by jboullion | Feb 14, 2013 | Uncategorized
Today, the Public Service Commission denied the Highland Wind Farm application. This is unbelievable, and disappointing. See the press release below:
For Immediate Release
February 14, 2013
Contact: Kristin Ruesch or Matt Pagel, 608-266-9600
Kristin.Ruesch@wisconsin.gov or Matt.Pagel@wisconsin.gov
PSC Issues Decision on Highland Wind Farm Application
MADISON – Today the members of the Public Service Commission decided, on a 2-1 vote, to deny an application of Highland Wind Farm, LLC, for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity to construct a 102.5 Megawatt (MW) Wind Electric Facility in the Towns of Forest and Cylon in St. Croix County.
The majority commissioners determined a clearer record and a better demonstration that noise from the wind turbines would not exceed Commission standards was needed before making a decision to grant a CPCN. Highland Wind Farm, LLC, will be able to reapply to the Commission if an improvement to modeling and additional information is presented in a subsequent application.
Background Information on the Application
In December of 2011, Highland Wind Farm, LLC, filed an application with the Commission for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN) to construct a new wind electric generation facility. The project would have included the construction of up to 44 wind turbines, with an electric generating capacity of up to 102.5 megawatts.
Since the application was received, the Commission granted requests to intervene in the proceeding to Clean Wisconsin, Forest Voice, Inc., RENEW Wisconsin, and the Town of Forest, and granted intervenor compensation requests to Clean Wisconsin and Forest Voice. The Commission held multiple technical hearings in Madison; held public hearings in the project area, and accepted expert and public comments online and via U.S. mail. All documents, testimony, and comments submitted in the proceeding are available to the public at the PSC web site, http://psc.wi.gov, by entering docket number 2535-CE-100 in the Electronic Regulatory Filing System.
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by jboullion | Feb 14, 2013 | Uncategorized
Today, the Public Service Commission denied the Highland Wind Farm application. This is unbelievable, and disappointing. See the press release below:
For Immediate Release
February 14, 2013
Contact: Kristin Ruesch or Matt Pagel, 608-266-9600
Kristin.Ruesch@wisconsin.gov or Matt.Pagel@wisconsin.gov
PSC Issues Decision on Highland Wind Farm Application
MADISON – Today the members of the Public Service Commission decided, on a 2-1 vote, to deny an application of Highland Wind Farm, LLC, for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity to construct a 102.5 Megawatt (MW) Wind Electric Facility in the Towns of Forest and Cylon in St. Croix County.
The majority commissioners determined a clearer record and a better demonstration that noise from the wind turbines would not exceed Commission standards was needed before making a decision to grant a CPCN. Highland Wind Farm, LLC, will be able to reapply to the Commission if an improvement to modeling and additional information is presented in a subsequent application.
Background Information on the Application
In December of 2011, Highland Wind Farm, LLC, filed an application with the Commission for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN) to construct a new wind electric generation facility. The project would have included the construction of up to 44 wind turbines, with an electric generating capacity of up to 102.5 megawatts.
Since the application was received, the Commission granted requests to intervene in the proceeding to Clean Wisconsin, Forest Voice, Inc., RENEW Wisconsin, and the Town of Forest, and granted intervenor compensation requests to Clean Wisconsin and Forest Voice. The Commission held multiple technical hearings in Madison; held public hearings in the project area, and accepted expert and public comments online and via U.S. mail. All documents, testimony, and comments submitted in the proceeding are available to the public at the PSC web site, http://psc.wi.gov, by entering docket number 2535-CE-100 in the Electronic Regulatory Filing System.
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by jboullion | Feb 14, 2013 | Uncategorized
Today, the Public Service Commission denied the Highland Wind Farm application. This is unbelievable, and disappointing. See the press release below:
For Immediate Release
February 14, 2013
Contact: Kristin Ruesch or Matt Pagel, 608-266-9600
Kristin.Ruesch@wisconsin.gov or Matt.Pagel@wisconsin.gov
PSC Issues Decision on Highland Wind Farm Application
MADISON – Today the members of the Public Service Commission decided, on a 2-1 vote, to deny an application of Highland Wind Farm, LLC, for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity to construct a 102.5 Megawatt (MW) Wind Electric Facility in the Towns of Forest and Cylon in St. Croix County.
The majority commissioners determined a clearer record and a better demonstration that noise from the wind turbines would not exceed Commission standards was needed before making a decision to grant a CPCN. Highland Wind Farm, LLC, will be able to reapply to the Commission if an improvement to modeling and additional information is presented in a subsequent application.
Background Information on the Application
In December of 2011, Highland Wind Farm, LLC, filed an application with the Commission for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN) to construct a new wind electric generation facility. The project would have included the construction of up to 44 wind turbines, with an electric generating capacity of up to 102.5 megawatts.
Since the application was received, the Commission granted requests to intervene in the proceeding to Clean Wisconsin, Forest Voice, Inc., RENEW Wisconsin, and the Town of Forest, and granted intervenor compensation requests to Clean Wisconsin and Forest Voice. The Commission held multiple technical hearings in Madison; held public hearings in the project area, and accepted expert and public comments online and via U.S. mail. All documents, testimony, and comments submitted in the proceeding are available to the public at the PSC web site, http://psc.wi.gov, by entering docket number 2535-CE-100 in the Electronic Regulatory Filing System.
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by jboullion | Feb 8, 2013 | Uncategorized
Update: 2/14/13 Michael Vickerman was interviewed on this topic by Thomas Content of the Journal Sentinel. Read his comments here.
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This article by Richard Ryman in the Green Bay Press Gazette explains that area legislatures are trying to count nuclear energy as renewable energy… A truly unacceptable concept. Take action through Clean Wisconsin, and tell your legislator that this is wrong:
A bill to make nuclear energy produced in Wisconsin count toward the state’s renewable energy standard was written with Kewaunee Power Station in mind, but likely won’t keep that plant from closing this spring.
Dominion Resources Inc. has said it will shut down the one-reactor power plant on the shore of Lake Michigan in the spring because it could not sell it and cannot operate it profitably. Kewaunee’s power-purchase agreements with Wisconsin Public Service Corp. and Alliant Energy expire in December 2013, leaving the plant without a sure source of revenue.
A new agreement could not be reached because natural gas-generated electricity is cheaper than nuclear-generated power. The lack of an agreement made the plant unattractive to potential buyers.
Reps. Andre Jacque, R-De Pere, Garey Bies, R-Sister Bay, and Paul Tittl, R-Manitowoc, drafted the bill, called LRB-0527, and are seeking co-sponsors.
As written, the bill would apply only to Kewaunee Power Station now, though it could apply to Point Beach Nuclear Plant or a new nuclear plant — none are planned — in the future. Point Beach has contracts to sell electricity that expire in 2030 for Unit 1 and 2033 for Unit 2 and would be ineligible for the bill’s benefits until those contracts expire.
“It is forward looking,” Jacque said. “If we had passed this legislation five years ago, in my opinion, we wouldn’t be seeing Kewaunee close.”
As long as natural gas prices remain at historically low levels, the tradeable resource credits created by the bill would not be enough to make nuclear competitive. Also, most Wisconsin utilities are near or have met their renewable-energy requirements.
“With the current environment of inexpensive natural gas, even though well intentioned, this bill may not have much impact,” said Kerry Spees, spokesman for Wisconsin Public Service Corp. “However, the current environment could change. We support the bill’s efforts to create jobs.”
Jacque said natural gas likely will not always be so inexpensive.
“There is a whole lot of uncertainty regarding fracking. It depends on what the EPA decides to do,” he said. “(Natural gas) is a bubble, just like any number of bubbles can occur.”
Hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking,” is the process of drilling and injecting fluid into the ground at a high pressure to fracture shale rocks to release natural gas inside. Many environmental groups oppose fracking.
The bill does not reclassify nuclear power as renewable energy. It adds an “advanced energy” category to the ways in which utilities can meet their mandated requirements. Utilities are required to have 10 percent of their electricity generated by renewable sources by 2015.
Nuclear power was not included in the renewable energy standards originally, but Jacque said he’s heard no objections to his proposal so far from environmental groups.
Read on…
Take action and email your legislatures through Clean Wisconsin.
by jboullion | Feb 1, 2013 | Uncategorized
Since early 20212, RENEW Wisconsin has been advocating for Clean Energy Choice policy, and we were thrilled to find this piece in the La Crosse Tribune from Scott Karel of the Wisconsin Farmers Union:
Wisconsin citizens have only have two ways to purchase energy for their homes or businesses: either they buy it from the local electric utility or they pay to have their own alternative energy sources installed on their property.
 |
Scott Karel is a government relations
associate for Wisconsin Farmers Union |
This effectively gives utility companies a monopoly because most people don’t have the disposable income to install such devices on their own.
However, with a little help from state legislators, Wisconsin residents could benefit from more competition in this market while at the same time producing green energy for their own personal consumption.
Third-party owned renewable-energy systems have become an effective method to promote the growth and production of green energy at no additional cost to ratepayers or taxpayers. This system, known as “clean energy choice,” allows a third party to enter into a contract with a farmer, homeowner or business to lease their roof space.
In return, the third-party company will install, operate and maintain, at no cost to the landowner, a solar panel, manure digester, wind turbine or other renewable energy system on their property. The energy from these systems either passes directly to the customer or is sold to the local utility.
Clean energy choice systems are a benefit to all Wisconsin residents for a variety of reasons. For the customers who enter into these agreements, they are able to lock in their utility rates at a fixed amount for the length of the contract, which is typically anywhere from 10 to 20 years.
A fixed energy rate is one of the main reasons that Kohl’s department stores chose to install solar panels on around 100 of its stores located in states that expressly allow third-party ownership of renewable energy systems.
Clean energy choice also creates more competition in the energy market and promotes renewable energy without using government subsidies.
Finally, allowing third-party energy agreements will support the state’s economy by creating more business for the estimated 135 companies in Wisconsin that participate in the solar market.
Currently, laws in more than 20 states — including Illinois, Michigan and Ohio — specifically allow third-party sale of renewable energy to their customers. However, in about 20 other states, including Wisconsin, the law is unclear about whether this type of agreement is allowable.
Third-party energy companies will not attempt to enter into contracts with landowners until there is clarification on this law for fear of being regulated as a public utility.
We think that the energy certainty provided by these agreements would benefit many farmers in Wisconsin who happen to have plenty of wind or open roof space on their buildings but may not have the extra money to install their own wind turbines or solar panels. No law should prevent customers who want to have access to clean energy simply because they cannot afford to install the system on their own.
If you would like to learn more about the Clean Energy Choice legislation being advanced in the Legislature this year, contact me at skarel@wisconsinfarmersunion.com or 608-234-3741.
Scott Karel is a government relations associate for Wisconsin Farmers Union.
Find the article in it’s original publication on The LaCrosse Tribune here.
by jboullion | Jan 31, 2013 | Uncategorized
Will we see you at the Sustainability Summit? Register by 1/31/13 for the early bird discount.
