Assessing spatial consumer preferences for renewable portfolio standards considering energy mix and water consumption

Governments are searching for efficient policies to reduce the environmental impacts of electricity generation. One potential policy is the Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS), which mandates minimum levels of renewable energy distribution. However, these policies often neglect the attitudes of ratepayers, even though they bear the financial burden. Previous studies assessing preferences for RPS overlook energy mix and water usage in the electricity sector. We address these gaps by conducting a discrete choice experiment to estimate consumer preferences for RPS and its associated attributes in New Mexico, a rural state with high fossil fuel and renewable energy potential and a recently modified RPS. Using the mixed logit modeling approach, we find that our respondents strongly support increasing the share of renewables in the RPS and decreasing water usage and nuclear power in the electricity sector. We also find that jobs are perceived as important and that households with pro-environmental views are more likely to prefer increases in RPS requirements. Our hotspot analysis identifies geographic areas of response homogeneity among households with economic ties to oil and gas and renewable power infrastructure. This indicates that a widely accepted energy policy might necessitate a balanced approach that acknowledges the diverse needs and concerns of different communities.