Section 118.02. Definitions.

  The definitions specified in s. 196.378 , Stats., apply to this chapter. In addition, in this chapter:

(1e)  "Biogas" means a gas created by the anaerobic digestion or fermentation of biomass, food processing waste or discarded food.

(1m)  "Certified displacement facility" means a displacement facility that the commission certifies under s. PSC 118.055 .

(1s)  "Certified renewable facility" means an electric generating facility that the commission certifies under s. PSC 118.05 .

(2)  "Compliance period" means a calendar year, beginning January 1, during which an electric provider is required to achieve a renewable energy percentage under s. 196.378 (2) (a) , Stats.

(3)  "Commission" means the public service commission.

(3m)  "Densified fuel pellets" means pellets made from waste material that does not include garbage, as defined in s. 289.01 (9) , Stats., and that contains no more than 30 percent fixed carbon.

(4)  "Designated representative" means the person authorized by the electric provider to register a renewable facility or non-electric facility with the program administrator, or to purchase or sell renewable energy certificates or RRCs.

(5)  "Displaced conventional electricity" means electricity derived from conventional resources that an electric provider, or a customer or member of the electric provider, would have used except that the person used instead a certified displacement facility.

(5g)  "Displacement facility" means any of the following when used by an electric provider, or by a customer or member of the electric provider:

(a) A solar water heater.

(b) A solar light pipe.

(c) A ground source heat pump.

(d) An installation generating thermal output from biomass, biogas, synthetic gas, densified fuel pellets, or fuel produced by pyrolysis.

(e) Any other installation under s. 196.378 (3) (a) 1m. , Stats., identified by the commission that meets the criteria specified in this chapter.

(5m)  "Division administrator" means the administrator of the commission's division responsible for energy regulation.

(6)  "MWh" means megawatt-hour of electricity.

(6r)  "Plasma gasification" means the process of using an electric arc gasifier at a high temperature to break down waste material into gases and solids.

(7)  "Program administrator" means the person who carries out the administrative responsibilities related to the renewable energy tracking system.

(7g)  "Pyrolysis" means an industrial process that heats organic or waste material under pressure in an oxygen-starved environment to break the material down into gases, liquid and solid residues.

(7r)  "Renewable energy certificate" means an electronic certificate representing one MWh of total renewable energy from a certified renewable facility that meets all of the following requirements:

(a) The MWh is physically metered with the net generation measured at the certified renewable facility's bus bar.

(b) The MWh represents renewable energy that is delivered to a retail customer with the retail sale measured at the customer's meter, ignoring the transmission and distribution losses between the bus bar and the customer's meter.

(c) The MWh is tracked in the renewable energy tracking system.

(d) The facility meets the applicable requirements of ss. PSC 118.03 and 118.04 .

(8)  "RRC" means a renewable resource credit.

(9)  "Renewable energy tracking system" means a program that tracks the selling, transferring, purchasing, and retiring of renewable energy certificates and RRCs under s. 196.378 . (3)

(a) , Stats., and meets the criteria in s. PSC 118.06 .

(10)  "Renewable resource credit" means either of the following:

(a) One renewable energy certificate that exceeds an electric provider's minimum percentage requirement specified in s. 196.378 (2) (a) , Stats., and meets the applicable requirements of ss. PSC 118.03 and 118.04 .

(b) An electronic certificate representing one MWh of displaced conventional electricity, as calculated under s. PSC 118.09 .

(11)  "Retail customer" means a customer that receives retail electricity in Wisconsin.

(14)  "Solar light pipe" means a device that concentrates and transmits sunlight through a roof to an interior space, employing highly-reflective material inside the device to focus and direct the maximum available sunlight to the interior space.

(15)  "Solar water heater" means a device that concentrates and collects solar radiation to heat water for domestic use, pool heating, space heating, or ventilation air heating.

(16)  "Synthetic gas" means gas created by plasma gasification or pyrolysis.

(17)  "Tracking system account" means the account that the program administrator maintains in order to track the creation, sale, transfer, purchase, and retirement of a renewable energy certificate or an RRC by a renewable energy tracking system participant.

CR 00-065 : cr. Register July 2001, No. 547 eff. 8-1-01; CR 06-112 : r. (5) and (9), am. (7), (10) and (11), r. and recr. (13) Register May 2007 No. 617 , eff. 6-1-07; CR 10-147 : renum. (1) to be (1s) and am., cr. (1e), (1m), am. (2), cr. (3m), am. (4), cr. (5), (5m), am. (6), cr. (6g), (6r), am. (7), cr. (7g), (7r), (9), renum. (10) to be (10) (intro.) and am., cr. (10) (a), (b), renum. (12) to be (17) and am., r. (13), cr. (14) to (16) Register March 2012 No. 675 , eff. 4-1-12; republished to insert text inadvertently excluded from (4) Register January 2014 No. 697 ; CR 13-040 : am. (1m), (5), renum. (6g) (intro.) to (5g) (intro.) and am., renum. (6g) (a) to (e) to (5g) (a) to (e) Register April 2014 No. 700 , eff. 5-1-14; correction in (17) made under s. 35.17 , Stats., Register April 2014 No. 700 ; CR 14-053 : am. (17) Register April 2015 No. 712 , eff. 5-1-15.