by jboullion | Apr 5, 2010 | Uncategorized
From an announcement made by the Government Institute of Wisconsin:
Energy Independence Workshop
April 7, 2010
Chippewa Valley Technical College
RCU Room, Business Education Center
Eau Claire, WI
We invite you to attend a meeting on April 7 in Eau Claire to learn more about energy independence and local government issues. The meeting will focus on a discussion on funding for retrofits for municipalities interested in energy independence, and will feature many informative speakers.
Attendees will also engage in valuable discussion with communities engaged in the energy independence planning process as part of the 2010 25×25 Energy Independent Communities planning process through the Wisconsin Office of Energy Independence.
This will be an valuable workshop for communities interested in energy independence issues to attend. Morning coffee refreshments will be provided beginning before 9:00 am and a lunch will also be provided beginning at 12:00 noon. Please refer to the LGI website at http://www.localgovinstitute.org for more information regarding this meeting, future meetings, and other local government issues. Information and registration are provided below. The registration fee is $70 for the day-long meeting.
Program
9:00-9:30 Introductions and Welcome
+ Eau Claire County Chair, Gregg Moore
+ City Manager of Eau Claire, Mike Huggins
+ Office Of Energy Independence Director, Judy Ziewacz (invited)
+ 2010 EI Pilot Communities (11 EI Team Leaders)
+ 2009 EI Pilot Communities (EI Team Leaders)
9:30-10:45 Local Financing Opportunities for Retrofits – PACE, On-bill, other
+ Chris Lohman, US DOE, Financial Market Development Team, Washington D.C.
+ Merrian Fuller – US DOE, Lawerence Berkley Labs
+ Mike Noreen, River Falls Municipal Utility, “Save Some Green”
+ Brian O’Connell, City of Racine, Racine Energy Efficiency Program (REEP)
Steve Frenkel – Director, Midwest Region Renewable Funding, LLC
+ Q & A — discussion about US DOE nationally competitive grant opportunity
10:45-11:15 BREAK
11:15-12:00 25×25 Plan — ECW Data Tool & US EPA Portfolio Manager — update/questions
+ Sean Weitner, Energy Center of Wisconsin
12:00-1:00 LUNCH
1:00-3:00 Community-to-Community Discussion – 2010 EI Pilot Communities
+ Facilitated by Brian Driscoll, Office of Energy Independence
by jboullion | Apr 5, 2010 | Uncategorized
From an entry by Tom Still on Milwaukee Biz Blog:
The Marquette interchange in Milwaukee cost more than $800 million to rebuild between 2004 and 2008, and few people seriously questioned whether that “subsidy” of Wisconsin’s highway transportation system would pay for itself many times over.
Milwaukee’s Zoo interchange, the mix-master for I-94, I-894 and Highway 45, could cost $2.3 billion to rebuild once work begins in 2012. Again, most people familiar with the volume of statewide commerce passing through that intersection can agree reconstruction is a much-needed investment.
But suggest a relatively tiny $7.5 million per year subsidy for a high-speed rail line that could redefine Wisconsin’s connections to Chicago and the Twin Cities, and the same folks who barely blink at billion-dollar concrete projects turn into raging fiscal hawks.
That penny-wise, pound-foolish approach should be questioned. Wisconsin has a chance to build a high-speed rail line, with hard-to-get federal money, that will change the economic destiny of its largest cities and many of its smallest communities. Yet this promising track for economic development is being opposed by those who claim a small state subsidy will somehow break the bank.
Before the political debate gets too overwrought, let’s examine the economic reasons why Wisconsin should embrace building a Milwaukee-to-Madison rail line and improving the existing Milwaukee-to-Chicago connection.
by jboullion | Mar 29, 2010 | Uncategorized
From an article by Robert Imrie in the Wausau Daily Herald:
ROTHSCHILD — A proposed power plant that would burn wood to generate electricity and steam would be a “monster” source of pollution, causing neighbors to suffer from asthma and lung cancers, organizers of an effort to kill the project said Thursday.
The planned $255 million We Energies plant on the grounds of the Domtar paper mill along Business Highway 51 would burn waste wood to power the mill and generate electricity for consumers. View gallery
“We don’t want to be their guinea pigs,” Paul Schwantes told about 150 people packed into a room at the Village Hall, urging them to contact local political leaders. “This is a call to action. Tell them you do not want this project in our backyard.”
Schwantes said he was disappointed that only about 150 people in a village of 5,000 turned out to get more information about a “huge issue” in town. . . .
We Energies has applied to the state Public Service Commission to build Wisconsin’s first biomass plant in Rothschild. A decision is expected by the end of the year, said Brian Manthey, a spokesman for the Milwaukee-based utility.
The project would allow We Energies, a subsidiary of Wisconsin Energy Corp., to comply with a state mandate that 10 percent of Wisconsin’s electricity come from renewable sources by 2015.
In a telephone interview after the meeting Thursday, Manthey said the plant should not produce any more risk of asthma or lung cancers in the village, because the emissions will fall “well under” the state Department of Natural Resources standards for clean air.
by jboullion | Mar 29, 2010 | Uncategorized
From a report by Chuck Quirmbach on Wisconsin Public Radio:
(STATE CAPITOL) A key lawmaker says some compromises have been reached in the global warming bill now in the State Legislature. But he says more deal-making is ahead.
During the last couple of weeks, legislators have been working behind closed doors trying to agree on changes to the Clean Energy Jobs Act. At an energy forum in Milwaukee, Senate author Mark Miller said some agreements have been reached. The Madison-area Democrat says there are deals on idling of trucks, reducing carbon in transportation fuels, tariffs for utilities purchasing power from renewable sources, and whether to link Wisconsin car fuel efficiency standards to California’s. He says the golden state plan is gone.
Miller says the plan to reduce carbon in fuels ran into a lot of opposition, and wasn’t a major part of the bill. The changes are good news to the Democrats leading candidate for governor, Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett. Barrett says any new carbon in fuels standard would also have hurt the state.
Sen. Miller says lawmakers are also trying to accelerate job creation goals in the Clean Energy Jobs Act. He says he’s hoping to announce final compromises next week.
by jboullion | Mar 29, 2010 | Uncategorized
From a report by Chuck Quirmbach on Wisconsin Public Radio:
(STATE CAPITOL) A key lawmaker says some compromises have been reached in the global warming bill now in the State Legislature. But he says more deal-making is ahead.
During the last couple of weeks, legislators have been working behind closed doors trying to agree on changes to the Clean Energy Jobs Act. At an energy forum in Milwaukee, Senate author Mark Miller said some agreements have been reached. The Madison-area Democrat says there are deals on idling of trucks, reducing carbon in transportation fuels, tariffs for utilities purchasing power from renewable sources, and whether to link Wisconsin car fuel efficiency standards to California’s. He says the golden state plan is gone.
Miller says the plan to reduce carbon in fuels ran into a lot of opposition, and wasn’t a major part of the bill. The changes are good news to the Democrats leading candidate for governor, Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett. Barrett says any new carbon in fuels standard would also have hurt the state.
Sen. Miller says lawmakers are also trying to accelerate job creation goals in the Clean Energy Jobs Act. He says he’s hoping to announce final compromises next week.
by jboullion | Mar 28, 2010 | Uncategorized
From a news release issued by Clean Wisconsin:
Regionally Diverse Large and Small Businesses Among Supporters
MADISON — In a show of support for the Clean Energy Jobs Act, the Wisconsin business community delivered a letter signed by over 200 Wisconsin businesses to state legislators today highlighting the economic and job-creation benefits of strong energy efficiency and renewable energy policies.
“As businesses currently working in the production, installation and maintenance of energy efficiency and renewable energy systems we understand better than anyone that clean energy policies create jobs and stimulate local economies,” read the letter. “By enacting statewide policies that will help Wisconsinites make their homes and businesses more energy efficient or invest in renewable energy, the state Legislature will create thousands of jobs and help support local businesses like ours…”
Studies have repeatedly demonstrated the job-creation potential of the Clean Energy Jobs Act. A recent study from the Office of Energy Independence estimates that the bill would create over 15,000 jobs in the state.
“Wisconsin’s businesses support the Clean Energy Jobs Act because they recognize its enormous potential to create jobs and aid economic recovery,” said Keith Reopelle, senior policy director at Clean Wisconsin. “With strong renewable energy and energy efficiency policies, Wisconsin can become a leader in the production of clean energy technologies.”
“Clean energy policies like those in the Clean Energy Jobs Act help businesses like Wave Wind grow,” said Dionne Lummus at Wave Wind Energy located in Sun Prairie. “Increased demand for renewable energy means an increased demand for our services, which translates to more jobs and economic growth in Wisconsin.”
A report released this morning by the Union of Concerned Scientists shows that securing 25 percent of the state’s renewable electricity by 2025, a main provision of the bill, is affordable and easily achievable. In fact, the report illustrates that generating 25 percent of Wisconsin’s current electricity load would require only 5 percent of the state’s renewable energy potential.
