Chicago

Breckel, Alex, Natalie Manitius, Darcy Wheeles, Terrell Watt, and Doug Linney. An Exploration of Options and Opportunities for the San Joaquin Valley’s Clean Energy Future. Clean Air Task Force, 2024. https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/22145139/San-Joaquin-Valley-Clean-Energy-Transition.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Breckel |first1=Alex |last2=Manitius |first2=Natalie |last3=Wheeles |first3=Darcy |last4=Watt |first4=Terrell |last5=Linney |first5=Doug |title=An Exploration of Options and Opportunities for the San Joaquin Valley’s Clean Energy Future |publisher=Clean Air Task Force |date=April 2024 |url=https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/22145139/San-Joaquin-Valley-Clean-Energy-Transition.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{breckel2024exploration, author = {Breckel, Alex and Manitius, Natalie and Wheeles, Darcy and Watt, Terrell and Linney, Doug}, title = {{An Exploration of Options and Opportunities for the San Joaquin Valley’s Clean Energy Future}}, institution = {Clean Air Task Force}, year = {2024}, month = apr, url = {https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/22145139/San-Joaquin-Valley-Clean-Energy-Transition.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }