Clean energy, efficiency key to America’s (and Montana’s) future

I represent a group dedicated to promoting renewable energy in Montana. We take issue with a June 16 guest opinion "Don’t waste money on renewable energy."

By DAVID RYAN
Montana Renewable Energy Association

Because the United States imports over half its oil we must find reliable, domestic sources of energy. Health concerns demand that we use clean energy.

Efficiency is the cheapest, cleanest and most reliable energy. High-efficiency equipment is available, and we should install it whenever replacing older, less efficient equipment.

Wind, solar and biomass energy are renewable, clean and local. These can contribute significantly to a reliable energy supply. Denmark and northern Germany supply over 20 percent of their electricity needs with wind. One reason they have so much wind power installed is they have public policy encouraging clean generation.

Renewable portfolio standards (RPS) are a part of this policy. According to a 2001 study done by the Energy Information Administration of the U.S. Department of Energy, a 20 percent RPS would cost the same as business as usual through 2006, would result in a 0.7 percent increase in energy prices by 2010, and would result in lower prices by 2020.
Colorado policy

In 2001, the Colorado PUC ordered Xcel Energy (formerly Public Service Company of Colorado) to add wind power to its supply because the cost of wind power is cheaper than power generated using natural gas if the gas is more than $3.50 per MCF (thousand cubic feet). According to the EIA, the average gas price to utilities in 2001 was $3.77 per MCF. Gas futures were trading recently (June 19, 2003) on the New York Mercantile exchange at over $6.00 per MCF. Since 1978, the federal government has spent $11 billion of taxpayer money to encourage renewable energy.

This number compares to $5 billion dollars PER YEAR of federal subsidies for the petroleum industry from 1916 to 1978, and $145 billion for the nuclear industry since 1947. The current energy bill includes $16 billion in subsidies in the form of loan guarantees for nuclear in a single piece of legislation.

One benefit of creating electric energy from the sun or wind is that the fuel is free. Renewable energy can be a hedge against fuel cost increases. While the cost of natural gas has risen, the cost of renewables has fallen. It is true that wind and solar is intermittent, and siting wind power plants should avoid impacting views or wildlife. We support development of technologies able to follow electric loads on a utility scale. We prefer that these technologies use renewable fuels wherever possible.

According to the EIA, 8 percent of the electric energy generated in 2001 was generated by renewable sources, 2.1 percent with non-hydroelectric renewable energy. We believe strongly that these numbers will grow substantially before 2025.

According to the New York Times, the wholesale price of ethanol is less than of gasoline. Blended ethanol fuels should be cheaper at the pump than straight gasoline, and they are less polluting. Ethanol is replacing MTBE, a petroleum-based gasoline additive, increasing market demand for ethanol.
Park uses biodiesel

Biodiesel, another clean fuel is used now in all diesel machinery in Yellowstone Park. Diesel engines can use 100 percent biodiesel. In Germany, biodiesel is available at gas stations.

London air in the 1600s was so polluted by the burning of coal that British scientist John Evelyn wrote that breathing problems "rage more in that one city than the whole earth besides." Though our air is now cleaner than London’s in the 1600s, there is little debate over the source of global warming. Two thousand scientists on the International Government Panel on Climate Change agreed that human activity is altering global temperatures and weather patterns.

We believe that carbon emission credits should be traded. Because of the Kyoto Protocol, a global market has emerged for trading carbon emission credits. Many large companies engage in carbon trading on the Chicago Climate Exchange. A voluntary approach for carbon trading has been embraced by the Bush administration.

The effort advocating energy bill amendments to reduce greenhouse gases has the support of farmers, industry, environmentalists and economists. This broad support shows that the status quo contributes to our dependence on foreign oil. Suppose we got cut off from Middle East oil. Why wouldn’t we explore clean and abundant energy sources existing here in the United States? Renewable energy can provide for electricity, heating, and transportation. Renewable fuels yield more than just energy, they create jobs and tax revenue and keeps our money in the United States instead of exporting it to the Middle East.

David Ryan lives in Butte.

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