Spring 2012

NW Clean & Affordable Energy Conference

May 18-19, 2012

Kalispell, MT

Featured Speakers

Mark your calendars for our NW Clean & Affordable Energy Conference this spring. This year we’ll be at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in beautiful Kalispell, Montana.

We’ll have panels and speakers on a variety of clean and affordable energy topics including: clean energy in the Flathead Valley, the future of coal, and renewable energy standards.

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Don’t miss our Friday evening reception:

Please join us on Friday evening for a reception from 5 – 7 p.m. immediately following the conference. Catch up with fellow conference participants and make new connections while enjoying complimentary food and beverages. The reception is free for anyone to attend and features a short program with guest speaker Heather Grahame, VP at NorthWestern Energy, followed by time for conversation and networking. We look forward to seeing you there!

Special thanks to our reception sponsor

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Join us for a tour!

On Saturday afternoon we’ll take a private tour of Algae AquaCulture Technology’s “Green Power House” in Columbia Falls. AACT takes agricultural and industrial wastes, such as wood chips, and combines them with nitrogen-fixing algae in the power house. The process creates methane, bio-oils, heat and off-grid electricity, as well as organic compost. For information about the process and its products, visit AACT’s Facebook page or website.

See full agenda below

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The Conference will be held at the Red Lion Hotel in Kalispell. Be sure to make your reservations today! Alaska Airlines serves the Glacier Park International Airport nearby. Shuttle service to the airport is complimentary.

Red Lion Hotel Kalispell
20 North Main Street
Kalispell, MT 59901

406-751-5050

Register Today!

Agenda

Thursday, May 17

5:30 – 7:30    Executive Board Meeting

Friday, May 18

8:00 – 9:00    Registration & Continental Breakfast

9:00 – 9:45    Keynote Speaker: Bill Drummond, Bonneville Power Administration

9:45 – 11:00   Panel: Clean and affordable energy for the Flathead Valley

           The panel will look at the clean energy development in the
           Flathead Valley among local utilities, businesses and citizen groups.

   Moderator: Jim Morton, Human Resources Council District XI
   David Bopp, Flathead Electric Cooperative
   Ralph Goode, Mission Valley Power
   Mayre Flowers, Citizens for a Better Flathead
   Diane Yarus, AirWorks Heating and Cooling Solutions

11:00 – 11:15  Networking Break

11:15 – 12:30  Caucus Meetings

    Montana Caucus
   Washington Caucus
   Oregon Caucus
   Idaho Caucus
   BC Caucus

12:30 - 1:30   Lunch

1:30 - 3:00    Panel: Renewable Energy Standards in the Northwest

           The panel will review the renewable standards in place in Montana,
           Washington, and Oregon. It will examine how effective these
           policies have been since implemented, look at their biggest
           challenges, and consider strategies for overcoming these challenges.

  Moderator: Nancy Hirsh, NW Energy Coalition
   Rachel Shimshak, Renewable Northwest Project
   Scott Bolton, PacificCorp
   Travis Kavulla, Chair, Montana Public Service Commission
   Van Jamison, Gaelectric
3:30 - 5:00    Panel: The future of coal mining and export in the West
           The panel will look at coal in the West and will cover topics including:
           the economics of coal mining, mining impacts on water quality and public
           health, plans to export coal to Asia through Washington and Oregon and
           the role of coal in our energy future.
   Moderator: Anne Hedges, Montana Environmental Information Center
   Tom Power, University of Montana Professor Emeritus, Economics
   Shiloh Hernandez, Western Environmental Law Center
   KC Golden, Climate Solutions
5:00 - 6:30    Evening Reception in the Fireside Room
with guest speaker Heather Grahame, VP and General Counsel,
Northwestern Energy
Saturday, May 19
8:00 – 9:00    Breakfast
               Low-income and Utility Caucus Meetings
9:00 - 12:00   Full Board Meeting
12:00 – 1:00   Lunch
1:00 – 2:00   Private tour of Algae AquaCulture Technology's "Green Power House"

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The NW Energy Coalition is an alliance of more than 115 environmental, civic and human service organizations, progressive utilities, and businesses in Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana and British Columbia. We promote development of renewable energy and energy efficiency, consumer protection, low-income energy assistance, and fish and wildlife restoration on the Columbia and Snake rivers.