www.windaction.org facts, analysis, exposure of wind energy's real impacts Windaction http://www.windaction.org/articles/c107+52?theme=atom Xarayar 2006-06-12T02:16:27Z

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DPS approves Enexus spinoff plan (Vermont Yankee) .23555 2009-10-10T22:08:57Z 2009-10-10T22:08:57Z The Department of Public Service agreed Thursday to support Entergy’s plan to spin off Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant into a new subsidiary called Enexus. In July, the DPS urged the Vermont Public Service Board not to issue a certificate of public good unless certain conditions were met. Those conditions included the status of the plant’s condenser and its back-up power transformer, the decommissioning fund, on-site spent fuel handling costs and a power purchase agreement. Vermont debates options for energy future .22769 2009-08-20T19:49:48Z 2009-08-20T19:49:48Z Vermont's energy future could become clearer in the coming months, with key decisions possible by year's end on the relicensing of the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant and on the renewal of utilities' contracts with Hydro Quebec. Together, Yankee and HQ provide about two-thirds of the electricity currently consumed by Vermont residents and businesses. Renewable enthusiasm Vermont's green energy law draws interest .22050 2009-07-11T15:24:43Z 2009-07-11T15:24:43Z Dozens of environmental and renewable energy contractors flocked to a day-long session at the Statehouse Friday with the Vermont Public Service Board to hear about a new state law aimed at stimulating the development of green energy. The renewable program, which became law without Gov. James Douglas' signature, clears away some regulatory hurdles for the creation of small green energy-generating sources in Vermont. Douglas, officials spar over energy plan .20876 2009-04-23T17:02:40Z 2009-04-23T17:02:40Z The Republican governor stood in his ceremonial Statehouse office and explained to reporters exactly why he opposed a major renewable-energy bill supported by environmental groups that was on track to be approved by the Vermont House. "I strongly support renewables, but we can't do it in a way that adds to the cost of living in this state," said Douglas Wind farm development picks up; Five projects could provide 7% of state's electricity .20785 2009-04-17T08:07:30Z 2009-04-17T08:07:30Z The number of proposed wind farms under active development in Vermont has reached a new peak. If built as proposed - a big "if" - the five projects could provide up to nearly 7 percent of the state's electrical energy. ...Wind-energy projects are required to win a certificate of public good from the state Public Service Board, which weighs the impact of development on a long list of environmental factors, aesthetics, noise and more. Opponents can take part in the hearings and appeal the results. Renewable energy bill generates debate .20705 2009-04-12T11:30:08Z 2009-04-12T11:30:08Z A renewable energy bill has cleared one House committee, but is drawing questions about whether it's too generous toward wind and solar power developers. Lawmakers push for renewable energy bills .20616 2009-04-04T14:22:25Z 2009-04-04T14:22:25Z The bill calls for wind-power developers to get 20 cents per kilowatt-hour for the power they send to the grid; solar-power developers would get 25 cents. Lawmakers said the disparity was due to the differences in costs faced by those setting up the systems. An official with the state's largest power company, Brian Keefe of Central Vermont Public Service Corp., said he remained concerned about how the legislation would affect customers, due to the relatively high cost of the power. BED to buy Sheffield wind power .20171 2009-02-25T22:55:27Z 2009-02-25T22:55:27Z The Burlington Electric Department announced Tuesday that it will buy 40 percent of the power and renewable energy certificates from a Sheffield wind farm at a fixed price for the next 10 years. The agreement with Vermont Wind moves BED toward its goal of generating electricity through renewable sources within the next "four or so years," BED general manager Barbara Grimes said. Advocates call for lifting of ban on large scale wind projects .20048 2009-02-17T18:24:34Z 2009-02-17T18:24:34Z Wind energy advocates want the Douglas administration to lift its ban on large-scale wind projects on state-owned land. The advocates say Vermont needs to explore all options as it looks for new energy resources. But Governor Jim Douglas remains opposed to the idea VPR's John Dillon reports: Alternative for VY may cost more .20044 2009-02-17T17:04:25Z 2009-02-17T17:04:25Z The state has many choices for electricity other than the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant, but they may be more costly and could increase the state's carbon emissions, an energy consultant told lawmakers. Vermont does not need to develop its own power sources to replace the Vernon reactor, because utilities could get the power from outside the state. Closing VY could raise power costs .18987 2008-11-26T00:27:16Z 2008-11-26T00:27:16Z Replacing the energy supplied by Vermont Yankee with 100 percent renewable energy sources could cost Vermont more than $1.2 billion ..."This portfolio of renewable resources would cost approximately $73 per megawatt hour (MWh) to develop and operate and would be more expensive than (building a) new fossil fuel generation plant," stated Scott M. Albert, a principal of GDS Associates and the region manager of the firm's Northeast office, in Manchester, N.H. NRC fires back at Bay State's House of Representatives .18000 2008-09-13T02:06:15Z 2008-09-13T02:06:15Z In July, the Bay State's House passed a resolution in support of efforts to have independent safety assessments conducted at nuclear power plants in Massachusetts, Vermont and New Hampshire. ...The Legislature also resolved that it's time the nation begin its transition "away from nuclear power to an affordable, clean and sustainable national energy policy." ..."I understand the concerns raised by the Commonwealth," wrote Samuel J. Collins, an NRC regional administrator, in response to the resolution. "However, I feel it is necessary to address some of the statements and assumptions conveyed in that document to dispel any misconceptions you may have ..." Study recommends medium-sized power projects .17536 2008-08-21T15:25:22Z 2008-08-21T15:25:22Z Vermont should consider building a series of medium-sized power generation projects rather than one major facility, and renewable energy projects will likely play a large role ...David O'Brien, Vermont's commissioner of public service, said the study is another step in planning the state's energy future. "There's a strong desire in Vermont to have more of our power produced in the state," he said. O'Brien said the results of the study dove-tailed well with recent work asking Vermont residents where they wanted their electricity to come from. It remains to be seen how much of the state's electricity will be produced by renewable projects, he said. Harnessing the wind: Debate rages on future of wind power in Vt. .17339 2008-08-12T13:03:14Z 2008-08-12T13:03:14Z "While wind power is a popular and growing source of electricity generation in the United States ... it continues to face regulatory obstacles and local opposition," stated the Vermont Energy Partnership report. "And while there is clear potential for an expansion of wind in the State of Vermont, even fully developed, wind can only meet a fraction of the state's electricity needs. To ensure that Vermont has a dependable supply of clean and low-cost electricity, base load providers such as Vermont Yankee and HydroQuébec must continue to serve our state into the future," stated the report. Symington proposes increase in wind power .17278 2008-08-07T00:53:38Z 2008-08-07T00:53:38Z Symington released a proposal Wednesday that calls for increasing the state's use of wind energy from about 0.2 percent today to 20 percent, saying it would create jobs while shifting the state away from reliance on nuclear power and out-of-state sources whose prices are expected to increase. State Public Service Commissioner David O'Brien called the plan "irresponsible." Wind is not reliable enough to provide that much of the state's energy, and Vermonters would not want to see that many turbines popping up across the landscape, he said. In Vermont, a Debate Swirls Around an Aging Nuclear Plant .16082 2008-05-28T23:40:31Z 2008-05-28T23:40:31Z After part of a cooling tower collapsed last August at Vermont's only nuclear power plant, the company that runs it blamed rotting wooden timbers that it had failed to inspect properly. The uproar that followed rekindled environmental groups' hopes of shutting down the aging plant. The proposed closing, albeit a long shot, has gained some support this year among Vermont politicians. The discussion here is bringing into sharp relief a conflict between two objectives long held by environmental advocates: combating nuclear power and stopping global warming. ...[M]any advocacy groups dream of achieving a nuclear-free mix burnished by local renewables. ...But utilities in Vermont, like their counterparts elsewhere in the country, argue that environmental advocates are mistaken if they believe a low-emission future can be achieved without nuclear power. They note the intermittency of power sources like windmills and solar panels, and argue that the nation needs more, not fewer, big power plants that emit no carbon dioxide. State releases draft energy plan .16064 2008-05-28T17:37:26Z 2008-05-28T17:37:26Z The Douglas administration released a draft plan Tuesday to help shape Vermont's energy future. Critics immediately lambasted the 267-page document as inadequate to reduce the state's dependence on petroleum, to increase energy efficiency or to cut greenhouse gas emissions. The plan, drafted by the state Public Service Department, calls for continued reliance on electricity from Hydro Quebec and Vermont Yankee while utilities find more diverse, preferably in-state, sources of renewable power. Transmission limits hamper renewable energy plans .14583 2008-03-09T21:04:02Z 2008-03-09T21:04:02Z State and regional regulators acknowledge the hurdles - especially in northern New Hampshire - but don't have ready solutions. A bill before the New Hampshire Senate would have the state be ready to act if no regional solution is forthcoming. ISO New England, which manages power for the region, is considering changing rules so more of the costs of transmission upgrades could be shared regionally. But as things stand now, backers of projects generally must pay for upgrades needed to connect them to the system. "None of this is a real speedy process," acknowledges Michael Harrington, senior regional policy adviser for the state Public Utilities Commission. Anti-windfarm group sends appeal to Governor Douglas .14557 2008-03-08T13:14:07Z 2008-03-08T13:14:07Z Ridge Protectors, a group fiercely opposed to industrial wind power on Vermont's ridge lines, has launched a letter-writing appeal to Gov. Jim Douglas, who they hope will veto S.209, the so-called Energy Efficiency and Affordability Act. The bill, which is aimed at promoting renewable energy and energy efficiency, has passed both the House and Senate, and is on the governor's desk. The letter-writing campaign is a last-ditch attempt to change a part of the measure that gives industrial wind power a tax break at the expense of the education fund, said Paul Brouha of Sutton.