California’s sweeping climate law will usher in a zero-carbon economy. Now the state needs a succession plan.

The following article is a contribution from Armond Cohen, co-founder and president of the Clean Air Task Force, and Michael Colvin, director of the California Energy Program at the Environmental Defense Fund.

California last month reaffirmed its leadership in promoting the transition to a zero-carbon economy by passing key climate and clean energy legislation.

That California Climate CommitmentQuickly enacted by Gov. Gavin Newsom, the law codified the world’s fifth largest economy’s ambitious goals — nationwide carbon neutrality and a 100% clean electricity grid by 2045. New milestones were also set to ensure accountability along the way and set the ambition to create millions of good jobs while saving taxpayers billions of dollars.

Now is the time to turn that goal into reality by implementing a comprehensive clean energy deployment plan.

California is already well on the way to a clean energy future. Rough 60% of electricity in the country now comes from zero-carbon resources, and rooftop solar power generates enough electricity to meet the needs of 2 million homes.

Despite these advances, the amount of infrastructure that needs to be deployed is enormous as we electrify more and more parts of our economy, like buildings and transportation. This means far larger investments in wind and solar energy. Resource diversity will be key to containing costs and maintaining system reliability, which means more geothermal, clean solid power, battery storage and transmission capacity. According to one estimate, California needs to triple the number of major power lines by 2050. In addition, we will install more customer-owned and demand management resources, upgrade and expand the state’s legacy distribution systems, and deploy complementary technologies such as industrial carbon capture and clean hydrogen production and storage.

Potential delays, financial uncertainty, and the sheer volume of new resources required increase the urgency of comprehensive planning and rapid implementation. Meanwhile, California continues to feel the effects of climate change with record heat, prolonged drought, unprecedented wildfires and flooding. Rolling blackouts remain a threat. The risks of building clean energy too slowly have far eclipsed the risks of progressing too quickly.

California can meet these challenges, but it requires new ways of thinking, decision-making and implementation — as detailed in a new report from our organizations, the Clean Air Task Force and the Environmental Defense Fund. A comprehensive and unified clean energy deployment plan under a lead agency with significant authority to allocate the necessary resources should include specific amounts, locations and timelines for infrastructure expansions. It should clarify roles and responsibilities that are developed together with local governments and stakeholders. And it needs to be revised as technology and society evolve.

Currently, responsibility for creating the physical foundation to meet California’s climate goals is shared by nearly a dozen agencies. While the California Air Resources Board, California Energy Commission, California Public Utilities Commission, California Environmental Protection Agency, and others have improved coordination and transparency, success requires overall accountability under a single entity.

The complexity of removing emissions from all sectors and regions of the economy requires alignment with the state’s economic growth goals and the local clean energy transition. Contingency measures are required when key milestones are not met. To ensure transparency and build public trust, the plan should include a website dashboard that tracks progress towards certain milestones. And the plan should address location, permitting, and supply chain issues, as well as agricultural, social, and institutional realities that typically lie outside of model studies.

California must achieve all of this while adhering to the principles of equity and environmental justice, reducing site conflicts, and protecting biodiversity. Extensive infrastructure build-out will mean strong jobs for millions of workers across the state. To ensure accountability, public engagement efforts need to be increased as roll-out accelerates. And legislators will need to take steps to improve system planning, siting, and funding.

Coordinating California’s complex and diverse priorities difficult but doable. A comprehensive clean energy deployment plan, anchored by strong leadership, will pave the way to an affordable, carbon-free and reliable power system and a more sustainable and prosperous economy.