Pickens Plan District Group VT-01

Comment

Comment by Mark Shand on February 26, 2009 at 5:57am

Virtual March on Washington video, from T. Boone Pickens!

Comment by Mark Shand on February 10, 2009 at 2:15pm

From the website of NRG.com a local Vermont Wind Measurment company.

Wind in Vermont

Vermont generates less than one percent of its power from the wind now, but this may change, as wind is fast becoming a cost-competitive form of generating electricity. Conservatively, industry experts believe that developing just a half dozen of the best sites in Vermont could produce 10% of the state’s electricity. At this time, only one commercial wind project is operating in Vermont — generating just 6 megawatts of power — leaving this clean energy source largely untapped in the Green Mountain State.

Vermont’s Operating Wind Energy Projects

Searsburg: The Searsburg project marked Vermont’s entry into commercial-scale wind power with the development of Vermont’s first utility-owned wind farm in 1996. Eleven wind turbines generate approximately 14 million kilowatt-hours per year, enough electricity to supply the annual electricity needs of 2,000 average households. Green Mountain Power Corporation received supplemental funding from the Department of Energy (DOE) and Electric Power Research Institute to fund this project.

Vermont’s Proposed Wind Energy Projects

Mt. Equinox: This proposed project would be on Little Mount Equinox in Manchester. The project would have the ability to generate 23 million kilowatt hours or enough to power 4,000 homes.

Lowell Mountain: This proposed project would consist of 12 to 26 turbines (20 to 40 MW) that could provide electricity for up to 13,000 homes. The project is in the early stages of data collection and environmental assessment to determine its feasibility.

Searsburg Expansion: Green Mountain Power Corporation and EnXco are exploring a 20- to 30-turbine expansion of the Searsburg wind farm. The additional turbines would increase the capacity of the project to 40 megawatts—and is expected to produce enough electricity to meet the annual average electricity needs of 13,000 homes.

Sheffield/Sutton: UPC modified its original plans to install 20 wind turbines on Hardscrabble Mountain, reducing the project to 16 2.5 megawatt wind turbines and eliminating the installation of turbines on Hardscrabble. The 40-megawatt project, which proposes to install two turbines in Sutton and 14 in Sheffield, will generate enough electricity to power 15,000 homes.

Grandpa’s Knob (Pittsford area): Noble Environmental has plans to develop a 50-megawatt wind farm on Grandpa’s Knob near Pittsford. The Public Service Board has approved the installation of two measurement towers on the site, which was the birthplace of large scale wind with the installation of the world’s first utility scale wind turbine in the 1940s.

Comment by Mark Shand on February 10, 2009 at 1:50pm

Hello Jim and the Group,
I just sent an e-mail to NRG looking for there thoughts on the Pickens plan. I can only hope to get a response. It's amazing how a Vermont company can be a global force in changing the way energy can be supplied to communities around the world.

Comment by Jim Spencer on February 9, 2009 at 11:58am

I subscribe to this committee and get emailings about committee activity. Here's the first one I've received.

Jim





The Weekly Preview

February 9 – 13, 2009

On the House Floor:

· During the week, the House of Representatives is expected to consider the following bill, subject to a rule:

o S. 22 (Bingaman): “Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009”

This Week’s Hearings:

Can’t make it to our hearings or markups in person? Stay connected with our live and archived video and audio webcasts, available at http://resourcescommittee.house.gov.

On Wednesday, the Committee on Natural Resources will hold the first in a three-part series of oversight hearings on offshore drilling during the month of February. With the expiration of the moratorium protecting the Atlantic and Pacific coasts from offshore drilling, a big question facing the Congress and the Obama Administration is where and how new oil and gas exploration should occur. The first hearing will feature perspectives from environmental, tourism, and fishing groups. The following witnesses are scheduled to testify: Mr. Ted Danson, Oceana; Mr. Philippe Cousteau, Ocean Conservancy; Ms. Carolyn McCormick, Managing Director, Outer Banks (NC) Visitors Bureau; Mr. D.T. Minich, President, St. Petersburg/Clearwater Area Convention & Visitors Bureau; Mr. Zeke Grader, Executive Director, Pacific Coast Federation of Fisherman’s Associations; Mr. Bruce Allen, Co-Founder, Stop Oil Seeps California; and Mr. Jefferson Angers, President, Center for Coastal Conservation. The Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources will continue the in-depth look at offshore drilling through a number of hearings beginning in March.
Visit the Committee’s Web site to access witness testimony following the conclusion of the hearing. (February 11, 2009, at 10:00 a.m., Room 1324 Longworth House Office Building)

On Thursday, the Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources will hold a legislative hearing on the “Coal Ash Reclamation, Environment, and Safety Act of 2009” (H.R. 493), legislation introduced by House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Nick Rahall to establish federal standards to ensure the structural integrity of impoundments used to dispose of coal ash – the residue which remains after the combustion of coal at electric utility power plants. H.R. 493 directs the Interior Department to set uniform design, engineering and inspection standards for coal ash impoundments like the one which collapsed at a power plant in Tennessee in December 2008. These standards would be similar to the requirements the agency already has in place for impoundments that hold coal waste generated at mines, as mandated by the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977. The legislation would also require a comprehensive inventory and assessment of coal ash impoundments nationwide. The Subcommittee will hear from federal and state officials, as well as individuals representing industry and environmental groups.
Visit the Committee’s Web site to access witness testimony following the conclusion of the hearing or to view the press release or fact sheet, released upon introduction of H.R. 493, with additional information. (February 12, 2009, at 10:00 a.m., Room 1324 Longworth House Office Building)

In Case You Missed It:

On January 15, Chairman Rahall introduced a joint resolution invoking the Congressional Review Act to overturn the highly controversial gutting of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) pushed through by the Bush Administration during its waning days in office. H.J. Res. 18 seeks to overturn the last-minute, ill-advised action by the Bush Administration to do away with the ESA's cornerstone Section 7 consultation process, a move that essentially gives federal agencies an unacceptable degree of discretion to decide on their own whether or not to comply with the law. Visit the Committee’s Web site to view the press release or fact sheet with additional information.
On January 22, Chairman Rahall and Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands Chairman Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ) introduced the “Grand Canyon Watersheds Protection Act of 2009” (H.R. 644), legislation to prevent mining for uranium and other minerals on approximately one million acres near the Grand Canyon. The legislation will withdraw the lands near the Grand Canyon from mineral exploration under the 1872 Mining Law. Visit the Committee’s Web site to view the press release with additional information.
On January 27, Chairman Rahall introduced legislation to reform the antiquated 1872 Hardrock Mining Law that has allowed large corporations to extract hardrock minerals from public lands in the West with no royalties paid to the American people. The “Hardrock Mining and Reclamation Act of 2009” (H.R. 699) would end the financial and environmental abuses permitted by the 1872 Mining Law by imposing a royalty on the production of hardrock minerals on federal lands, similar to the royalties paid by coal, oil and gas industries for the disposition of these public resources. Visit the Committee’s Web site to view the press release with additional information.
On February 3, Chairman Rahall called for the replacement of the current U.S. Commissioner to the International Whaling (IWC), amid growing criticisms that holdover political appointees of the Bush Administration are proposing to dismantle the current worldwide ban on commercial whaling. Visit the Committee’s Web site to view the press release and the text of the letter.
On February 3, Chairman Rahall urged the Commerce Department to dismiss efforts by the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council to control offshore aquaculture permitting in federal waters. In October 2008, Rahall called on the Gulf Council and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to discontinue their haphazard approach to the development of an offshore aquaculture permitting system on a Council by Council basis. Visit the Committee’s Web site to view the press release and the text of the letter.
On February 4, the Committee on Natural Resources held an organizational meeting to adopt the Committee Rules and agree to an oversight plan. Visit the Committee Web site to the view the Committee Members and Subcommittee assignments for the 111th Congress.
Quotable Quote:

“I am pleased to welcome such a diverse group of Members, both new and returning, to the Natural Resources Committee. The broad array of issues under our jurisdiction - from national parks and forests, to oceans and wildlife, and public lands and waters - affects and enriches the lives of millions of Americans, including those residing in the U.S. Territories and on Indian reservations. Although the Members of this Committee may hail from different corners of the Nation, both near and far, we share a common interest in working to fulfill our many stewardship and trust responsibilities.”

– Chairman Rahall, after announcing the roster of Members who will serve on each of the four Subcommittees for the 111th Congress on February 4, 2009.

Calendar:

Click on the text within the calendar to be linked directly to our Web site.

Monday

2/9
Tuesday

2/10
Wednesday

2/11
Thursday

2/12
Friday

2/13







Full Committee Oversight Hearing: “Offshore Drilling: Environmental and Commercial Perspectives” (10:00 AM)




Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources: Legislative Hearing on H.R. 493 (10:00 AM)





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Allyson L. Groff

Communications Director

Committee on Natural Resources

U.S. House of Representatives

202.226.9019

http://resourcescommittee.house.gov

Comment by Jim Spencer on February 9, 2009 at 6:20am

Team, this a great article.

I suggest we divy up the list and contact these companies about the Pickens Plan to see if they'll sign on.

Jim

Comment by Mark Shand on February 9, 2009 at 5:09am

Green jobs the ‘future’ in Vermont
By Candace Page • Free Press Staff Writer • February 9, 2009
Commerce Secretary Kevin Dorn knows every state has its eyes fixed on the jobs created by green businesses. Every state is competing to woo alternative energy companies and “green tech” high-technology firms.

Even without the deep pockets of bigger, richer states, Vermont can and must compete, he said.

“This is the future,” he said. “Every place in the world wants the green jobs, because that’s the future. People look at products differently now, and having a green component helps market your product.”

There is no reliable count of the work force of Vermont’s green businesses or consensus about how to define a “green” company. The state Labor Department says the green work force remains small — perhaps a few thousand of the 300,000 jobs in Vermont.

Dorn and industry leaders believe changing markets and changing government policies will drive green job growth.

Last year’s soaring energy prices and worries about climate change drove new demand for wind, solar and bio-energy, as well as energy efficiency. The federal economic stimulus package under consideration in Washington is expected to power job growth in all these areas.

At the Vermont Energy Investment Corp., policy director Blair Hamilton estimates that just one piece of the stimulus package — $10 million for weatherization in Vermont — could create 100 to 200 new jobs.


A study commissioned by the American Solar Energy Society forecast that by 2030 the country could have 16 million to nearly 40 million jobs directly or indirectly related to renewable energy and energy efficiency.

“The potential is huge,” said Jan Blittersdorf, president of NRG Systems, a Hinesburg manufacturer of wind-measuring devices. “Until the credit problem, we had had 18 straight record months of sales growth. Once this problem takes care of itself, I expect we’ll be back on that path.”

“In a sector like ‘green,’ it is such a natural connection for Vermont. Our environmental ethic is widely known and it’s a good marketing tool for us” in attracting job-creating green businesses, said Economic Development Commissioner Betsy Bishop.

The state recruits out-of-state businesses at national trade shows, and last year offered tax-credit incentives for green businesses to add jobs.
But University of Vermont economist Art Woolf said the state shouldn’t count its chickens yet. He sees only modest potential for growth here.

“A reputation as a green state doesn’t make a whole lot of difference in terms of someone deciding where they are going to locate a facility,” he said.

“I’m sure there will be a few more construction jobs in energy efficiency, but I don’t think it will be extremely noticeable,” he said. “And if you’re talking about building windmills and that kind of stuff, it is highly unlikely we will have a significant presence in that industry.”

Vermont doesn’t make sense as a place to manufacture such things as wind turbines, he said, because the state is distant from most markets and doesn’t have a work force with special expertise in skills like metal fabrication.

What’s a “green” job? There’s no agreement on that basic question.
“If I work at a green-certified hotel, does that make my job green? What if I make windmills, but I use a lot of chemicals in the manufacturing, am I a green job?” asks state Labor Commissioner Pat Moulton Powden.

When Powden’s department tried to count last year, they arrived only at a rough figure, one that certainly overestimates the number of jobs, she said.

“We came up with over 1,000 establishments engaged in what might be considered green sectors. They have 6,766 jobs, but we know not all those jobs are green,” she said.

Renewable Energy Vermont, a trade group, says the state’s 50 renewable energy businesses employed 546 workers in 2007 with total compensation of $36 million.

Vermont’s low-income weatherization program employs 90 people; private contractors employ dozens more.

Small environmental engineering and consulting firms, waste management firms, contractors learning to construct new homes to rigorous sustainability standards also generally fall into the “green” category. No one knows their total employment.

Some green businesses have grown into significant employers. One of the largest is Vermont Energy Investment Corp. in Burlington, which manages energy efficiency programs across the country. VEIC employs about 170 people and expects to add at least 20 to 30 jobs this year, Executive Director Scott Johnstone said.

More common are the small employers, people like Chip Patullo, an energy audit/weatherization contractor in Burlington. He employs two people and might expand.

“Right now we’re busy, while most everybody else in the construction business is hungry,” he said. “But I’m being cautious. I’ve expanded and contracted several times since I started in 1995.”


The job listings at Northern Power Systems, a wind turbine company in Barre Town, read like this last week: engineer, engineer, engineer, engineer, engineer, logistics manager, senior buyer, engineer, engineer.

“Yes, we need high-level engineering, but that’s not all,” Maureen McCracken, the company’s marketing manager, said. “For every turbine we sell there is a whole set of jobs that come with it.”

Down the road at solar installer groSolar in White River, founder and CEO Jeff Wolfe is looking for an accountant, a sales manager, a marketing vice president, a solar installer and support staff in sales and human resources.

“The two things I need are people with a good high school degree, and people with a good college degree. After that, I can take care of training them for our business,” Wolfe said.

Blittersdorf, at NRG, said engineers with wind-energy experience are particularly hard to find. But otherwise, the fast-growing field will need employees of all kinds.

“My advice would be — go get a skill, whatever it is, then choose where you will apply that skill. Growing companies need everybody,” she said.

Most NRG employees hold at least two-year college degrees, she said. A two-year electronics degree, or a two-year mechanical technician degree, from Vermont Technical College equips someone for a manufacturing job at NRG, she said.

Vermont Technical College has added a number of programs to prepare students for work in green technology. The first seven students in its Sustainable Design and Technology program will graduate this spring.

“It’s not just education in technology. This is designed to produce people who can talk across disciplines, so an employer can put them behind a sales counter or on a sales team,” said Joan Richmond-Hall, the program’s director.

The school’s Center for Sustainable Practices runs three-day certification courses for weatherization installers and is developing a similar course for solar installers.

Greg Wigginton of Salisbury offers himself as evidence that not every green job requires an advanced engineering degree. He left high school before graduating, but has raised a family on his pay at his weatherization job.

Wigginton had been working in construction when he took a job in 1991 as a weatherization installer for the Champlain Valley Office of Economic Opportunity.

He’s been promoted three times, but in the beginning the job wasn’t always a pleasant one, crawling around in basements and under mobile homes to close air leaks. The job paid $8.25 an hour (starting pay runs $10 to $12 now).

But, like many who work in environmental services or renewable energy, he found satisfaction in a larger mission.

“You see a lot of people who don’t have a lot, and that is one thing that drew me to this. I’m enriching lives, even though I’m not getting rich. You can make a difference. That’s why I’ve been here so long,” he said.

Contact Candace Page at 660-1865 or cpage@bfp.burlingtonfreepress.com. To have Free Press headlines delivered free to your e-mail, sign up at www.burlingtonfreepress.com/newsletters.

< in ‘green’ itxtvisited="1">
The Agency of Commerce and Community Development has compiled a list of 28 “green companies” operating in the state. They include:
Environmental engineering <

• URS Corp., global company; opened Rutland office in 2007.
• VHB Pioneer Environmental Associates, 23-person firm in Vergennes, acquired by Massachusetts company in 2008.

Alternative energy

• Northern Power Systems, Barre Town; specializes in 100-150 kilowatt wind turbines.

• groSolar, White River Junction, “one of the nation’s largest solar energy providers.”

• NRG Systems, Hinesburg, leading manufacturer of wind measurement systems.
• DC Energy Innovations, North Hero, service business.

Alternative fuels

• Biocardel Vermont LLC, Swanton, manufacturer of biodiesel fuel
• New Tech Energy, Brookfield, startup biodiesel business.

Environmental technologies

• Clean Earth Technologies, Ferrisburgh; makes equipment for cleaning up oil spills.
• Vermont Natural Coatings, Hardwick; makes whey-based wood finishes.
• LED Dynamics, Randolph, LED lighting system designer.
• Foam Tech, North Thetford; installs environmentally friendly foam insulation.
• Winter Panel, Brattleboro, insulated foam panel manufacturers.

Comment by Jim Spencer on February 8, 2009 at 7:17pm

I've emailed Earth Turbines about a meeting. I'm suggesting there may be traction in mutual cooperation and support. I'll let you know if something comes from it.

Comment by Jim Spencer on February 4, 2009 at 8:05pm

Team, he op ed piece is finally in print. It was in Monday's Free Press. Here's the link. http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/article/20090202/OPINION/902020308/1006

Does anyone know if it's been in the Rutland Herald yet?

Regards,
Jim Spencer

Comment by Jim Spencer on February 3, 2009 at 3:50pm

News from the front. Keep up the calls, the message is getting through.

Jim

From the desk of T. Boone Pickens
Hey Army! We’re in the trenches and it’s hand-to-hand combat!

Yesterday I did a conference call with the national press along with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev) and former White House Chief of Staff, John Podesta, to discuss the Energy Summit in Washington, DC later this month.

The big news for the New Energy Army is that both Sen. Reid and Mr. Podesta talked about the importance of natural gas as a transportation fuel in reducing our need for foreign oil.

Yesterday, Sen. Reid said: “If we’re going to convert these big trucks into natural gas, there needs to be some kick in the rear there to get it done. It can’t be done by the private sector alone. This is something that we need to take a look at.”

John Podesta – who was the head of President Obama’s Transition Team - told the reporters that we are going to have to use “natural gas to be able to power, particularly, large trucks and busses.”

I made sure the reporters knew that these “low” oil prices are temporary. I told them, “we will be at $60 oil within two months and by the end of the year we will be on our way to $75 oil.”

This morning I talked with a senior Republican Senator and his staff about the need for those incentives to get 18-wheelers changed over from imported diesel to domestic natural gas. He’s assured us he’s looking at how best to get that into the stimulus package.

If we have a Senior Democrat and a Senior Republican on the same page, that’s a good sign. Harry Reid has stepped up for me and for the Pickens Plan from day one. If he says he is going to push for natural gas, I believe we can take him at his word.

Here’s what you’ve already done: In the last 48 hours you have sent over 30,000 emails to your Senators. I think what I’ve just shared with you proves they are listening.

I need you to keep doing what you’re doing — and I’ll be back as events develop.

We’re getting close, here. Let’s keep the pressure on!

-Boone

Comment by Jim Spencer on February 3, 2009 at 10:48am

For easy reference, here is the information for our Senators:

Senator Patrick Leahy
433 Russell Senate Office Bldg
United States Senate
Washington, DC 20510
(202) 224-4242
http://leahy.senate.gov/contact.cfm

199 Main Street, 4th Floor
Burlington, VT 05401
(802) 863-2525
1-800-642-3193

Senator Bernie Sanders
332 Dirksen Building
U.S Senate
Washington, D.C. 20510
202.224.5141
202.228.0776 fax
http://www.sanders.senate.gov/comments/

1 Church St.
2nd Floor
Burlington, VT 05401
802.862.0698
800.339.9834 - in VT
802.860.6370 fax

Jim Spencer

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