RENEW Wisconsin denounces business group’s “fact-free flip-flop” in radio ad on energy bill

IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 21, 2010

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Michael Vickerman
RENEW Wisconsin
608.255.4044
mvickerman@renewwisconsin.org

RENEW denounces WMC’s “fact-free flip-flop” in radio ad on energy bill

RENEW Wisconsin’s Executive Director Michael Vickerman assailed the credibility of a new radio ad launched by Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce (WMC) that characterizes the Clean Energy Jobs Act bill as an unaffordable extravagance.

“WMC executed an astonishing fact-free flip-flop with its claim that the legislation (AB 649/SB 450) would raise an average family’s electricity bill by more than $1,000 a year. What’s astonishing about it that WMC is conveniently forgetting existing ratepayer protections, which it endorsed – and claimed credit for -- when similar legislation passed in 2006,” Vickerman said.

When the state’s current renewable portfolio standard (RPS) was passed (which directed utilities to source 10 percent of their electricity from renewable generation by 2015), WMC ran an article on its website with the headline “’Energy Efficiency and Renewables Act’ Will Protect Ratepayer Dollars.” That article can be accessed at http://www.wmc.org/display.cfm?ID=1256.

The article says that WMC was instrumental in ensuring that “ratepayer groups will have a clear opportunity to seek delays in the implementation of new renewable portfolio standards, should they have an unreasonable effect on electric rates.”

The Clean Energy Job Act bill would continue those ratepayer protections enacted in 2005 Act 141. So far no utility or energy advocacy group has requested an implementation delay under the current renewable energy standard.

In order for an average family’s bill to increase $1,000 a year, according to Vickerman, electric rates would have to double.

“That will never happen because groups like WMC, Citizens Utility Board, and the Wisconsin Industrial Energy Group would intervene aggressively on behalf of their member using the existing ratepayer protections,” Vickerman stated.

Since the adoption of Act 141’s renewable energy requirements, Madison Gas and Electric’s residential ratepayers have seen annual increases of only 0.8 percent through 2009, even though the utility is already in compliance with the 2015 standard, added Vickerman.

“This outrageous claim is just another example of WMC’s decision to lob grenades instead of working constructively to forge a responsible partnership with all parties to create family-supporting jobs in the clean energy sector,” Vickerman said.

“It’s clear that WMC made up its mind to oppose the Clean Energy Jobs Act bill long before its contents were even known to the public,” Vickerman stated.

“There is no more obvious proof of this than WMC’s sponsorship of a so-called study by the Wisconsin Pubic Research Institute (WPRI) that claims that the bill’s provisions to expand renewable energy supplies would cost utilities $16 billion.”

RENEW previously critiqued the WPRI report in a report titled “Think Tank Flunks Renewable Energy Analysis.” (http://renewmediacenter.blogspot.com/2009/12/think-tank-flunks-renewable-energy_22.html)

“WPRI’s assertions demonstrate yet again that if you torture your economic models long enough, they will confess to anything,” Vickerman said.

Builders urge Alliant to offer more work (maybe in Neenah)

From an article by Paul Snyder in The Daily Reporter:

More than 1,000 construction workers lost their latest, best hope when the state rejected the $1.26 billion Nelson Dewey Generating Facility expansion, and now builders want an alternative.

“Especially in the times we’ve got, (losing the Nelson Dewey job) was devastating to the industry for all trades,” said Thomas Fisher, president and business manager of the Wisconsin Laborers’ District Council. “Everything right now is doom and gloom.”

But while opportunities were lost in Cassville’s Nelson Dewey job, they might be found in Neenah. In the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin’s rejection last week of Alliant Energy’s Cassville project, commissioners indicated their preference that the utility instead perform major expansion and conversion work to a Neenah natural gas plant it bought earlier this year.

The alternative first came to light in September when the Citizens Utility Board of Wisconsin and Clean Wisconsin Inc., both opponents of the Nelson Dewey project, said they preferred the Neenah option.

Both groups argued Alliant could convert the offline plant to a more efficient technology using waste heat that escapes through smokestacks to produce additional clean and inexpensive electricity.

Local schools share million-dollar grant to train "green collar" workers

From a story by Jeff Alexander on WBAY-TV (Green Bay):

A plan to create a pipeline of skilled workers in Northeast Wisconsin's energy industry receives a major boost.

A federal grant of nearly one million dollars will help local technical colleges train -- and energy providers hire -- needed workers.

With about one-third of the region's power generation workforce set to retire in the next ten years, the grant announcement comes at the right time.

"As I look to the future," Wisconsin Public Service utility president and CEO Charlie Schrock said, "we're going to need people that know about renewable energy, about the state-of-the-art digital technology, all those things are going to be coming out of these schools."

Both Northeast Wisconsin Technical College and Lakeshore Technical College say the federal grant allows them to expand programs and offer new degrees tied to the energy industry.

At a time when many jobs are being cut in different industries, experts say the energy industry is poised to take off.

"It's the next-generation careers, things have changed and there's some new technologies out there that have different demands on the workforce," Lakeshore Technical College president Michael Lanser said.

Jim Golembeski of the Bay Area Workforce Development Board agreed, "The whole energy industry presents a tremendous opportunity at this time and at this place. People are conscious of it, people are talking about it, and what this grant does more than anything is it builds the educational infrastructure."

The nearly million dollar grant from the U.S Department of Labor allows Lakeshore Tech to launch a Nuclear Technician program. NWTC will offer a two-year Utility Engineering Technician degree.

"We're going to be able to create those utility engineer technicians that are really the ones that do the work, set up the distribution, do the planning no matter what the energy source is," NWTC president Jeffrey Rafn said.

Whether it's nuclear, wind, solar or some other form of renewable energy, it's expected Northeast Wisconsin will need hundreds and hundreds of so-called "green collar" workers in the very near future.

Kaukauna utility bets on solar

From a story by J.E. Espino in the Appleton Post-Crescent:

KAUKAUNA — As the 1000 Islands Environmental Center's naturalist, Debbie Nowak's job is to educate visitors about natural resources and how to conserve them.

With energy costs continuing to rise, Nowak is especially stoked about showing off the solar panel units recently attached to the center's roof. The panels will produce enough energy to save 1000 Islands 30 percent of its average energy costs, estimates Kaukauna Utilities.

"Above and beyond that, it helps to portray more of an environmental message," Nowak said. "People can see that you need electricity to power everything. You can get solar energy and use it to power your entire house or a fraction of your house for even something as simple as your water heater."

The center is one of four sites the utility selected to test solar panel systems. The company will pay for similar projects at Kaukauna High School, its own building and possibly the homes of two employees.

Jim Brown, an energy services representative for the utility, said the utility will activate meters today at the high school and nature center to measure how much energy each system produces. The panel installation is being handled by H&H Electric Co. of Madison.

Photo: A crew from H&H Electric installs a solar electric system on a house just north of Madison.

Read RENEW Wisconsin's newsletter online

RENEW Wisconsin's quarterly newsletter contains the following articles:

+ Solar Water Heating's Day of Superlatives
+ Calumet Voters Strongly Favor Wind
+ Renewable Profiles: Steve and Nancy Sandstrom
+ Wind a No Go in Trempealeau
+ Windpower Projects Near Completion
+ Calendar

You can read the newsletter online in RENEW’s News and Views.

Doyle's State of State highlights energy

From Governor Doyle's State of the State address on January 23:

Creating Renewable Energy

We have set Wisconsin on the right course to seize new economic opportunities and lead our nation’s response to one of the most critical challenges of our time…

Our addiction to foreign oil is compromising our national security, paralyzing our economy, and melting the polar ice caps.

The global threat of climate change is undeniable. Temperatures across the Northern Hemisphere have reached their warmest point in over two thousand years.

A barrel of oil has topped $100… and just look at the price of gasoline at the pump – nearly double what it was just five years ago.

The oil companies don’t care. They’re making the biggest profits in history.

Our country is sending over a billion dollars a week in oil payments to the Middle East. Just imagine if we were investing that kind of money right here in Wisconsin.

Energy Accomplishments

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – we should depend more on the Midwest and less on the Mideast, and today we are.

Since I became Governor, we’ve worked together to increase production of Wisconsin-made ethanol from zero gallons to half a billion gallons per year.

Last fall, I brought governors from across the Midwest together in Milwaukee to chart a new energy direction for our region and our world.

At the University of Wisconsin-Madison we are launching the Great Lakes BioEnergy Research Center bringing together researchers from five other universities across the country.

Our nation’s dependence on foreign oil must end, but drilling our way out of this crisis is not the answer. We must invent and innovate our way to a cleaner, safer energy future.

…and tonight, from generating wind power in Fond du Lac to harnessing the power of biomass in Rice Lake, Wisconsin is ready to lead the way.

Energy Independence Fund

Tonight we’ll launch an aggressive new strategy to reduce the pollution that causes global warming and grow Wisconsin’s economy – the Wisconsin Energy Independence Fund – a major new investment to make Wisconsin a world leader in renewable energy and homegrown power.

Over the next 10 years Wisconsin will invest $150 million to help our businesses, our farmers, our foresters, and our manufacturers produce and promote renewable energy.

Our strong manufacturing base and rich agricultural industries, along with the wealth of resources in our vast northern forests and world-leading research universities, position Wisconsin to become the Saudi Arabia of renewable energy.

From manufacturing wind turbines and solar panels to retro-fitting fuel pumps and exploring the latest clean technologies, we will seize green opportunities and create good jobs for our citizens.

But we won’t stop there.

Renewable Fuel Initiative

Tonight we’ll launch a new campaign to increase the availability of renewable fuel by 1 billion gallons.

First we’ll provide new tax credits for biodiesel fuel producers and add 400 new renewable fuel pumps to our roads.

Second let’s pass a renewable fuel standard sponsored by Senator Kreitlow and Representative Suder to require oil companies to provide renewable fuel for our consumers.

Energy Efficiency

Energy costs continue to rise and Wisconsin families deserve relief. Over the next 18 months, we will make another historic investment – $95 million – to help save families and businesses over half a billion dollars over the next decade.

UW-Green Bay seeks return to Eco-U

From an article by Sean Ryan in The Daily Reporter:

In an attempt to reclaim some of its 1960s glory as Eco-U, the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay is going to try heating its buildings with biodiesel.

The college was one of four UW campuses that Gov. Jim Doyle wanted to become energy independent — meaning it doesn’t pull any power from outside utilities — by 2012.

The idea of burning biodiesel rather than natural gas in the boiler that heats the university’s buildings is one part of that broader effort, said John Katers, associate professor of natural and applied sciences at UW-Green Bay. And if it succeeds, the university might get the same kind of attention it received in the 1960s, when Harpers magazine dubbed it Eco-U for the university’s environmental education programs, Katers said.

Katers also serves on the Operations Committee of the Focus on Energy Renewable Energy Program.

Governor Doyle Proclaims October Energy Awareness Month in Wisconsin

MADISON – Governor Jim Doyle proclaimed October 2007 Wisconsin Energy Awareness Month, highlighting resources that are available across the state to help citizens, businesses, and local governments become more energy efficient.

“Wisconsin has the potential to lead the country to energy independence,” Governor Doyle said. “From our farms and fields, to our strong advanced manufacturing sector, to the research and innovation at our businesses and universities, Wisconsin is poised to turn these resources into a powerful new industry and high-paying jobs, and lead the way on energy independence.”

In July 2006, Governor Doyle announced Wisconsin’s “Declaration of Energy Independence” and this year signed Executive Order 192, creating the Wisconsin Office of Energy Independence (OEI). OEI is leading the state’s effort to generate 25 percent of the state’s electricity and transportation fuels from renewable resources by 2025, capture 10 percent of the emerging bioindustry and renewable energy market by 2030, and facilitate groundbreaking bioenergy research and innovation in Wisconsin.

The Public Service Commission leads the effort on behalf of Governor Doyle to educate citizens on the opportunities available to them through the Wisconsin Focus on Energy program. Focus on Energy is the award-winning energy efficiency program that shows people in Wisconsin how they can meet their energy-saving needs. This program alone has saved enough energy to replace 2.3 million barrels of imported oil, the equivalent of 97 million gallons. Consumers can visit www.focusonenergy.com to learn how they can upgrade their homes or businesses.

Wisconsin’s Department of Administration sets the standard for state facilities to save energy dollars, updating over 30 Wisconsin-owned buildings to improve energy management and demand. A recently completed upgrade of incandescent lights to compact fluorescent fixtures in the Capitol is saving enough energy to light over 30 homes for one year.

Without a state budget, Wisconsin’s ability to harness resources and seize opportunities to achieve energy independence is stalled. The Legislature must continue working together, day and night, continue making compromises, and reach an agreement that keeps Wisconsin on track to lead the way on energy independence.
The Governor’s announcement parallels national energy awareness programs that recognize the importance of energy efficiency and renewable energy. Energy Awareness Month is a national campaign to recognize energy efficiency as an important tool in reducing the use of petroleum.
A copy of the proclamation is available at: http://www.wisgov.state.wi.us/docview.asp?docid=12141.

Failure to Address Energy Anxiety Could Derail Global Warming Policies, Survey Finds

According to a new survey on global warming released by the Nathan Cummings Foundation and the Breakthrough Institute people are more concerned about the price of gas and electricity than they are about global warming. However, it also found support for climate-change solutions that are centered on achieving energy independence, reducing the cost of clean energy, and creating new jobs.

The Nathan Cummings Foundation Global Warming Survey (41 pages, PDF) found that global warming continues to rank low as a priority for Americans, who continue to be extremely anxious about energy costs. Moreover, messages about the potential catastrophic effects of global warming do not increase support for government action. Of the major global warming policy proposals that have been advanced, investment in clean technology is the most popular. The survey followed a review of public opinion on energy and global warming released earlier this summer, which found that voters consistently rate energy costs as a higher concern than global warming and resist policies that would increase the cost of electricity and gasoline. The latest survey confirmed the earlier analysis, with global warming ranked last among the sixteen issues tested.

The survey also divided the sample to observe the effects of various "psychological primes" on global warming public opinion, including using specific consequences of global warming expressed by the environmental community, such as the Academy Award-winning documentary An Inconvenient Truth. Telling voters about these consequences did not increase their desire to take action on global warming.

While voters expressed initial support for a variety of potential government actions — with support for an "Apollo-type" investment strategy scoring the highest, referring to the 1960s program that placed man on the moon — when told of the potential of such programs, support dropped precipitiously. Only the Apollo-type investment proposal retained support from a majority of voters.

"This poll demonstrates that getting the policy right means getting the politics right," said Lance Lindblom, president of the Cummings Foundation. "Elegant policy prescriptions that cannot generate the political support necessary won't do anything to effectively address the challenges of global climate change."
“New Poll Finds Hurdles, Opportunity on Global Warming.” Nathan Cummings Foundation Press Release 9/26/07.