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4/12/2010
Rep. Huebsch: Global Warming Bill won't help the economy
A recent Gallup Poll shows that concerns about the environment and global warming have reached a 20-year low in the United States, according to the USA Today. Twenty-eight percent of those responding said they worried a great deal about global warming, a sharp decline from 41% just three years ago. Today, what people are concerned about is the economy. Fifty-three percent of those questioned said jump-starting economic growth is priority one, even if that means harming the environment.
Aware that their agenda has little chance of gaining traction with public sentiment where it’s at, environmentalists across the country - and especially in Wisconsin - have been promising that more expensive and less reliable energy and higher utility taxes will create jobs. They say these so-called green jobs will turn the economy around even though there’s no economic data anywhere on the globe to back them up.
The most recent report to poke holes in their claims came from California where the UCLA Anderson Forecast concluded that there is no sign that the demand for solar-panel installers, wind farm workers and other green positions will be strong enough to drive California’s unemployment rate below the national average. According to report author Jerry Nickelsburg, going green won’t drive the economy despite the hype. The forecast noted that California is well suited for both wind and solar power thanks to its windy coastlines and mountain passes and massive deserts. But it added that even with those advantages, California shouldn’t expect an influx of green jobs or economic growth.
Wind farms can only be counted on to produce 20-40% of their total capacity, compared with 75% for coal and over 90% for nuclear. The intermittent nature of wind doesn’t just mean that the turbines can’t replace electricity generated by more reliable fossil. It also means they may require more coal and natural gas-fired generation as a back-up. What’s more, while their construction may mean temporary jobs, the number of people needed to run a wind farm once its on-line is in the single digits.
According to a recent report by the London Times, 20 of Britain’s wind farms combined produced less than a fifth of their potential maximum power output. Michael Jefferson, professor of international business and sustainability at London Metropolitan Business School, says Britain’s generous subsidies for wind power have encouraged developers to build on sites that aren’t ideal for wind generation. Representatives of the wind industry defend the system that requires electric consumers to pay double the normal price for energy from wind because Britain needs the “green energy” to meet renewable mandates.
If Governor Doyle’s Global Warming bill becomes law, Wisconsin may well be in the same catch-22. The bill requires 25% of the energy used in Wisconsin to be generated by renewable sources by 2025 and it will cost utility customers $15 billion to meet this goal, according to Public Service Commission of Wisconsin data. The wind doesn’t blow in Wisconsin the way it does in Iowa and Minnesota and other states to the west. Low output on less than ideal sights adds to the already high capital costs related to wind generation.
Governor Doyle and the bill’s authors say they can contain the price spikes by helping electric consumers conserve energy. But, they’ll need at least $700 million a year to do that. That’s an 8-fold increase in the $89 million Wisconsin electric customers are taxed today for energy efficiency programs. In all, electric bills bill will climb by at least $25 billion statewide under the governor's plan. And yet, according to Democrats who have promised to pass it, their plan will save money, rescue the economy and create jobs. I will be working to prevent them from delivering on their promise that would put that twisted logic to the test.
Mike Huebsch is a Republican, represents the residents of the 94th Assembly District and serves on the Assembly Committee on Energy and Utilities and the Special Committee on Clean Energy Jobs.
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| 2009 |
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• Important votes Tuesday, including Appleton Common Council
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• Speaker Huebsch: Governor turns down Federal Aid?
• Mark Rahmlow: "We're Broke."
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• Lots of ideas. No money.
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• AASD Retirement Costs Burdensome
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