Posted on 11/22/2006 10:17:48 AM PST by NormsRevenge
Several Southern California cities have abandoned plans to renew long-term contracts for coal-fired electricity, gambling on the availability of adequate alternative energy from cleaner sources.
Local officials told Utah-based Intermountain Power Agency on Monday they wouldn't be renewing their contracts for cheap, coal-fired power, which expire in 2027, and would instead be looking for available alternatives, from wind farms to desert solar power.
"It's a huge change," said Mayor Todd Campbell of Burbank, which is one of the cities that decided to not renew its contract. The others are Pasadena, Glendale, Riverside and Anaheim. They join the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, which had earlier rejected plans to renew the contract with Intermountain.
"I think everybody has decided basically not to renew at this time," said Intermountain's general manager Reed Searle. He said the company had worked for three years on the renewals and was now looking at ways to modernize its plants to bring them into compliance with California's landmark greenhouse-gas legislation that takes effect Jan. 1.
Utility managers said researching and building infrastructure to replace the use of coal-fired power will be a costly, risky business.
"It's a very challenging undertaking. All of these technologies are still in their infancy," said Phyllis Currie, general manager of Pasadena Water & Power. "We're still looking at the fact that right now, the Intermountain plant is 65 percent of our energy."
The cities' decision came after increased pressure from politicians and environmentalists.
Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., wrote a letter to an umbrella group for the cities last week saying she was "shocked and dismayed" by an initial decision last month by Burbank to renew the contract.
Staff members of several utilities met on Monday with state Sen. Don Perata, D-Oakland, who wrote the greenhouse gas legislation, to discuss the issue.
Currie said the utilities wanted to explain how important Intermountain was to California cities. "It's a serious issue when you tell us to walk away from that," she said.
The move could put the region in the forefront nationally of the commercial use of alternative energy in coming years.
Searle said Intermountain was exploring burning biomass instead of coal, or possible burial of carbon dioxide.
Intermountain also extended its renewal offer for any sort of power from the plants until 2023 from the previous deadline of next May. Utility officials hope state regulators will let them renew the contracts if greenhouse gases are reduced.
I hear that hampsters on a treadwell works.
Elephant in room says: Don't look at Nuclear Energy...EVER!
Wow! The next California energy crisis is shaping up before our eyes. Wonderful!
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." -Manuel II Paleologus
Going to be a GREAT market for wind powered cars
We'll see how "green" they are when it costs $50/day to run the AC:)
Anaheim too...Now I am nervous. Anaheim has always had cheap reliable electricity. It a cheaper, cleaner, more reliable source is ALREADY on the market, that's one thing. But to take such a big risk on unproven technology?????
Great..more companies moving out of California....energy to expensive.....
Apparently, intelligent people aren't leaving Kaleefoaneeah quickly enough for these folks.
I don't know why I am still amazed of how silly California can be.
WRONGO!! If only it were so. The new law bans the importation of coal-generated power.
Here's how this works:
They don't buy anything reliable.
They bet on a pig in polk.
End up paying very high spot oil prices.
Then sue the energy companies for gouging.
The enviro-wackos love the desert and don't want any development there. Wait until they discover that solar and wind will have to cover up all their precious desert to make any substantial power contribution.
The same enviro-kooks want to tear down Hetch Hetchy dam to restore the wilderness to its pristine, pre-human condition. Now they are going to discover these low energy-intensity "green" alternatives are going to require blighting thousands of more times the landscape than reservoirs and coal fired plants. I see the day in the not-so-distant future that the greens will want to stop the blight of wind and solar plants. Then what?
I think that would work. How about a whole string of nukes along the border?
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