Public Power - October 2008 - (Page 32)

An Energy Revolution 19 percent of California’s electricity, for instance, the city of Los Angeles has instituted aggressive water conservation. Many of the city’s garbage trucks and street sweepers now run on alternative fuels; its port provides alternative power for docked ships so they can shut off their diesel engines; city land-use regulations promote high-density housing close to major transportation arteries; local job training and research funding is increasingly channeled into green jobs and technologies. But what of those in more conservative communities, or in regions without access to great renewables? City Utilities of Springfield, Mo., gets more than 80 percent of its 800-megawatt load from coal; it’s now building another 300-megawatt, sub-critical pulverized coalfired power plant, called Southwest II, for service in 2011. It fought an uphill battle for the plant. The Sierra Club sued to block it, arguing that the plant failed to use the best available technology and would, in each year of operation, emit 2 million tons of carbon dioxide, plus conventional pollutants. In 2004, Springfield voters rejected the plant, but in 2006, on recommendation of a power supply task force, the community passed the necessary revenue bond, and construction began. The utility had few alternatives, said General Manager John Twitty. The only good local renewable resource is biomass, City Utilities of Springfield, Mo., has limited options for renewable energy, says General Manager John Twitty. but he doesn’t think the technology for gasifying woodchips is close to proven. Transmission bottlenecks have limited his efforts to import wind and prevented him from partnering with neighboring utilities. Such a partnership would have enabled him to build a 600-megawatt coal-fired plant, and, therefore, use more efficient supercritical technology. “But at 300 megawatts, from a cost standpoint, subcritical won the sweepstakes.” Twitty is also guided by his constituency. “We’re in the most conservative part of the country in the most conservative part of our state. This is the “show-me” state. A couple years ago everyone was talking about IGCC [integrated gasification combined cycle], but we’re not going there until someone has 10 in operation actually making electricity. I don’t want to be serial number one of anything.” His customers, who now enjoy rates among the lowest in the nation (6.5 cents per kWh), do not want to pay more for renewables. Although Springfield was the first utility in Missouri to offer a wind product, it still has just 220 takers. Those low rates also make it harder to reach grid parity with solar or wind. “At 10 to 15 cents/kWh, Austin and Los Angeles can E HELP LIGHT THE WORLD WE HELP LIGHT THE WORLD WITH OUR MAST ARMS, WITH OUR MAST ARMS, POLES & BRACKETS POLES & BRACKETS OVER 30,000 MAST ARMS, POLES AND BRACKETS READY FOR IMMEDIATE SHIPMENT • Competitive pricing • Large inventory ready for immediate shipment • Custom fabrication experts Contact your manufacturer’s representative or call us direct for a catalog. NOW AISC CERTIFIED Manufacturer Visit us at of Outdoor www.utilitymetals.com Lighting Products 800/627-8276 502/363-6681 502/368-2656 FAX 32 OCTOBER 2008 PUBLIC POWER http://www.kormansigns.com http://www.utilitymetals.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Public Power - October 2008

Public Power - October 2008 Contents Perspective 10 Questions The Future of Fuels in a Carbon-Constrained World An Energy Revolution Energy Policy in 2009 and Beyond A Green Reincarnation Beyond the Green Bandwagon Reliability Green Energy Community Broadband Customer Service Hometown Connections Human Resources Parting Shot

Public Power - October 2008

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