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17, 2007 Letters The Macon Telegraph Re: Prioritize Development of Georgia's Renewable Energy Resources The Editors: Tuesday's unsigned editorial echoing the myth that Georgia's "renewable sources of energy such as wind power and solar power do not seem feasible" ought to have included a sponsorship that this editorial has been brought to you by Southern Company and Westinghouse. I invite any member of the editorial board who signed off on the solar feasibility statement to spend a couple of midday hours in the exposed asphalt parking lot of their choice. Last year the Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority (GEFA) developed a responsible, meticulously prepared, strategy for meeting our home state's energy needs. (www.georgiaenergyplan.org) Despite the presence of several fossil fuel industry myth makers on the appointed Energy Policy Council, the State Energy Strategy includes the common sense finding that residential and commercial solar photovoltaic (PV) systems, distributing net metered production out on the existing power lines for others to use, offer the distinct advantage of being able to displace peak demand because they produce their highest electrical output on the sunniest days, which typically correspond with high demand on the electrical system. There are also solar thermal systems capable of capturing energy from clouded and clear skies to heat water and reduce our dependence on fossil fuels for that domestic need. Remember the glory days of Georgia's agricultural and and forest industries? " A 2003 University of Georgia study found that electricity production from existing biomass resources could support 31% of Georgia’s residential electrical needs, at costs just slightly higher than 2003 residential electricity costs." Consider also that the State Energy Strategy points out "Georgia residents and businesses spent over $19 billion on primary energy fuels, nearly all of which left the state." That was in 2001, before we were taking out loans to fill our gas tanks and spilling blood in the middle east to protect access to foreign supply sources. Georgia's priority should be to develop its native renewable energy resources because it "is a local endeavor, and money spent for fuel and job opportunities created by energy producers remains within the state." A panel of professionals convened by Georgia's Public Service Commission to review Georgia Power's 2007 Integrated Resource Plan testified under oath that there are no reliable estimates of how much a new nuclear facility in the United States will cost to bring on line. It was the panel's conclusion that "not even Westinghouse knows the costs." Nuclear and other large generating plants also demand massive amounts of Georgia's precious water resources. Robust conservation practices and widespread distributed generation on the existing electrical grid from native fuel resources are Georgia's most promising and profitable options for meeting its electrical energy needs. Ronald Cloud Macon, GA |
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Posted on Tue, Jul. 17, 2007http://www.macon.com/203/story/90500.htmlTime to wean ourselves off coal-fired electricityGeorgia has more nukes in its future, if Georgia Power has its way. OK. Anything but more coal. The power company wants to build two 1,200 megawatt reactors at its nuclear facility Plant Vogtle, near Waynesboro. On July 12, the Public Service Commission said it could pursue plans to build the additional reactors as part of its long-term energy plan. But there's a kicker in the deal, and here we can only wonder what the PSC was thinking of. Georgia Power must let other energy sources - most likely coal, according to the Associated Press - compete with the nuclear plan, as less costly alternatives. Coal? That might be cheaper for Georgia Power and its customers in the short run, but in terms of the future health of Georgians, the cost could be high indeed. The latest Environmental Protection Agency figures available show that the two largest sources of carbon dioxide emissions in the whole United States are Georgia Power coal-fired plants in Georgia. (Carbon dioxide is a "greenhouse gas" which contributes to global warming.) No. 2 is Plant Bowen, in Bartow County up to the northwest. And No. 1, right up the road from Macon, is Plant Scherer in Monroe County. It emits a mind-boggling 25.6 million tons of CO2 emissions anually. Georgia Power's parent Southern Company produces two-thirds of its power from coal, according to an Associated Press article the Telegraph published July 16 - "mostly burned in aging plants that have not yet been upgraded with new clear-air technologies." The AP said that many of the plants also are among the nation's worst in emissions of mercury and other pollutants that contribute to acid rain, smog and breathing problems. But coal is cheap. For companies like Georgia Power to depend more on pricier power sources would raise the low price we pay for our electricity in this region. The company says that legislation forcing it to depend more on other sources of power might "cripple our economy or cripple our industry." It's true that often-touted renewable sources of energy such as wind power and solar power do not seem feasible, given Georgia's climatic conditions. But our rivers have potential to produce more hydroelectric power, and winds offshore are promising for power production. And then there's nuclear power. The reactor meltdown at Three-Mile Island in Pennsylvania in 1979 turned the public against nuclear power (although no one was killed or injured). Now, improved technology and increased safeguards have made nuclear power a much safer and a and much cleaner alternative to coal or oil, and it has made a comeback nationwide. Phasing out coal-fired production and depending much more on nuclear or renewable sources is a move Georgia's power companies need to make without further foot-dragging.
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