Why Green Power?

1. The Environmental Benefits include minimal, if any, byproducts of CO2 and other pollutants such as carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, and lead in comparison to those produced in the creation of energy through fossil fuels.
2. Stimulating Our Hobbled Economy. In 1997, importing fossil fuels sent $65 billion dollars outside of our country. Renewable energy resources are developed at home. Furthering their development will keep billions of dollars here, creating more jobs for Americans.
3. Our Children's Future depends on the technological advancements of these energy sources. Two things we know for certain are that oil won't last forever and the sun will.
4. Our National Security is strengthened as our dependency for foreign oil is decreased. By moving toward renewable energies, we naturally shift toward freedom from unstable ground.

*reprinted from Campaign Earth

News

Experts: Coast can generate, control energy

By Frank Hartzell, The Advocate, December 12, 2005

A standing room only audience of more than 100 people got charged up Friday in Fort Bragg by speeches on solar home power, wind power at the former Georgia Pacific mill site, and ways that the Mendocino Coast can plug into more alternative power and local control.

The meeting was more scientific and historical and less pointed and political than other First Friday events sponsored by the Alliance for Democracy, yet it did close with a bit of politics.

Ken Smokoska of the Sierra Club, who has helped other communities set up Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) plans, said all that is needed to get started is a yes vote from three of the five Fort Bragg City Council members.

Councilmen Jere Melo, Dan Gjerde, Mayor Dave Turner and Doug Hammerstom all came to the two hour long meeting but didn't make any public response. Melo had left just before the closing challenge to pursue CCA locally.

The 2002 CCA legislation allows communities to buy power for their own residents and businesses and to have a say in what kind of power is used.

Smokoska said the plan can bring good jobs and educational and business opportunities and keep dollars in the community.

The crowd also heard from local solar energy expert Steve Heckeroth, wind power expert David Williard of Sustainergy Systems and Don Dame, assistant general manager of the Northern California Power Agency (NCPA).

The event was tightly organized with each expert getting exactly 15 minutes to speak and each using an overhead slideshow presentation designed to illustrate their complex subject matter.

The facts flowed during the fast-paced first hour of speeches, although a few in the crowd nodded off and many were doing their best to focus on what was being described.

Yet, all those interviewed were excited about the possibilities and everyone seemed to want to get involved in making alternatives happen.

Organizer Meg Courtney of the Alliance invited anyone who is interested in Fort Bragg's energy future  to meet at her house on Tuesday, Dec.13, from 7 to 9 p.m., at 661 N. Harrison St., to talk about action the community can take.  Friday's energy forum, and the follow-up are cosponsored by CELL (Coast Economic Localization Link), an organization dedicated to relocalizing in preparation for the end of cheap oil prices.

La Viva Dakers, cofounder of CELL, is one of many who hope the coast community would look at Community Choice Aggregation.

"That it will offer us, the people who use the electricity, control over what and how we do, that seems to be an option worth exploring. The city of San Francisco has made the choice to pursue CCA and I think we will learn much from that soon. And considering what we deal with now  scandals, false price hikes, polluting energy sources and money leaving our county  CCA looks pretty good," Dakers said.

Christiane Heckeroth, another of the cofounders of CELL,  would like to see the formation of a citizen advisory committee that would work with the Fort Bragg City Council on further exploring the town's renewable energy future.

"Doing CCA in Fort Bragg would allow a greater amount of our local dollars to stay in our community and benefit our entire region. We have the opportunity to take charge of our own power mix. We should explore that possibility," Christiane Heckeroth said.

To start the meeting Steve Heckeroth (husband of Christiane) laid out the "peak oil" phenomenon, an idea which started getting publicity in progressive and energy circles and now has become mainstream he said, pointing out issues of National Geographic devoted to the fact the world is running out of cheap oil. Oil corporations have even been advertising the peak oil crisis lately in major magazines.

Heckeroth said predictions of when the crisis would hit vary between now and 40 years from now, with about 2010 a common date. He also showed how limited geographically natural gas supplies are. Rather than the federal government spending billions to build huge import terminals for natural gas, he said people should get behind federal funding to reduce the cost of solar and wind power, which brought cheers. He said a solar panel on every housetop and an electrical vehicle in every garage would go a long way toward staving off a global oil crisis and empowering locals.

Williard pointed out that energy is an issue that often divides progressive thinkers. Between NIMBYism (not in my back yard) that comes with virtually anyone who owns property adjacent to windmills (or any other power plant) and environmental factors, the liberal community is split over specific alternative energy plans in Marin, Williard told the crowd. He said getting energy plants through the California Coastal Commission and the Mendocino Historical Review Board would be tough.

"Every time you bring up wind energy in California you get beaten with Altamont Pass." He said bird deaths there were the result of the huge scale of the project.

Smokoska said San Francisco will allow PG to continue distributing power and doing customer service, but will generate its own power and can choose the type of power to generate. City schools in San Diego have used the plan to install solar panels, generate power, and money and learning opportunities for high school students.

The plan fits into the integrated approach to localization promoted by CELL.

Dame's Northern California Power Agency cooperative already provides alternative and conventional power to many Northern California cities at a cost lower than PG. Ukiah, BART, Redding, Gridley and the tiny city of Biggs all have their own municipal utilities which are generally profitable for the cities and provide choice. NCPA also serves the wholesale power needs of Shelter Cove on the Lost Coast, the crowd learned.

NCPA uses more alternative power in its mix and sells it cheaper than PG. But if NCPA came to Fort Bragg, PG would still provide the distribution, reading meters, fixing wires and so on.

"You get to make the decisions through your city council.  You get to decide who gets to pay how much and what to do with the revenues," Dame said. "You can choose green power without ever getting into the electricity business."

Dame said the community could chose NCPA and 20 percent green power now and begin working on a power plant through a CCA, which will likely be at least a 15-year process.

"From what I understand of the CCA concept, the timing (monetarily) is not good now, but that a committed City Council and preparation in advance for an opportune time is the way to go," said Coutney, who is also a city planning commissioner.

"We learned that other communities in California are already using CCA as a way to assure greater energy security for their citizens, since the community is in control rather than being at the mercy of a large corporation," said Christina Carpenter of CELL.

"I learned that there are multiple economic benefits, and that the presenting experts were more than willing to help us. The question for me is, why wouldn't we want to do this here?" Carpenter said.

Although the Historical Review Board reference had gotten a few snickers from the crowd, board member Garnish Daly got some inspiration from the meeting.

"The truth is the review board is mandated to uphold architectural standards. Wind turbines don't fit those standards. However, my sense from what we heard in there is that we can construct windmills that look like old windmills. All the old pictures of Mendocino had windmills."

Daly said the ideas in the meeting could empower the community, despite market factors.

"It is very encouraging to know there are ways in which this works. I would like to hear more about tidal and wave energy, as I think that may be a way to go on the coast."

What about CCA?

"If San Diego can do it, Northern California can do it," he said.

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For more information, you may also call 415.497.6242 or send email to: david@sustainergysystems.com