by jboullion | Oct 29, 2009 | Uncategorized
From a news release issued by Governor Jim Doyle:
MADISON—Governor Jim Doyle [on Tuesday] announced the release to Wisconsin of over $97 million in federal funds for the Low-Income Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). The funding released today is three quarters of the estimated $130 million in LIHEAP funding Wisconsin is expected to receive this year. . .
The funds released today will be used for the Wisconsin Home Energy Assistance Program (WHEAP), which provides financial assistance to low-income residents who may struggle to pay utility bills this winter. WHEAP is part of the state’s comprehensive Home Energy Plus program which provides assistance with emergency energy needs, emergency furnace repairs, conservation service and assistance weatherizing low-income households.
Due to recent changes in program eligibility, many more households across the state may be eligible for heating assistance this winter. Effective with the beginning of the 2009-2010 heating season, the income eligibility limit for WHEAP and Weatherization has increased from 150% of the federal poverty level to 60% of the State’s Median Income. . . .
Payments under these programs depend upon household size, income level, and home energy costs. A family of four, with an annual income of $45,067 or less may be eligible for energy assistance.
To receive more information about how to apply for the Wisconsin Home Energy Assistance Program, call the Home Energy Plus hotline at 866-432-8947, or visit www.homeenergyplus.wi.gov.
by jboullion | Oct 28, 2009 | Uncategorized
From a news release issued by Governor Jim Doyle:
MADISON – Governor Doyle announced today that $500,000 in funds from the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) program are available to communities working toward energy independence. The grants are part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and will help communities create a plan to reach the Governor’s “25×25” goal of generating 25 percent of the state’s electricity and transportation fuels from renewable resources by the year 2025.
“Local communities are critical leaders in the state’s efforts to work toward energy independence,” Governor Doyle said. “The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act grants will build on local leadership and invest in a clean energy future that will clean our air and water, create jobs, and save money for our citizens.”
The “25×25” Plan will help Energy Independent Communities understand their community’s overall energy consumption and create a plan to address opportunities in energy conservation, energy efficiency and renewable energy sources.
The Wisconsin Energy Independent (EI) Community Partnership is the first of its kind in the nation and is an integral part of Clean Energy Wisconsin, Governor Doyle’s plan to move Wisconsin toward energy independence. The partnership includes counties, cities, villages, towns, tribes, and schools in the state that have committed to Governor Doyle’s “25×25” challenge. Currently, there are over 100 EI Communities, with 10 EI Pilots working on the inaugural “25×25” Plan.
Governor Doyle and the Wisconsin Office of Energy Independence encourage communities to apply for the “25×25” Plan Grant. Communities that join the EI Community Partnership before the December 15, 2009 deadline are eligible to apply. To access the application go to: http://energyindependence.wi.gov/docview.asp?docid=18164&locid=160
by jboullion | Oct 27, 2009 | Uncategorized
From a column by Margaret Krome in The Capital Times:
President Obama toured renewable energy research facilities recently at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He wanted to drive home the point that homegrown, low-carbon energy sources and energy conservation strategies are crucial to steer the planet toward a safer climate and the nation toward greater energy security. In addition, policy based on renewable energy and conservation creates jobs.
The president could just as well have toured Wisconsin to make his point. Wisconsin’s researchers are forging ahead on many fronts, such as ways to grow biomass crops in a sustainable manner; economically viable processes to convert biomass into transportation fuels; and the siting, processing, and transportation protocols associated with using biomass for heat and power. Given the state’s large biomass capacity in forests and crops like switchgrass, researchers are making an investment in the state’s future.
But more is happening. The Legislature will soon consider recommendations from the Governor’s Global Warming Task Force, some of which offer opportunities for new jobs across the state, in small towns as well as cities. Inevitably, vested interests always fight even obviously necessary change. So it should surprise nobody when coal companies and others who depend on fossil fuels mount campaigns to oppose renewable energy policies. But many objections are borne of fear and misinformation.
For example, some farm groups express concerns about the low carbon fuel standard, a policy that is actually likely to benefit Wisconsin’s farmers. This policy uses a market mechanism to require fuel providers to reduce the total carbon content of fuels sold in the state. Rather than deprive farmers of fuels currently available, it would diversify farmers’ fuel options and reduce volatility. And because the state does not produce fossil fuels but does produce biomass-based energy, this policy plays to the state’s agricultural strengths.
Another policy being considered that supports farmers and rural communities as well as municipalities is the renewable energy buyback program. To meet demand for renewable energy, Wisconsin needs many people to become small-scale renewable energy producers. Some have already done so by installing wind turbines, methane digesters, or solar panels and selling the extra energy back into the grid. But the amount these small-scale producers get paid varies greatly, often making that energy unprofitable to produce.
by jboullion | Oct 26, 2009 | Uncategorized
From an article by Dee J. Hall in the La Crosse Tribune:
When state Department of Natural Resources Secretary Scott Hassett resigned suddenly in the summer of 2007, Gov. Jim Doyle’s office announced that Hassett was leaving to “write, travel and consult on environmental and regulatory issues.”
Privately, however, Hassett told a different story: That Doyle, a fellow Democrat, had forced him out of the top spot at the DNR because of the agency’s insistence that the state clean up UW-Madison’s coal-burning Charter Street heating plant – a move now expected to cost Wisconsin more than $200 million.
Hassett has told at least two former top DNR officials that he was forced to resign and one
of the reasons was the Charter Street enforcement action, which pitted two state agencies against one another in a conflict that hit close to the governor’s office.
“There was no doubt in my mind that he (Hassett) was forced out,” said George Meyer, DNR secretary from 1993 to 2001, recounting a conversation he had with Hassett at Hassett’s Lake Mills-area home in March. Meyer said Hassett told him he believed the enforcement action against the plant was a key reason for his ouster.
Tom Thoresen, retired deputy chief conservation warden for the DNR, said Hassett told him a similar story in a phone conversation earlier this month.
Thoresen said he called Hassett to thank him for helping push for a bill that would take away the power of the governor to appoint the DNR secretary and return that authority to the Natural Resources Board. Four former DNR secretaries, including Hassett and Meyer, signed a letter last month backing Assembly Bill 138.
“I did talk to Scott Hassett … thanking him for his signing on to the DNR letter to legislators,” Thoresen said. “Scott told me that yes, Charter Street was part of the reason for his being let go.”
Doyle spokesman Lee Sensenbrenner declined to answer directly whether Hassett, and his deputy, Mary Schlaefer, were forced out. He pointed to a July 20, 2007, news release that implied Hassett was resigning because of overwork after four and a half years on the job.
“Anyone who claims that Charter Street is the reason for Scott Hassett’s departure is a liar,” Sensenbrenner said in a statement.
by jboullion | Oct 22, 2009 | Uncategorized
From a news release issued by Govenor Jim Doyle:
MADISON – Governor Jim Doyle today announced over 100 communities have joined the Wisconsin Energy Independent Community Partnership. The communities, which come from every region of Wisconsin, have pledged to work toward Governor Doyle’s “25×25” goal of generating 25 percent of the state’s electricity and transportation fuels from renewable resources by the year 2025.
“I’m pleased that communities across Wisconsin have accepted my clean energy challenges head on,” Governor Doyle said. “Together we are making great strides toward energy policies that create jobs, clean our air and water, and save us money. I look forward to working with Energy Independent Communities as we continue Wisconsin’s clean energy leadership.”
The Wisconsin Energy Independent (EI) Community Partnership is the first of its kind in the nation and is an integral part of Clean Energy Wisconsin, Governor Doyle’s plan to move Wisconsin toward energy independence. The plan details strategies to move Wisconsin forward to promote renewable energy, create new jobs, increase energy security, and improve the environment.
The community partnership, which is led by the Wisconsin Office of Energy Independence, helps individual communities take advantage of their unique resources and develop new strategies to foster innovative clean energy solutions.
New members of the Energy Independent Community Partnership include: City of Two Rivers in Manitowoc County, City of West Allis in Milwaukee County, City of New London in Outagamie County, Village of Stratford in Marathon County, City of Whitewater in Walworth County, City of Jefferson in Jefferson County, Village of Oxford in Marquette County and Iowa County.
