Regional Power Bill. On the surface, the bill passed by Congress last November is con- .siderably different from the 1977 version initially proposed by utilities. That bill would have assured the aluminum industry of a continued supply of cut-rate electricity and assured utilities of a federal subsidy for any new thermal plants they decided to build, while eliminating guarantees of public utility access to cheap federal hy- , dropower. The 1980 version contains some commendable rhetoric, acknowledging the potential for energy conservation and renewable energy,and the importance of protecting fisheries and the environment in the region. It calls for a $1.8 billion fund for conservation efforts, and provides for a Regional Energy Commission, made up of people selected by the governors of each stat~ in the region, to determine what the cost-effective renewable energy potentiaLof the region really is. The bill also earmarks federal hydropower that has been allocated to the aluminum industry for residential and rural customers of investor-owned utilities, which means that IOU residential customers will pay considerably less and the aluminum industry will pay considerably more for their power. Finally, the bill establishes a process for protecting the depleted salmon fisheries in the Columbia Basin. The substance of the bill, however, differs considerably from its intent. For one thing, the bill allows utilities to continue to average in the cost of nuclear and coal plants with the cost of cheap hydropower. For another, th_e aluminum ind~stry will still be paying less than their share of the costs of new sources ofelectricity. At the same time, the survival of regional investor utilities in the face of a At least one utility that is actively moving away from coal and nuclear generation is the El}gene Water and Electric Board (EWEB), currently Oregon's largest public utility. One year ago, the EWEB Commissioners voted unanimously to abandon thefr 30% share of the Trojan nuclear plant. EWEB plans to meet its future energy needs with a strong energy conservation program combined with a number of renewable energy projects, including installation of hydroelectric turbines in five existing irrigation dams and construction of a 500 kw vertical axis wind turbine on the Oregon coast. Meanwhile, EWEB's financial bond ratings have improved dramatically as a direct result of their decision to withdraw from Trojan~a good example of increasing doubts in the nation's financial community • about the future of nuclear power. resurgent public power movement is assured, since high residential rates will be reduced over the short run. But the biggest problem is that while the bill provides for essentially unlimited federal loans to help the region meet its future energy needs, th~ fine print fails to specify how that money will be spent. The intEmt of the bill is that the BPA will spend Its money on . every cost-effective conservation and renewable energy option available before·it will invest in thermal plants, basing its decisions on the results of the Regional Energy Commission's reporti due in late 1982. The Commission will be heavily dependent on information and technical support from the BPA and regional utilities when it determines fu,ture power needs and thermal plant costs. The record is not encouraging. But assuming that the Commission comes up with a reasonably realistic report, the BPA has no lega:l obliga.,. tion to act on the report's recommendations. _The BPA is not even legally obligated to wait for the Commission to finish its report. • In fact, the Regional Power Bill places total control of an issue that will affect the lives of over ten million people for the next two gene.rations, in the hands of one man. That man is the new administrator of the BPA, appointed by President Reagan. If it so desires, the BPA is now in the position to guarantee that it will buy the full rated output of any new thermal generating plant for the projected life of the facility, no matter what the cost and even if the plant never February/March 1981 RAIN .Page 19 generates a single watt of electricity. Northwest ratepayers may be forced to pay for a decision over which they have no direct control. The End ... or The Beginning The Regional Power Bill could be the worst thing that ever happened to the Pacific Northwest. But if the Regional Energy Commission and the BPA chose to make a serious commitment to a renewable energy future, the'Regional Power Bill could also go a long way towards making the transition possible. The real debate is just beginning, and it would be a serious mistake for solar advocates to give up on the process now. The Northwest is in a better posi,tion than most of the country to move towards a decentralized energy grid. Regional utilities have become very interested in conservation and renewable reso~rces recently, but their reasons for that interest bear a closer resemblance to strat~gic retreat than a basic change in outlook. Utilities are predicting power shortages·in two years, arid there is no way that those expected shortages can be eased by new thermal plants. before the end of the decade. As a result, regional utilities are now strongly advocating conservation/ renewable resources as a short term solution to impending power shortages. However, with a few notable exceptions (see box), they remain firmly committed to thermal power over the long run. At the core of utility oppositio~ to a renewable energy future is a subtle fear of a power grid that is reliant on the individual and community decisions of millions of people instead of the highly centralized decisions of a few. Utilities have been unable to dispute the findings of studies such as the NRDC report indicating that, economically, environmentally and socially, a solar Northwest is clearly superior to the thermal alternative. The prevailiqg wisdom now is that a solar Northwest-is not feasible, not because of economic barriers, but because the political and institutional changes that need to take place for a renewable energy commitment will not occur fast enough to prevent energy shortages. (The political and institutional implications of a nuclear and coal powered Northwest generally don't enter into polite conversation.) This remarkable shift in the parameters of the debate is a direct chall~ng_E:. !~_!:_e_!!~able energy advocates in the region. Despite the inherent weaknesses of the Regional Power Bill, the obvious advantages of renewable energy assure an excellent possibility t~at the Northwest could become the first region in the country to make the solar transition. Clearly, it is time to put our cards on the table. From an institutional standpoint, the Northwe,st is in a better position than most of the country to move towards a decentralized energy gnd. Utilities in the region are relatively small, and in most ' parts of the Northwest there are mechanisms for direct local control of the power grid. A strong, community-based movement organizing around ~ocal energy issues (such·as a county energy plan) woyld be able to exert a powerful influence on the future of the regional power supply. Utiliti~s have demonstrated that they~c;lo not have the capability to make the changes that are necessary for a safe, reliable, energy future. It is up to us.. □□ ACCESS--...:::i.
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