Author: Edward Ring

Edward Ring is the director of water and energy policy for the California Policy Center, which he co-founded in 2013 and served as its first president. The California Policy Center is an educational non-profit focused on public policies that aim to improve California’s democracy and economy. He is also a senior fellow of the Center for American Greatness. Ring is the author of two books: "Fixing California - Abundance, Pragmatism, Optimism" (2021), and "The Abundance Choice - Our Fight for More Water in California" (2022).

Ringside: Commercializing Hydrocarbon Production from Air and Water

July 16, 2026 8:30 amJuly 16, 2026 8:31 am

Whenever evaluating a new energy technology, caution is warranted. During what was arguably the first big clean tech boom around 2009, schemes were sold to angel investors thrilled to find a hot sector in the wake of the recent financial...

Ringside: The Dismal Economics of Floating Offshore Wind

July 9, 2026 7:00 amJuly 9, 2026 7:01 am

There are at least three ways to evaluate the economic viability of energy projects. The easiest way is to just repeat whatever is in a press release. The other extreme, a mandatory exercise for anyone poised to actually invest and...

Ringside: Choosing the Right Infrastructure Projects Can Deliver Affordable Abundance

July 2, 2026 6:30 amJuly 2, 2026 6:31 am

The reason to socialize a portion of the cost of major infrastructure is so the ratepayer doesn’t have to bear an unaffordable share of the construction financing payments. The broader benefit to society is to achieve greater affordability for what...

Ringside: The Best Way to Eliminate Methane Leaks is to Drill

June 25, 2026 6:30 amJuly 1, 2026 7:26 pm

California’s oil industry has been active for well over a century, and Los Angeles was always at the heart of it. By 1894, about 80 wells were already producing oil in the city, setting off a boom that peaked in the 1970s...

Ringside: How Much Flow Preserves the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta?

June 18, 2026 7:00 amJune 18, 2026 7:01 am

When choosing what policies and projects might best ensure abundant water for California’s ecosystems, farms, and cities, the role of the delta is central. Even if large scale desalination were to someday deliver over a million acre feet of water...

Ringside: An Alternative Vision – Keep Scott Dam, Save Lake Pillsbury

June 11, 2026 6:00 amJune 11, 2026 5:30 pm

A recent article in Grist characterized recent efforts by the Trump administration to preserve Scott Dam as a “culture war crusade.” That is accurate, so long as we recognize that efforts to demolish the dam – and diminish the value of the...

Ringside: Californians Will Consume AT LEAST Another Five Billion Barrels of Crude Oil

June 4, 2026 6:00 amJune 4, 2026 6:01 am

There is no realistic scenario imaginable that does not include Californians consuming at least another five billion barrels of oil before the state achieves its much touted official goal of a “clean energy future.” Here are the numbers: In 2025...