As the Pacific Northwest eyes using more renewable energy, one big question arises: how will it be stored? New research from the firm Energy and Environmental Economics finds the region’s current storage capacity could fall short by 10-thousand megawatts by 2030. One solution could be pumped hydro storage facilities, which are made up of upper and lower reservoirs. Sources like wind and solar pump water to the upper reservoir, creating stored potential energy. Eric Steimle with Rye Development says when users need energy but the wind stops blowing or the sun isn’t shining it is released into the lower reservoir. Rye Development has proposed a 1,200-megawatt facility 20 miles south of Goldendale and a 394-megawatt facility near Klamath Falls. But these facilities do have some drawbacks. They require large upfront costs and take three to four years to build.