rp_0103_7.html
AROUND THE REGION
WASHINGTONThe BP Cherry Point Refinery north of Bellingham hopes to build a 750 MW natural gas-fired power plant. The company recently filed a request with the Washington Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council (EFSEC ) to conduct a potential site study for the plant. The study, funded by a $10,000 application fee, will highlight any environmental, social, or regulatory "hurdles" the project may face. BP's proposed triple-turbine facility would be constructed on 25 acres of company-owned land, fed by a private gas pipeline coming directly from Canada . A BP spokesman told the Seattle Post-Intelligencer that the refinery could provide 85 MW to company operations and possibly offer 470 MW to the nearby Alcoa Intalco aluminum smelter. The plant, a cogeneration facility, would produce electricity and steam utilized by the refinery. Local environmentalists, especially those fighting to restore declining herring populations in the Strait of Georgia , have already voiced opposition. Last month, EFSEC recommended against the proposed 660 MW Sumas II gas plant (see story page 5).
IDAHO
In addition to tracking state policy developments, the newly-revitalized Idaho Energy Coalition (IEC ) will provide a valuable planning network for a potential Idaho version of the well-attended "Harvesting Clean Energy for Rural Development" January conference in Spokane. IEC members and allies are working to organize a two-day conference on wind power and biomass energy. The event is tentatively scheduled for November 2001. Senator Mike Crapo's office and state and federal agencies have also expressed interest in providing outreach to irrigators and other Idaho landowners to help build local economies through renewable energy developments.
OREGON
Residential and small commercial customers of Portland General Electric and PacifiCorp will get four new power choices in additional to their current cost-of-service rate. The Portfolio Committee of the group charged with implementing Oregon's restructuring law recommended in early March that customer choices should include the two already available and two in addition. Customers will be able to buy currently offered blocks of 100 kilowatt hours of wind power (called Blue Sky or Clean Wind , depending on the utility), and Salmon Friendly Power offered by For Sake of the Salmon . A new renewable product whose source will be bid out to other developers will offer a third green choice. Dedicated conservationists can choose a time-of-use meter, installed to take advantage of three price periods. The meters will help consumers save money by tracking their energy use and shifting it away from morning and afternoon peaks.
MONTANA Montana State Senator Ken Toole announced plans to introduce a bill to allow voters to decide whether the state should purchase hydropower plants formerly owned by the Montana Power Company . The company's residential and small business customers have enjoyed low rates under a rate freeze mandated by the state's 1997 restructuring law but must secure their own energy supplies and rates beginning July 2002. Toole and many consumer advocates fear rates will skyrocket if small customers are forced to buy power on the volatile open market. Purchasing the power plants would cost several hundred million dollars up front, but would guarantee stable, lowÐcost power over the long-term.
Quote of the Month
"Salmon have fed us, their receipts have clothed us, their journey has inspired us, and their existence has defined us as Northwesterners for generations. More pounds of salmon have been lost in the name of cheap hydropower than any mathematician could calculate . . . will the storied Oregon ethic prove real, or will we repeat the story of the buffalo? The days of easy decisions are over. Light bills or legacy? We pick today. "
Joe Whitworth of Oregon Trout on the Bonneville Power Administration asserting it must sacrifice migrating salmon in order to maximize power generation this year. The excerpt is from a March 13 guest column that appeared in The Oregonian.