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Release of Fifth Power and Conservation Plan
shifts campaign into high gear
On Sept. 22, the Northwest Power and Conservation Council released its draft blueprint for meeting regional electricity needs over the next 20 years.
The Council consists of governor-appointed representatives from Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington. Its job is to balance energy production from dams in the Columbia River basin with environmental safeguards for endangered salmon and other wildlife. The Council is required to write a 20-year Power and Conservation Plan every five years that predicts which power resources utilities should acquire to best ensure a reliable regional power supply that imposes the least cost on consumers and fish.
The Energy Matters campaign will work to influence the final draft of the Council's Fifth Northwest Power and Conservation Plan as it passes through the public comment period. Currently, the plan calls on utilities to invest in a lot of energy efficiency and develop significant renewable resources. That's good. But it also projects a need for additional coal-fired generation, fails to address the needs of low-income energy consumers, and will leave fish to pay during power emergencies. Your participation can help us steer the Council toward a better energy future – one with no new fossil-fuel plants, solid protections for our beloved salmon, and affordable rates for all.
Details below ...
Power Council puts clean energy
at top of resource list
The just-released draft of the Northwest's Fifth Power and Conservation Plan issues a challenge to the region's utilities: Get all the cost-effective energy efficiency available AND develop thousands of megawatts of consumer-protecting renewable energy over the next two decades.
In assessing which resources should be tapped to meet future demand for electricity, members of the Northwest Power and Conservation Council come out strong for energy efficiency, saying it saves consumers so much money it should be pursued even when there's a surplus of power.
They see the benefits of building enough wind generation in the next 20 years to serve the electricity needs of two Seattle-sized cities. And they call for developing moderate amounts of new wind in the near term.
However, clean-energy advocates are rightly alarmed the Council wants the region
to "be prepared" to add 400 megawatts of new coal-generated electricity
in 2013. But that advice comes with several caveats. Any meaningful
controls or restrictions on carbon emissions - one of coal burning's
main threats to human health and the environment - would drop coal from
the Council's list of cost-effective resource alternatives.
Collectively, Northwest public and investor-owned utilities have far more than 400 megawatts of new coal in their short- and long-term resource plans. Unfortunately, coal advocates already are pushing new coal power plants in Montana and Idaho to serve energy needs in Oregon, Washington, British Columbia and elsewhere. Clean energy advocates must be ready to meet this challenge.
There is very little doubt that carbon taxes and/or emissions caps will
be in effect by 2013, when the Council feels the new power may be
needed. Oregon and Washington already require carbon mitigation from new
fossil fuel plants. Few are falling for the fable of "clean coal."
The Council's projections and the near certainty of emissions regulations mean it's time for those utilities to turn their gaze from risky, polluting energy sources and embrace the clean and affordable energy solution.
The Plan needs help
Other sections of the draft Fifth Power and Conservation Plan need serious improvement:
Low-income. The Council completely failed the region's low-income energy consumers by providing no analysis of weatherization needs, benefits and costs. Not only has it set no targets, the Council suggests that weatherization efforts must be "cost-effective." That's code for saying that the energy benefits alone must cover the costs of the measures. But weatherizing low-income homes also means repairing leaky windows and doors, improving safety and health. These benefits should be included in the calculation.
Fish. Balancing energy production with protection of fish and wildlife is one of the Council's fundamental legal roles. By submitting to pressures to remove its formula for calculating the chances that particular resource strategies will further harm fish, the Council has abrogated its responsibility.
Transmission. The Council needs either to endorse the Grid West approach to managing and improving the region's dysfunctional transmission system, or come up with a better alternative so the system works for everyone.
Resource adequacy. The Plan recognizes that the region has a temporary surplus, but what then? Will BPA and the utilities build enough new resources? Or will they commit an equally costly mistake and build too many? Many other regions have instituted mandatory adequacy standards to ensure coordinated acquisition of new resources. This avoids wasteful "boom and bust" building cycles and reduces the chance of blackouts. The Plan recommends only that decision-makers talk about doing something, rather that advocating for mandatory standards.
Give the Council a piece of your mind!
Hearings will be held throughout the region, beginning Oct. 12 in Missoula. (see left for other dates)
The Council also will be taking written comments through Nov. 19. You can send them through our website.
The Coalition believes Energy Matters campaign supporters should:
- Applaud the Council's strong energy efficiency plank.
- Defend the positive strides on renewables, while urging Council members to acknowledge the significant opportunities not identified in the draft Plan.
- Stress that coal is not an option - not for consumers, not for the environment, not for humans and other living things.
- Make sure the Council seriously addresses the needs low-income energy consumers.
- Demand that the Council carry out its legal responsibility to protect Columbia Basin fish and wildlife.
- Insist that Council members take a stand on fixing the transmission system.
Subsequent Energy Matters updates will look at some of these issues in more depth. In the meantime, we've put talking points on the Fifth Power Plan on the Energy Matters website, along with an issue-by-issue summary and analysis by NW Energy Coalition staff.
Keep on pushing!
Clean-energy advocates did a great job getting our vision across to the Bonneville Power Administration during the just-completed Regional Dialogue hearings and written comment period. Let's build on that momentum by intervening enthusiastically in the Fifth Power Plan!
The Fifth Northwest Power and Conservation Plan is a major focus of the Energy Matters campaign. Now is the time to stand up and make a difference and to help make our vision of a clean and affordable energy future a reality.
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