Energy Lifeline Sector Resilience: Low-Carbon Microgrids

The Blue Lake Rancheria is located in a rural, geographically isolated region of northwestern California where power outages are now increasing in frequency due to the climate crisis.

Compounding these issues, it was not uncommon for the Pacific Gas and Electric to raise year-on-year prices by seven to ten percent. Rising energy costs strained tribal government budgets, drained businesses' profits, and threatened plans for further economic expansion. Blue Lake Rancheria’s leaders concluded that any endeavor toward greater self-sufficiency would first require finding a lower-pollution, secure energy supply.

Among these, energy stood out as the first priority because it supports all of the other sectors and could mean the difference between life and death during emergencies. In 2009, Blue Lake Rancheria adopted its Strategic Energy Plan, prioritizing the establishment of a clean, reliable energy supply and net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.

To advance this goal, Blue Lake Rancheria sought help from industry experts. It partnered with the Schatz Energy Research Center at California Polytechnic University at Humboldt, which helped the nation determine a system sufficient for the community’s needs: two microgrids that combine solar electric power, battery energy storage, and existing diesel generators as deep emergency back up.

Blue Lake Rancheria reduced its dependence on outside energy providers and increased control over power production and distribution decisions, including which government functions and business interests will receive power during emergencies.