by jboullion | Jun 9, 2010 | Uncategorized
From an article by Kevin Murphy in the Wausau Daily Herald:
MADISON — D.C. Everest Area School District wants to be more involved in decision-making on a proposed $250 million biomass power plant planned in Rothschild.
In a letter to the Wisconsin Public Service Commission dated Monday, Milwaukee attorney William Mulligan asked that the district be granted “intervenor” status, which would allow district representatives to see all communications in the case.
In her affidavit filed with the PSC, Superintendent Kristine Gilmore said the district should be involved in the case because it is obligated to protect the health and safety of its 5,702 students, 720 teachers and staff in 11 schools.
“Rothschild Elementary School is within one half mile and D.C. Everest Junior High School is within one mile of the site of the biomass-fired cogeneration plant Wisconsin Electric Power Company proposes to build in Rothschild,” she wrote in the affidavit.
by jboullion | Jun 8, 2010 | Uncategorized
From an article in the Stevens Point Journal:
Volunteer program: Midwest Renewable Energy Association’s 21st annual Energy Fair
Volunteer spotlight: The qualities that define a strong community are different to everyone. For some, a strong community means healthy, happy children. For others, it means a population of people who can read and write well. And for others, it means nurturing the environment that provides a home for us all. There are kind and dedicated volunteers throughout our county who work to build up all of these strengths and more. Ed Lemar is one of these volunteers.
Lemar has created a life in Portage County with his wife and 2-year-old daughter. Lemar is a local artist, musician and playwright who also sells artisan cheese at Wisconsin farmers markets. When Lemar is not busy with one of these endeavors, he volunteers his time to the Midwest Renewable Energy Association, especially for its annual Energy Fair.
Each year, the MREA Energy Fair transforms rural central Wisconsin into the global hot spot for renewable energy education. The nation’s longest running energy education event brings people from nearly every state in the United States and several countries around the world to learn, connect with others and ready them for action at home. With more than 23,000 attendees, the Energy Fair relies on a team of 400 dedicated volunteers throughout the week to make it possible.
From June 14 through the 21, the MREA needs volunteers to help with set up before the fair, and take down after the fair, as well as help with hospitality, sales, grounds crew, traffic control and other tasks. Volunteers are welcome each day to help at the Midwest Renewable Energy Association’s ReNew the Earth Institute in Custer.
by jboullion | Jun 7, 2010 | Uncategorized
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by jboullion | Jun 3, 2010 | Uncategorized
From an article by Tom Content in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:
Wisconsin power projects spark questions about emissions from biomass vs. fossil fuels
How green can the energy produced by a biomass power plant be if it releases carbon dioxide into the air just like a coal or natural gas-fueled plant?
That’s the question being raised about biomass projects, including one proposed by We Energies in Rothschild and another Xcel Energy Corp. is considering in Ashland.
“You can’t assume that biomass is carbon-neutral. It depends on how many trees you plant and how fast they grow, and all sorts of variables,” said Katie Nekola, energy program director at the conservation group Clean Wisconsin. “It’s right to look at it case by case to see exactly what the carbon balance is going to be for any plant. . . .”
Milwaukee-based We Energies is proposing a $255 million, 50-megawatt power plant at the Domtar Corp. paper mill in Rothschild. Some residents in Rothschild, south of Wausau, have objected to the project because of concerns about air pollution that would be released by a new power plant located not far from a $770 million coal-fired power plant in Weston and south of Rothschild.
The utility said it proposed the biomass project as a way to help it comply with Wisconsin’s renewable power mandate because it can generate electricity around the clock, unlike a wind farm. The project would supply steam to Domtar’s paper mill and create up to 150 jobs, the utility said.
Critics call for a review
Critics of the project are asking the state Public Service Commission and Department of Natural Resources to do a full environmental review of the project.
A detailed review is not required and was not performed for the proposed Xcel Energy biomass plant in Ashland.
The agencies have not decided whether the review, known as an environmental impact statement, will be done for the We Energies project.
“Stop this biomass project now, please,” Rebecca Simms of Rothschild said in a public comment filed with the state. “Biomass should no longer be considered an alternative to fossil fuels and should no longer be considered carbon-neutral, because it is not.”
In a filing last week in response to an inquiry by state regulators, We Energies disclosed that carbon dioxide, or CO2, emissions from the Rothschild plant would be about 590,000 tons a year.
The utility says that will be offset by the replanting of trees in the forest that will absorb carbon dioxide. . . .
In Madison, the state of Wisconsin has proposed a $250 million biomass and natural gas plant to replace a coal-fired plant that serves the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
In Ashland, Xcel Energy would replace a coal-fired power plant with a biomass gasifier. The status of that project is uncertain, however, after the utility’s cost estimate for the project ballooned by nearly 37% to $79.5 million.
by jboullion | Jun 2, 2010 | Uncategorized
From a news release issued by WPS:
Green Bay, WI – Wisconsin Public Service Corporation (WPS) recently received approval from the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin to begin a pilot program to purchase electricity generated from agricultural biogas. In the pilot program, WPS will accept up to 10,000 kilowatts generated from new anaerobic digester operations (no more than 2,000 kilowatts from a single generator) within its service territory. The rate will encourage the development of this renewable resource which will allow WPS to better understand the costs and benefits associated with this type of power purchase, and at the same time provide environmental benefits.
Farmers interested in the program must sign a contract with WPS prior to January 1, 2013.
“Increasing the number of renewable resources is unquestionably good for the environment,” said Dennis Derricks, WPS Director of Electric Regulatory Policy. “This tariff is another way to partner with our agricultural customers to find solutions the benefit both parties.” Digesters help the farmers with solutions to dealing with vast amounts of waste, while the utility receives another source of renewable energy.
Derricks said WPS has several current digester operations within its territory and this new rate offers “another pricing option specifically for these types of operations.” Derricks said the existing contracts were fitted under tariffs not specifically designed for this application.
Farm digester operations sell power to the utility and then buy back what they need at regular rates for farm use.
The new rate is called PG-BioGas, is offered until December 31, 2012 (or until fully subscribed: 10 MW) and is in effect now. The maximum project cap is 2 MW, with an on-peak rate of approx. $0.106/kWh, an off-peak rate of approx. $0.061/kWh, which yields an effective (24 hour) rate of $0.0807/kWh. All environmental attributes from generation purchased under this rate will be claimed by WPS.
