Idaho Power honors Nancy Hirsh

NW Energy Coalition executive director Nancy Hirsh was honored for her clean energy advocacy during the Coalition’s recent Clean and Affordable Energy Conference in Boise. Idaho Power customer relations and energy efficiency manager Theresa Drake thanked Hirsh for her 13 years of service on the utility’s Energy Efficiency Advisory Group and presented her with an etched glass award.

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Energy experts flock to Boise for Coalition's spring conference

The NW Energy Coalition’s spring 2015 Clean and Affordable Energy Conference drew an impressive array of Northwest business, utility, regulatory, science and conservation experts and leaders to Boise, Idaho, on May 29-30. On Friday, more than 100 came to hear and participate in lively discussions of critical Northwest energy challenges. Aimée Christensen, who guided Google’s first climate and energy initiatives, started things off with a keynote address linking local and global climate action. Subsequent speakers referred to her remarks throughout the day.

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Spring conference to feature panel on the needs and costs for new transmission

Please join us for the NW Clean & Affordable Energy Conference, May 29-30 in Boise. A panel of experts will address the needs and costs of the Boardman to Hemingway and Gateway West transmission lines. These high-voltage transmission lines currently slated for construction in Idaho aim to improve reliability, handle a higher load and incorporate additional renewable energy sources. Opponents question whether the lines are needed and if the costs are justifiable. This panel will address the needs and opportunity costs associated with the construction of these two transmission lines.

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Unclouding the Council's crystal ball: What we look at changes everything

Scenario planning lies at the heart of the analysis used to develop the 7th Northwest Power and Conservation Plan. The Northwest Power and Conservation Council wants your help in selecting and shaping the scenarios to be used. The 7th Plan will guide utilities’ energy choices, theoretically for the next 20 years and practically for at least five. Please look over the proposed scenarios and let the Council – and us – know which ones they must consider seriously while developing the 7th Plan.

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Tell BPA to fulfill its energy efficiency commitments

Your help is needed to bolster Bonneville Power Administration’s commitment to energy efficiency. BPA is examining energy efficiency financing issues as part of a supplemental budget process and has floated two troublesome proposals: one to cut $10 million from the efficiency budget over the next rate period; the other to shift from capitalizing energy efficiency to expensing it. BPA needs to hear from stakeholders throughout the region that both of these ideas run counter to the region’s best interests.

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Idaho Statesman guest opinion: Idaho needs a plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions

Ken Miller of Snake River Alliance eloquently makes the case for a greenhouse gas reduction plan in Idaho. Miller points out that so long as Idaho utilities burn coal, their customers will be on the hook for inevitable regulatory costs. If Idaho doesn’t create its own emissions reduction plan, the state will face legal costs and the federal government may write the plan instead. Ken Miller will be one of our featured panelists at the NW Clean & Affordable Energy Conference May 29-30 in Boise.

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Lower load growth expectations for 7th Plan don't reduce importance of energy efficiency

Northwest Power and Conservation Council staff expect significantly slower growth in energy demand over the next 20 years than was predicted in the 6th regional power plan five years ago. This means we can meet an even higher percentage of new load with energy efficiency – saving more money for families and businesses, reducing our reliance on fossil fuels and cleanly powering our growing fleet of electric vehicles. Realizing those savings, and their benefits, will be a primary 7th Plan goal for clean and affordable energy advocates throughout the Northwest.

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Webinar on utility-scale wind and natural gas peaking plants this Thursday, 10-11:30 a.m. PST

As part of developing the region’s 7th Power Plan, the Northwest Power and Conservation Council’s power committee is holding a webinar on specific generation resources tomorrow — Thursday, Jan. 29 — from 10 to 11:30 a.m. Pacific time. The posted agenda items are (1) assessment of natural gas natural gas peaking plants (single-cycle combustion turbines or SCCTs and reciprocating engines) and (2) assessment of onshore utility-scale wind.

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Washington and Idaho members will lead the Northwest Power and Conservation Council in 2015

The Northwest Power and Conservation Council this month elected Washington and Idaho members to lead the four-state energy and fish and wildlife planning agency in 2015. Phil Rockefeller, appointed to the Council in 2011 by then-Governor Christine Gregoire, was elected chair of the Council. In 2014, Mr. Rockefeller served as chair of the Council’s Fish and Wildlife Committee. The Council also elected Idaho member Bill Booth as vice chair. Mr. Booth previously served in several Council leadership positions including two terms as chair, in 2008 and 2009.

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7th Power and Conservation Plan vehicle to clean energy future

Every five years, the region’s official power planning agency prepares an updated 20-year forecast of the Northwest’s electric power needs and a plan for how those needs should be met. The forthcoming 7th Plan will help us raise the bar higher, capitalize on our region’s clean energy success and set us on the course to a cleaner, more affordable and wildlife-friendly future. We need all hands on deck … starting now!

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