WisBusiness: Draft interim global warming report would change windmill siting rules, stress conservation

By Brian E. Clark

WisBusiness.com

MADISON – Wind farms in Wisconsin would face fewer local restrictions and commercial and residential building codes would be tightened under recommendations included in a draft interim report from the Governor’s Global Warming Task Force.

The report, obtained by WisBusiness.com, stresses energy efficiency while focusing primarily on actions that can be taken by electric utilities.

A spokeswoman for Roy Thilly, co-chair of the task force, said he could not discuss the document until it has been voted on Tuesday. The group will meet from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the main conference room of Wisconsin Public Power Inc., 1425 Corporate Center Dr., Sun Prairie.

The draft report says the state’s Public Service Commission (PSC) should change rate-making policy to encourage conservation and that the agency should begin work immediately on proposed policy changes.

It also recommends that the state set a goal to reduce electric load by 2 percent and natural gas load by 1 percent per year by 2015 through increasing Focus on Energy, utility and self-directed industrial customer programs and through ratemaking policy changes.

And while it says there’s no silver bullet to blunting the effects of climate change, the report says the task force endorses a “silver buckshot strategy” that will use various tactics to reduce greenhouse gases now.

The document says the PSC will have its work cut out for it in balancing the needs to reduce energy consumption, control carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and keep long-term utility costs down while limiting the negative impacts on people with low incomes as well as businesses that operate in “highly competitive environments.”

“It costs much less to save a kilowatt-hour of electricity than it does to build a new power plant to produce that kilowatt-hour, particularly from a new power plant with no or low GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions,” according to the report.

“Substantially increasing energy efficiency use also is essential to keep Wisconsin industry competitive,” it says.

“Reducing industrial energy consumption not only will provide a very cost effective way to meet conservation and efficiency goals, but also will benefit all energy users by helping to defer the need for new, expensive power plants, while helping industry remain competitive by lowering operating costs.”

Though some members have discussed nuclear energy in interviews and at recent forums, the interim report doesn’t consider building new nuclear plants in Wisconsin.

A final report, which is due out in May, is expected to deal with ways the transportation, land use policy, agriculture, forestry and industrial sectors can cut carbon dioxide emissions.

“There is no silver bullet solution to climate change,” the report says.

“Instead, the Task Force will propose a silver buckshot strategy that requires action across all sectors of the economy to reduce Wisconsin’s emissions substantially, increase the state’s emissions offset capacity and simultaneously grow the state’s economy by taking advantage of the business and job opportunities presented by this challenge.

“All available, cost-effective tools must be used and everyone must contribute to the solution. Early action is important for a number of reasons. First, the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions occurring today will affect climate change for many years into the future.

“The sooner those emissions are reduced, the easier it will be to address the need for substantial long-term reductions in a cost effective manner. Second, early action will reduce the magnitude and ease the impacts of mandatory requirements that may be imposed in the future and thereby reduce long-term compliance costs.”

In the arena of windmill siting, which has been contentious in many Wisconsin counties, the report recommends that “legislation be adopted to require the Public Service Commission to create uniform standards for the siting of large and small wind systems.”

It also calls for a modification of the siting approval process to provide for needed review by the PSC as appropriate.

“These changes are suggested because of varying application by local units of government of the existing law on siting of small wind systems.

“Uniformity in the standards and process will ensure equity to developers and all local communities, and will enable needed wind projects to be built safely in Wisconsin to support the state’s renewal portfolio standard,” says the report, which also recommends looking at siting windmills in Lake Michigan and Lake Superior.

To tighten building standards, the report recommends that Wisconsin pass legislation that would incorporate the latest International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) into Wisconsin’s residential/multi-family and commercial energy code to reduce long-term greenhouse gas emissions.

“The ultimate aim of this effort would be to achieve net zero energy commercial buildings by 2030 and residential buildings within 10 years thereafter,” the report says. “These goals will drive the development of effective, innovative policies for use of customer-side renewable applications.”

The draft also suggests establishing a voluntary, high performance, green building code – with incentives – to help the state and others achieve even greater efficiency savings from new buildings.

“Early action is important because building energy efficient structures is less costly than retrofitting buildings and greater GHG reductions will be gained,” it says.