FEEDBACK
Energy debate & switch
Co-ops can, must step up
January 26, 2009
At issue: Dec. 5 Herald-Leader news story:
"The meter's running; With costs rising, groups
urge conservation."
By Elizabeth Crowe
Andy Mead's article on energy efficiency sparked a critical conversation on the wasteful electricity usage among Kentucky's residents, businesses and industries.
Bob Marshall, CEO of East Kentucky Power Co-op in a subsequent column pointed out that EKPC member co-ops offer energy efficiency programs and implied they are doing everything to serve their customers.
The Kentucky Environmental Foundation, Sierra Club and Kentuckians for the Commonwealth reported in February that, if done right, energy efficiency and renewable energy are cheaper and safer for EKPC than building new coal-fired power plants.
Energy efficiency is more than a green image or a customer relations program; it is a viable solution to an economic, health and environmental problem spiraling out of control.
I think of it this way: If my daughter came home with a C in math, she could rightfully tell me that a C was better than a D, so I shouldn't complain. But she has the potential to do better. The American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE) ranks Kentucky 29th among states in spending on energy efficiency and 35th in overall energy efficiency programs. ACEEE each year issues a report on the best energy efficiency programs in the nation. Not one Kentucky co-op program has been mentioned.
This is the perfect time to boost energy efficiency and renewable energy programs.
Government support for efficiency measures and clean, renewable energy is increasing. The energy plans of Gov. Steve Beshear and President Barack Obama set higher goals for efficiency.
Efficiency and renewable energy are now cost-effective. Co-ops should not rely on their customers to pay higher prices for coal -- which will rise even more steeply with federal greenhouse gas regulation -- when estimates are that efficiency and renewable energy cost two to three cents less per kilowatt hour, even at current rates.
Kentucky's land and rivers are already devastated by mountaintop removal mining and disasters such as the 2001 sludge spill in Martin County and the massive coal ash spill in Tennessee last month. By contrast, solar panels, wind turbines, home weatherization materials and efficient appliances don't destroy the environment.
Last but definitely not least, coal plant emissions are hazardous to your health. Soot from coal-fired power plants causes and exacerbates asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, heart disease and cancer, and is linked to low birth weight. Coal plants are one of the largest sources of mercury, which causes developmental problems and is linked to autism and deficit disorders. Already the state has issued a warning that every river and stream in Kentucky contains unsafe levels of mercury. The prescription is simple: less electricity usage means less pollution which means less illness and death.
On a recent visit to Kentucky energy efficiency guru Glenn Cannon said, "energy efficiency isn't about sacrifice, it's about being smart." Some Kentucky co-ops have energy efficiency programs on their books and EKPC's search for new renewable energy sources is also encouraging. I think Kentucky co-op leaders and their customers are smart enough to see the good sense (and the cents) in ramped-up energy efficiency as a real solution to our high-cost energy problems.
EKPC would truly put its money where its mouth is by canceling plans for the Smith coal-fired power plant and seriously investing in energy efficiency and renewable energy.
Elizabeth Crowe is director of the Kentucky Environmental Foundation in Berea.