by jboullion | Sep 30, 2010 | Uncategorized
From an article by Gregg Hoffman on WisBusiness.com
American Transmission Co. has started a series of public informational meetings on the Badger Coulee Project, a 150-mile, 345 kilowatt transmission line that would run through western Wisconsin.
ATC held sessions in Onalaska in La Crosse County on Monday and in Westby in Vernon County on Tuesday. A list of upcoming sessions can be found at the end of this story.
“We are very early in the process at this point,” said Sarah Justus, who is handling the public outreach for the project. “We are encouraging the public to become involved in the process. We want to get input from the people who live in the area.”
A group of business, labor and renewable energy organizations this week released a letter in support of the evaluation process.
“The multiple benefits of ATC’s proposed transmission line in western Wisconsin – reliability, economics and renewables – make good business sense,” said Phil Prange, president and chief executive officer of the Wisconsin Business Council. “Any time you are presented with a solution that addresses multiple issues, you’ve got to pay attention. I encourage the business community to pay attention and get involved in the development of this project over the next several years.”
ATC bills the project as having multiple benefits. “It will improve reliability of service and upgrade access to electricity,” Justus said. ATC says western Wisconsin needs about $140 million in lower voltage updates, and this new line, with an estimated cost of $425 million, could offset much of that need in addition to providing other benefits.
by jboullion | Sep 28, 2010 | Uncategorized
Commentary
by Michael Vickerman, RENEW Wisconsin
September 27, 2010
One of the abiding pleasures of my job at RENEW Wisconsin is going out into the field to visit renewable energy installations. Many of the systems sprouting across the state owe their existence to state and federal policies that make these systems economically viable to their owners.
In turn, some of those policies owe their existence to RENEW, an advocacy organization that has elevated the Wisconsin renewable energy marketplace from a dreamy aspiration to a thriving marketplace employing hundreds of people and generating millions of dollars a year in local revenues.
Whenever I’m asked to describe our mission, I often say that we act as a catalyst for advancing a sustainable energy future in Wisconsin. Our vision of that future places small, entrepreneurial companies at the center of the transition toward clean, locally available energy resources that do not deplete over time.
RENEW endeavors to steer Wisconsin along this path through policy mechanisms that help renewable energy businesses establish themselves in an economy that for many decades has operated almost exclusively on fossil energy. Because of that dependence on concentrated energy sources like coal, natural gas and liquid hydrocarbons, which are still priced very cheaply, the shift to renewable energy has been an uphill battle. The incumbent energy sources are well-entrenched and will not hesitate to expend significant political capital to block policy initiatives aimed at putting renewable energy on a more equal playing field. Continued . . .
by jboullion | Sep 24, 2010 | Uncategorized
From the Web site of City Utilities of Richland Center:
Electric customers in Richland Center are benefitting from a new application of solar power in the city. The community-owned utility recently installed an array of solar photovoltaic (PV) panels at City Hall.
City Utilities of Richland Center installed three dual axis trackers with a total output of 8.64 kilowatts, providing approximately 14,500 kilowatt-hours of emissions-free electricity each year.
“It is our objective to be a model for the use of renewable energy,” said Commission President Rod Perry. “By supporting community-wide renewable projects, City Utilities is illustrating the practical use of renewable energy and enticing customers to do the same.”
Solar PV systems collect energy from sunlight and convert it into electricity, providing renewable, emissions-free energy. These highly visible projects demonstrate the technology, while educating the community on their benefits, operation and performance.
City Utilities pursued various grant opportunities, including funding from its power supplier WPPI Energy, to help fund the purchase and installation of the solar PV systems. The project is contracted through H&H Solar Energy of Madison and became operational in September 2008.
“We’re working hard to lead by example,” said Perry. “The use of renewable energy is a simple step anyone can take to help create a cleaner energy future.”
The project
Three 2.88 kW dual-axis trackers
14,220 kWh per year
PV panels: Kyocera KD180
Installed by H & H Solar Energy Services
Output detail
by jboullion | Sep 22, 2010 | Uncategorized
From a news release issued by Governor Jim Doyle:
CUBA CITY – Governor Jim Doyle today announced up to $1,506,000 in assistance to Wausaukee Composites and Grant County to support the company’s efforts to create 200 full-time jobs. The funding comes from the Community Development Block Grant for Economic Development program overseen by the Department of Commerce.
“My top priority this year has been to help move companies and communities forward and create good-paying jobs for our citizens,” said Governor Doyle. “I’m pleased that we could help Wausaukee Composites expand its business and bring these new jobs to Grant County.”
Wausaukee Composites will use the state funding to build and equip an addition to their Cuba City facility. The company has committed to creating 200 new full-time positions to manufacture wind turbine components. The total project cost is $5,023,000.
Wausaukee Composites manufactures highly engineered composite components for original equipment manufacturers in the construction equipment, agricultural equipment, mass transportation, wind energy, medical imaging, commercial site furnishings, therapeutic systems, corrosion-resistant materials handling and recreation industries. They are a subsidiary of Sintex Industries, headquartered in India, with textile and structural plastics plants on four continents.
by jboullion | Sep 17, 2010 | Uncategorized
From a blog post by Tom Content of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:
The Sierra Club on Thursday [September 9, 2010] filed suit in federal court claiming that two major coal-fired power plants operated by Wisconsin Power & Light Co. were upgraded over the years without installing modern pollution controls required by the Clean Air Act.
The suit charges the Madison utility made modifications to its Nelson Dewey power plant in Cassville in southwestern Wisconsin and its Columbia power plant near Portage without adding pollution controls. WP&L is a subsidiary of Alliant Energy Corp., Madison.
The suit is the latest in a series of Sierra Club suits targeting pollution from coal-fired power plants across Wisconsin.
Another suit by the environmental group and Clean Wisconsin has targeted air pollution from the We Energies Valley power plant in Milwaukee’s Menomonee Valley. Sierra Club has also filed suit over pollution by coal plants operated by Dairyland Power Cooperative of La Crosse and Wisconsin Public Service Corp. of Green Bay.
“The pattern here is that our aging fleet of coal plants can’t even meet current standards, so it sets us up for making a choice about whether we should be throwing good money after bad” to retrofit coal plants to meet emerging, stricter standards, said Jennifer Feyerherm of the Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal campaign.
WP&L has proposed adding pollution controls at the Columbia power plant, in an investment projected to cost $627 million. The state Public Service Commission has yet to rule on that proposal, and the Sierra Club is challenging that the controls proposed don’t go far enough to reduce air emissions from Columbia.
“We’re disappointed that the Sierra Club has opted for this approach,” utility spokesman Scott Reigstad said of Sierra Club’s suit. “We disagree with the claims the Sierra Club is making in its complaint. We intend to vigorously defend against the action.”
The court actions come as the state Public Service Commission is studying whether to shut down aging coal-fired power plants in Wisconsin because of the state’s power glut, and as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is commencing regulation of coal plants to curb emissions of carbon dioxide as well as a series of other pollutants.
