A short article from the Stevens Point Journal:
More than 2,900 compact fluorescent light bulbs were distributed through the “CFL and Vote!” project by The Eco-Municipality of Stevens Point, Sustainable Stockton and the Commission for a Greener Tomorrow.
More than 700 people who received a free CFL had never used one before, and 565 people signed up to get the Central Wisconsin Sustainability Newsletter during this project.
From a presentation about Wind on the Water by Deb Erwin, program and planning analyst, Public Service Commission of Wisconsin:
The Governor’s Task Force on Glocal Warming recommended:
The Public Service Commission of Wisconsin (PSC) and other state agencies complete a study of the feasibility of generating electricity from off-shore wind resources in the Great Lakes by the end of 2008.
[In response,] the PSC created an external Study Group to examine the feasibility of Great Lakes wind projects.
Task was not to determine whether offshore wind is in the best interests of the state, rather to determine whether or not off-shore wind in the Great Lakes is possible.
Meetings were open to the public and documents were shared.
Materials are available on the PSC website.
Click here for the complete presentation in PDF.
From a media release issued by Rep. Tammy Baldwin and others in Congress:
Momentum is building to pass legislation repealing antiquated exemptions in federal statutes so that antitrust law fully covers railroads.
In a letter sent last week to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Minority Leader John Boehner, Judiciary Committee Chair John Conyers, Judiciary Ranking Member Lamar Smith, and Judiciary Antitrust Taskforce Ranking Member Ric Keller, the Section of Antitrust Law of the American Bar Association endorsed H.R. 1650, the Railroad Antitrust Enforcement Act of 2007, authored by Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin (D-WI).
In a 13 page analysis, the Section laid out its support for the bill, concluding that “The Section encourages Congress to move forward quickly to dismantle the antitrust exemption for the railroad industry, through the Railroad Antitrust Enforcement Act, and to consider additional legislation to eliminate antitrust exemptions applicable to other industries.”
Their letter follows closely on the heels of a letter that Reps. Baldwin and Conyers sent last month to Speaker Pelosi urging her to include H.R. 1650 as part of the economic stimulus package to be considered in January. Baldwin and Conyers reminded the Speaker that the legislation was reported in April by a voice vote of the Judiciary Committee without opposition and that companion legislation, S.772, authored by Sen. Herb Kohl (D-WI) was reported by the Senate Judiciary Committee, also by a voice vote without opposition.
In their letter to Pelosi, Baldwin and Conyers said, “As Congress continues to address the problems created in part by a lack of regulation and oversight in the largest financial institutions in America, we think the time is right to ensure antitrust compliance by our nation’s railroads. Their current unrestrained pricing power over America’s consumers is hurting our economy and our country, and must be addressed.”
The release cites Dairyland Power as an example of problems with prices and service:
For years, captive shippers have been reporting spiking rail rates and unreliable service. In Wisconsin, for example, Dairyland Power, a rural cooperative provides electricity for approximately 575,000 people in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, and Illinois. Dairyland’s three coal-fired power plants consume 3.2 million tons of coal per year, 75% of which comes by rail from the Powder River Basin in Wyoming. Over the years, Dairyland has reported deteriorating service quality; at times forcing them to cut back generation due to insufficient coal inventories. Adding further injury, at the end of 2005 the railroad that holds Dairyland captive raised its rates dramatically. Dairyland now pays about $75 million a year to ship $30 million worth of coal. Railroad rate increases have translated into a 15 to 20% increase in electricity rates for consumers.
From a media release issued by Xcel Energy:
The Public Service Commission of Wisconsin (PSCW) has created a docket to begin evaluating the company’s request to install biomass gasification technology at the Bay Front Power Plant in Ashland, Wis. This represents the first step in the regulatory review process for the innovative project that, if approved, would transform Bay Front into the largest biomass-fueled power plant in the Midwest, and one of the largest in the nation. When completed, the project will convert the plant’s remaining coal-fired unit to biomass gasification technology, allowing it to use 100 percent biomass in all three boilers. Currently, two of the three operating units at Bay Front use biomass as their primary fuel to generate electricity.
In 1979, the facility became the first investor-owned utility plant in the nation to burn waste wood to generate electricity.
This is the first time biomass gasification technology will be used to convert a coal-fired boiler at an existing base-load power plant. The project will require new biomass receiving and handling facilities, an external gasifier, modifications to the plant’s remaining coal-fired boiler and an enhanced air quality control system and is expected to cost $55-$70 million.
From a story John Dobberstein in the Racine Journal Times:
RACINE — Bringing a modern amenity to an aging building, contractors Thursday continued installing solar panels on the roof of Walden III School.
The sun peeked out from the clouds during the frosty morning as electricians wired up two banks of solar panels that, when operational, will boost Walden’s certification with the state as a “Green and Healthy School.”
Between three major grants and several student fundraisers, the community at Walden III, 1012 Center St., raised more than $140,000 in about a year’s time to have 70 205-watt panels purchased and installed on the roof.
Walden will sell the electricity generated by the 14.4-kilowatt system back to We Energies at twice the rate the utility sells it for. The profits, estimated at $4,000a year, will be used for more energy-saving projects at the school.
Walden has been threatened with closure because of its age, said high school English teacher Tom Rutkowski. One area of the campus dates back to the 1860s.
“There is some educational value for students and it’s good for the school to see something new happening here,” said Rutkowski, who helped spearhead the solar project.
We Energies contributed $52,000 for the project and also paid for a weather station to be installed on the roof.
Wisconsin-based Focus on Energy, which promotes energy-efficient and renewable-energy projects, kicked in a $35,000 grant.
And the Kenosha-based Brookwood Foundation, which focuses on education, renewable energy and religious projects, also contributed grant money, although the foundation would not reveal the actual amount Thursday.
Educators Credit Union and the Racine Community Foundation are also sponsors of the project.
Two visitors at the MREA Energy Fair in June 2008 check out a solar oven on display in front of the MREA’s solar training structure.
From a statement of the Board of Directors of the Midwest Renewable Energy Association (MREA) concerning proposed rulemaking by the Wisconsin Department of Commerce regarding Act 63, relating to a state electrical wiring code; regulation of electricians, electrical contractors, and electrical inspectors:
The Midwest Renewable Energy Association (MREA) would like to point out that it is in the best interests of the people of Wisconsin for the Department of Commerce to take steps to ensure that renewable energy systems that generate electricity:
1. are installed in a safe and reliable manner;
2. are properly & efficiently configured to maximize energy production, and equipment lifespan;
3. are not unduly burdened with unnecessary labor and installation costs. . . .
Based on the collective experience of the solar professionals at the MREA, the best way to ensure the safety of Wisconsin’s citizens (with respect to solar electric systems) would be for the Department of Commerce to require that all solar electric systems be installed by NABCEP certified installers or persons who are legitimately in the final stages of NABCEP certification as recognized by the Wisconsin Focus On Energy program. We believe that requirements of Act 63 can be fulfilled by having a licensed electrician make the final connection to the AC power system.
Our many years of experience have shown that the Department could allow NABCEP certification to suffice for the installation and connection of solar electric systems without any compromise to the safety of the people of Wisconsin, if Act 63 allowed such leeway.
Installation of safe and reliable small wind power systems (up to 100 kW), also requires a very specialized set of skills that are not taught to electricians. Unfortunately, NAPCEP certification does not yet exist for the installers of small scale wind systems, although it is likely that a certification system will be in place by 2010. When this certification standard is available, Department of Commerce adoption of this standard will be the best route to ensuring safely installed small wind systems. Presently, utility-scale wind systems usually are installed in custom engineered systems by licensed electricians, but utility-owned systems are already exempt from Act 63.