Colorado Rancher Sees Future in Wind Power, The Colorado Region Growing in Renewable Energy Whether Solar-Wind-Power

WindTV: Colorado rancher sees future in wind power
February 15, 2012
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“Wind turbines has rapidly become a part of the landscape and economic fabric of rural communities across the U.S.,” said American Wind Energy Association CEO Denise Bode.

WindTV: Colorado rancher sees future in wind power
The old juxtaposed with the new. That’s what visitors get when they head to the Colorado Cattle Co. ranch in New Raymer, Colo., and Tom Carr wouldn’t have it any other way.

Carr and his wife Darcy were once visitors to the ranch, and they liked it so much, they bought the business, which is both an operating ranch with cattle and a tourist destination. Today, the land is also host to a wind farm. Their business is featured on the latest segment of WindTV, the American Wind Energy Association’s vehicle to highlight how wind works for America.

“I’m not a granola eater,” says Tom Carr with characteristic Western straightforwardness. “As you can see by my waistline, I’m a meat-and-potatoes kind of guy, and conservative by nature. People, whether you’re a Republican, Democrat, Libertarian, Green Party—it doesn’t matter. I think that we all have a vested interest in our future, and the future of our children, and our children’s children.”

But with wind power’s key federal incentive -- the Production Tax Credit (PTC) – expiring, this future and thousands of good Colorado jobs are at risk. Wind power currently generates as many as 6,000 Colorado jobs, but a recent national study has shown jobs numbers would be cut in half and private investment dollars would drop by two thirds if Congress fails to act and the PTC expires.

“Wind power has rapidly become a part of the landscape and economic fabric of rural communities across the U.S.,” said AWEA CEO Denise Bode. “We are fighting today to keep that success story going and asking Congress to extend the PTC now, before it is too late.”

A bipartisan group of Colorado’s Congressional Delegation joined in this push last week with a letter to Senator Max Baucus, Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, and Representative Dave Camp, Chairman of the house Committee on Ways and Means, to include a PTC extension in any deal that emerges from the current payroll tax negotiations.

Meanwhile, the Carr family has found a good neighbor in wind power. At the time he bought the ranch, Carr had something important to consider, particularly given that he was buying a business that hosted guests seeking a traditional Western experience. Specifically, a yet-to-be built wind farm would soon be part of the landscape. So Carr surveyed every guest he could find to get their thoughts on the coming wind farm. Feedback, he says, was 100 percent positive, and the developer was eager to be a good neighbor and address any concerns he had.




Contact me at Milehighsolar@hotmail.com whether to Network, or for possible Business opportunities with your company.

"Economics: The Cornerstone of Sustainability" Colorado February 28th

Alliance for Sustainable Colorado,
in partnership with the United States Green Building Council, Colorado Chapter

SAVE THE DATE
8th ANNUAL
SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS LEGISLATIVE BRIEFING

"Economics: The Cornerstone of Sustainability"

Event Link
Tuesday, February 28th
Old Supreme Court Chambers
State Capitol Building, 2nd floor

8:00-9:30am
Briefing
Keynote speaker, update on notable legislation and policy initiatives

10:00am-1:00pm
Collaborative Opportunities
Networking, tours of the State Capitol and meetings with Legislators

Contact me Tradd Duggan Milehighsolar@hotmail.com whether to Network, or for possible Business opportunities with your company.

The Decommissioning and Abandonment Summit (March 22-23)

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The Decommissioning and Abandonment Summit (March 22-23) is now in its 4th successive year and is the only forum that will review latest industry experience to reduce costs, improve safety & mitigate risk on all future decommissioning projects.

Over 800 senior decommissioning decision makers will be in attendance to network, do business and exchange the latest industry updates: This year, it is guaranteed to deliver info on:

*Permitting & Regulations: Receive an update on the latest permitting challenges to streamline project planning, ensuring regulatory compliance to save time and money
*Operator Case Studies: Hear the latest project assessments from major & independent operators as they share lessons learned from their most challenging projects to date to benefit your future approaches
*Decommissioning Cost Analysis: Understand best practice cost estimation for decommissioning based on expert experience to ensure accurate budgeting and forecasting on your next project
*Plugging and Abandonment Standards: Discover the latest well P&A techniques and technologies to ensure your projects are executed cost effectively, safely and permanently
*Facility Decommissioning: Benefit from a comprehensive assessment of facility decommissioning approaches, utilizing the latest project experience to maximise safety and reduce costs

National Geographic Alternative Energy

Making Way For Bigger Turbines

New Hampshire, USA -- They stand as looming testaments to innovation, growing ever more prominent and powerful. Yet for much of 2011, wind installations remained somewhat obscured, eclipsed by the media storm surrounding the solar industry.

The truth of the matter is, however, that the wind industry bounced back from a disappointing 2010 with a surge in both installations and sales. The wind industry quietly and methodically continues to forge ahead, and today it dominates the renewable energy landscape in new installations.

Through October (the most recent numbers available by press time), the wind industry placidly posted three strong quarters behind a steady drop in prices and the realization that Congress may not extend the Production Tax Credit (PTC) past its December 2012 expiration date. According to the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), through the first three quarters of 2011, the wind industry installed 29 wind farms larger in total capacity than the biggest solar project installed during that same period.

With the wind industry eager to continue its momentum with or without the PTC, two things are clear: turbines must get bigger and engineers must work to drive down costs. It’s a proven formula that’s paying dividends beyond the traditional stronghold of the Midwest, as the technology becomes a bigger part of the landscape in places like New York, Massachusetts and Maine.

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1.1 Million Jobs Achieved In Europe

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You can just hear the naysayers claiming “It could never be done. There never could be one million green jobs.” Like many new things that do materialize eventually, it has come true.

According to information released by EuroObserv’ER, approximately 1.1 million people living in Europe have jobs in renewable energy. Yes, renewable energy, not coal, not oil, not fracking for natural gas.

Curiously, although this achievement is a tremendous accomplishment both in terms of clean energy production and in helping people learn new skills in an emerging industry while paying them, it doesn’t seem to have garnered much press, at least in the United States.

The report actually only used jobs data from 2010, so it is possible if they do another analysis to include the more recent numbers there could be even more jobs documented. The top renewable energy employers in Europe were biomass (273,000), solar photovoltaics (268,110), and wind (253,145). Next were biogas (52,810) and solar thermal (49,845) with ground source heat pumps, waste-to-energy, small hydro, and geothermal filling in the remainder.

One trend that points to the possibility there were even more renewable energy jobs added in 2011 is the fact nearly 70 percent of Europe’s new electricity capacity came from solar and wind power. An expanding clean energy industry obviously can translate into more jobs.

Another significant fact is the growth of over one million jobs in renewable energy took place during a very challenging economic period. If there had not been a global recession, the expansion might have been greater. So for the future, when there is economic growth and stabilization, the emerging renewable energy industry in Europe may experience another uptick in installations and in new jobs.

Perhaps one reason we in the U.S. don’t hear so much about clean energy successes in Europe, is that our own green jobs growth, which was claimed could have been up to five million during the 2008 campaign, has been far less with only about 225,000 resulting from government programs.




Contact me Tradd Duggan Milehighsolar@hotmail.com whether to Network, or for possible Business opportunities with your company.

Xcel Sets World Record With 55.6% Wind Energy Penetration

Colorado Energy Strikes Again
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November 29, 2011

Wind power has faced skepticism for many years (though most of it has come from, or been funded by, competing energy sources) on grounds that its variability cannot be accommodated on utility systems.

Xcel sets world record with 55.6% wind energy penetration
Minneapolis-based utility Xcel Energy set a world record early on the morning of Oct. 6, with 55.6 percent of the electricity on its Public Service of Colorado (PSCo) system between the hours of 4 and 5 a.m. coming from wind power, according to the Denver Post.

The Post's Mark Jaffe quoted AWEA's Manager of Transmission Policy, Michael Goggin, as saying that the previous record of 53 percent was achieved in Spain in 2009. According to the article, "Improved wind farm forecasting, energy trading and grid operating improvements are allowing more wind power to be used, Xcel executives said."

Wind power has faced skepticism for many years (though most of it has come from, or been funded by, competing energy sources) on grounds that its variability cannot be accommodated on utility systems. This is an odd claim, since utilities must already balance the amount of electricity they supply with frequent variations in customer demand, both throughout a typical day and from season to season during the year. Records like the one set by Xcel show just how little basis there is for the assertion that wind turbines cannot be integrated with other energy sources. To quote the Post's Jaffe, "Xcel's experience shows that greater penetration of wind power is possible and the lights will stay on."


Tom Gray, www.awea.org