Integrated Resource Planning (IRP)

Planning for electric power needs that accomplishes specified social and environmental goals by considering both demand-side management (to reduce electricity demand) and supply-side management (to redistribute types of generation among fuel types, locations, etc.). A public planning process to evaluate the optimal mix of utility resources and options. In the U.S., IRP has become a formal process prescribed by law in some states and under some provisions of the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1992.