US doubled renewables capacity since 2010: factbook

Power-generating capacity from renewable energy — including solar, wind and utility-scale hydropower — has doubled in the U.S. since 2010, while generation has jumped 77% in that time, according to a new report from BloombergNEF (BNEF) and the Business Council for Sustainable Energy (BCSE). The Sustainable Energy in America Factbook, the eighth annual edition, notes that even as the economy grew over the past decade, greenhouse gas emissions dropped. In five years, year-over-year energy consumption even fell, thanks to more efficiency measures. Cities played a key role in the energy trends, especially through building energy codes and benchmarking policies. In many markets, renewables are the cheapest new generation source, according to the factbook.