Building on a 2007 law that seeks to reduce the state's greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2020, lawmakers this year are proposing measures that require little government spending but could get Hawai'i closer to that goal.

The mandate means taking a close look at electricity production and automobiles, two major sources of the greenhouse gases.

Some of the bills being proposed would cut electricity bills, reduce dependence on imported oil and help the island state do its part to slow the production of gases many scientists believe contribute to global warming.

The proposed changes are significant without being dramatic, and would steer the public toward energy-saving options without forcing an abrupt change of habits.

For instance, one measure would require all Hawai'i residents to begin phasing out the use of incandescent lights, replacing them with compact fluorescent or light-emitting diodes.

Not only do those lighting sources use less energy, they also emit less heat, which would require less air conditioning.

Calling last year's law a breakthrough, Jeff Mikulina, director of the Sierra Club of Hawai'i, said it's time to wean Hawai'i residents from fossil fuels and toward alternative energy.

"The money you save is staggering," Mikulina said.

House and Senate Democrats, who have majorities in both chambers, have yet to reveal their joint package of bills that will get priority, but House Republicans completed theirs over the weekend. That package includes bills that aim to get utilities to stop using fossil fuels entirely within 10 years.

DIFFERENT APPROACHES

The package uses different approaches, including amending the legal definition of renewable energy and creating tax benefits. It would create renewable energy opportunity zones for ventures employing wave, solar or wind energy and authorize co-ops so that companies could share in renewable energy projects.

Utilities would be compelled to look more seriously at alternative energy if Republicans succeed in getting rid of the energy cost adjustment clause, or ECAC, which allows utilities to pass the fluctuating costs of oil to the consumer.

"They have no real economic incentives to develop renewable energy systems. The amount is simply passed through and the consumer pays it," said state Rep. Cynthia Thielen, R-50th (Kailua, Kane'ohe Bay).

House Energy and Environmental Protection Chairwoman Hermina Morita, D-14th (Hanalei, Anahola, Kapa'a), said she's still interested in some issues that have already come before the Legislature, such as how to keep electronic waste out of landfills and a review of the law that governs environmental assessments.

Senate Majority Leader Gary Hooser, D-7th (Kaua'i, Ni'ihau), said he plans to revisit a bill that would require solar water heaters in all new homes, since it's easier to get homeowners to switch to the energy saving heaters when the homes are being built.

"Basically, this would translate to 6,000 new homes having solar hot water. It's guaranteed to drop your rates, and it's the cheapest time to install it," he said.

While the bill has received opposition from utilities, the building industry and even the solar industry, Hooser believes it has tremendous public benefit, without costing the state government anything.

ENVIRONMENTAL PUSH

Sen. Russell Kokubun, chairman of the Hawai'i 2050 Task Force on Sustainability, said he's intrigued by a bill that would allow certain kinds of photovoltaic energy to be developed on less productive agricultural land.

"What this really does is elevate the idea of alternative energy and agriculture as two complementing issues," he said.

Environmentalists will be at the Legislature this year, pushing lawmakers to adopt some of their proposals.

Henry Curtis, executive director of Life of the Land, said he wants the state to move away from plastic bags and styrofoam, an idea under consideration at the county level.

He also supports a so-called "carbon tax," which would tax carbon-emitting utilities and use the money to subsidize renewable energy projects.

Mikulina of the Sierra Club said other "fun" things are in the works, such as pushing for a measure that would prevent homeowners associations from restricting clotheslines, at least when it's only for aesthetic reasons.

He also plans to continue recommending that certain retailers allow consumers to return beverage containers to where they bought them.

"We're trying to remove barriers for folks who want to do the right thing and to try to save people money."

Mikulina said the state has worried about its dependence on petroleum since the 1970s, yet it's still an issue.

"We have to start being smarter and make it easier for people to do the right thing," he said.

Visit www.honoluluadvertiser.com/legislature for reports from the state Capitol, plus blogs and columns by Jerry Burris and Dave Shapiro, and The Advertiser's ongoing legislative coverage. Post your comments on this story at www.honoluluadvertiser.com

Reach Treena Shapiro at tshapiro@honoluluadvertiser.com.