July 18,
2006
The Honorable Jennifer Granholm
Governor of Michigan
J. Peter Lark
Chairman, Public Service Commission
Dear Governor Granholm and Chairman Lark:
We commend you for calling for a
21st Century Energy Plan, and want to say how pleased we are that a
renewable portfolio standard will be part of that plan. We are especially gratified and heartened
that the Executive Directive emphasized planning for “reliable, safe, clean,
and affordable supply of energy for Michigan’s
future.” This letter provides our suggestions for how to meet this goal.
Michigan needs to take control of its energy
future. Instead of spending nearly $20
billion a year importing dirty, expensive non-renewable energy, we can act now
to create a smarter energy future for Michigan
by investing in homegrown energy efficiency and renewable energy sources such
as wind power. Energy efficiency and the
development of Michigan’s renewable energy resources will keep money in
Michigan’s economy, create thousands of jobs, directly and positively impact
electricity and natural gas prices, clean our air and water, reduce global
warming pollution, and give us a reliable, renewable source of energy. This should be the core strategy for Michigan’s long-term
electricity needs.
Michigan cannot afford to expend
limited resources building new coal-fired (or nuclear) power plants, rather
than recognizing our vast potential for tapping the cleanest, most reliable,
and safest resources – energy efficiency and renewable energy. Building new coal plants in particular is a
19th Century solution to our electricity needs, not a plan for the
21st Century.
Therefore, to make a truly
visionary, effective energy plan appropriate for the 21st Century,
we ask that it include the following crucial elements:
1. A
strong Renewable Portfolio Standard that captures all future growth in electric
generation capacity. The standard should
set a minimum binding target of 20% clean, renewable energy by 2020, including wind,
solar, clean biomass and landfill gas. This
will require binding targets leading up to 2020 and the targeted use of tax
incentives, removal of barriers to renewable energy development, and a set of
standard offer contracts for electricity produced from renewable sources.
2. An
immediate restarting of Michigan
utility energy efficiency programs, with a secure funding mechanism (such as a
system benefits fund) and specific targeted reductions to assure that energy
efficiency will be fully integrated as a utility system resource. Since efficiency programs can save electricity
at half the cost of building, fueling and operating a new power plant, energy
efficiency should be Michigan’s top priority electric resource.
3. A
strategic incorporation of other important energy efficiency policies,
including appliance efficiency standards legislation; updating building codes;
and implementing the Economic Development & Growth through Energy
Efficiency (EDGE2) recommendations. The
plan should prioritize better alignment of energy market signals with public goals
that include energy efficiency and healthier air; for instance, Michigan should explore
ways to decouple utility company profits from energy sales revenue.
4. Consideration
of new baseload coal or nuclear facilities only as a last resort option after
maximizing energy efficiency and renewable energy generation. Michigan should not allow any new coal or
nuclear facility to be built unless all the costs – including societal cost of
global warming and public health and the probable cost of additional pollution
control requirements – are fully considered when utility investment decisions
are made. Moreover, new baseload
generation should not unduly burden customers or taxpayers.
5. An
overhaul of the model for projected demand and economic impact used in the Capacity
Needs Forum (CNF) report. The 21st
Century energy plan originally relied on the assumption of 2% annual
electricity demand used in the CNF
report. This assumption, which is
at the heart of the conclusion that Michigan
requires new coal plants, must be revised from the ground up, given the new
demand projections of approximately 1% growth per year. Moreover, the CNF focused only on price per
kilowatt-hour and ignored the environmental, health and larger economic effects
of various means of producing power. It
ignored the many surveys indicating strong public support for renewable energy
(even at higher prices) and it ignored the improved reliability and safety that
results from reducing energy usage and relying on smaller, distributed power
sources. Therefore, the model
overemphasized coal and underemphasized energy efficiency and renewable energy,
and cannot form a basis for a 21st Century energy plan.
Michigan’s energy future is at a crossroads. We can continue to follow our current energy
path where ever-increasing demand leads to ever-increasing reliance on fossil
fuels and nuclear power with mounting economic, environmental and health
consequences. This leads to a future in
which Michigan’s homes and businesses spend
more than is needed on energy, Michigan’s
energy dollars continue to pour into other states and countries to pay for our
imported energy fuels, and tremendous economic growth opportunities related to
clean energy remain untapped. Or, Michigan
can move toward a new, smarter energy future.
This future conserves energy, uses it efficiently and relies on
indigenous resources, thus investing in our state’s economy, saving money,
protecting the Great Lakes and our air
quality, and decreasing demand for more energy.
We hope and expect that the 21st Century Energy Plan will
include our suggestions, which have strong public support, and move Michigan in the right
direction.
Michigan
cannot afford to wait any longer to begin serious work on a smarter, cleaner,
and lower-cost energy future.
Sincerely,
Mike
Shriberg, Ph.D.
Director, Environment Michigan
David
Pettit
Consumer Advocate, PIRGIM (Public Interest Research Group in Michigan)
Martin Kushler, Ph.D.
Director, Utilities Program, American Council for an Energy-Efficient
Economy
Patty Gillis
Coordinator, MI Interfaith Climate and Energy
Campaign/Voices for Earth Justice
Ken Dahlberg
Michigan Land Trustees
David Gard
Energy Program Director, Michigan Environmental Council
Aileen Gow
Executive Director, Urban Options, Inc.
Tom Bissonnette
MS, RN
Executive
Director, Michigan Nurses
Association
Rev. Charles M. Morris
Director, Michigan Interfaith Power & Light
Charles Griffith
Auto Project Director, Ecology Center
Anne Woiwode
Director, Michigan Sierra Club
Jennifer
Alvarado
Executive Director, Great
Lakes Renewable Energy
Association
David
Holtz
Director, Clean Water Action, Michigan
Zoe
Lipman
Program Manager, National Wildlife Federation, Great Lakes Office
