But having just returned from a cross country trip through North Dakota and Montana I still don't quite get what is the hangup about investing in wind across the big plains. Winona LaDuke seems to have a huge project going "Wind not War" that addresses many of the same issues. The Sahara of wind begins on the west banks of that Grandfather River.
Again though the Crown Hydro project is demonstrating another alternative. So maybe this discussion is the proverbially "mixing of apples and oranges" . Yet, at the only falls on the Mississippi River is this the right place and time for such a demonstration. Having just invested millions in the riverfront Mill Ruins Park this complex issue bears looking at various angles to the deal.
Thanks to all for their input - keep your remarks right on coming, I use them as a springboard for developing my thinking in order to make a good decision on issues.
Annie Young
citywide Park Commissioner
At 06:50 PM 4/10/04 -0500, Mark Snyder wrote:
On 4/9/04 12:23 AM, "Chris Johnson" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
Thanks to Chris Johnson for sharing these extensive highlights.
> * Young states she is a big supporter of renewable energy with no pollution
> [Young needs some educating on the environmental aspects of hydro power if she
> things it is 100% clean power]. She would prefer a 25 year lease with option
> to renew for 25 years, instead of the 50 year lease with 50 year renew as
> proposed.
In defense of Commissioner Young, while the Crown Hydro project has its issues, pollution is not really one of them from what I have seen. This isn't like Manitoba Hydro in Canada, for example.
I recall a number of pollution issues associated with hydro power that were cited a few weeks ago by Chris:
http://www.mnforum.org/pipermail/mpls/2004-March/031511.html
However, I'm not sure which, if any, of those would really be issues on a project of this scale or at this location, to name a couple of factors that would have to be accounted for when considering pollution impacts. Granted, hydro power is not my strength, so if I'm overlooking something, I hope someone will educate me and the rest of us.
> * Young is concerned about the $1.1 million that Crown Hydro will use from the
> state's renewable energy fund. The Crown Hydro project will build 3.6
> megawatts of power at about $3,000 per kilowatt. Wind power can be built for
> about $1,000 per kilowatt. Wouldn't that $1.1 million perhaps be better
> invested in wind power?
One small point - The Crown Hydro project was approved for $5.1 million from the Xcel Energy Renewable Development Fund - not $1.1 million. I'm not sure where this $1.1 million figure comes from, but it's wrong and needs to be corrected as it seems to have grown a life of it's own...
For details, see:
http://www.xcelenergy.com/XLWEB/CDA/0,3080,1-1-1_4359_8118_2716-2239-5_406_6 64-0,00.html
If the above breaks, go to: http://makeashorterlink.com/?H27D32AF7
Regardless of the specific amount of funding supplied by the Renewable Development Fund, this is the big problem that I have with the Crown Hydro proposal and I was one person (there may have been others) who pointed out that cost differential to Commissioner Young. Whether the funding is public or private, spending $3000 per kilowatt on the Crown Hydro project that's going to be fed directly into Xcel's grid doesn't make much sense when there are abundant wind resources in this state still to be tapped that could go into that same grid at a third of the cost.
More specifically, using $5.1 million out of the limited Renewable Development Fund monies on this project is silly when you could generate 50% more electricity through wind just on that money alone, not including the other $5 million that would be needed to make Crown Hydro happen.
Especially since the public sentiment on this Crown Hydro proposal so far appears to be negative.
On a different note, if I'm reading Chris's highlights correctly, it sounds like the Park Board denied the request for a memorial plaque at Van Cleve Park.
Yet the MN Daily reported that the request was approved.
http://www.mndaily.com/articles/2004/04/09/9174
Can someone help me out here?
Mark Snyder Windom Park
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