Just ran across this meme on Gab & thought ya'll might appreciate it/the appropriateness/& the humor..... Unfortunately, this site won't let me post the pictures so I'll describe them:
The first picture is a solar panel farm covered in snow (i.e., "impaired" solar uptake).
The second picture is a wind turbine farm with the wind turbines frozen in place with icicles hanging off the blades.
In support of Rick’s narrative, one may wish to view the latest BPA data (https://transmission.bpa.gov/business/operations/wind/baltwg.aspx) depicting increased electricity demand (driven by extreme cold temperatures) vs the lack of available substantial wind, regionally. This condition (beginning January 12 on the chart) emphasizes the reality of wind intermittency, and the very critical role that hydropower serves, along with other sources such as nuclear and natural gas.
Hello Rick -- thank you for all of the research that you have conducted in this area and for succinctly sharing your findings. While reading, 2/3rds of the way down the article, I found the following:
"Additionally, the wind and solar replacement plan would cost between $277 to $517 per megawatt-hour (MWh) compared to the LSR dams which cost between $13 and $17 per MWh. This multiple orders of magnitude increase in costs would drive northwest retail electricity rates in 2045 to levels between 34% and 65% higher than today."
My question -- wouldn't this increase electricity rates 2100% to 3000%?
FWIW -- Although I now live in Arizona, I did live in the TriCities for 30 years and continue to own 40 acres of multi-use land in West Richland, a portion is now used for growing alfalfa. As such, my interest in Hydro-power and the Pacific NW continues. I was working with the Benton-REA staff to get word out to my neighbors regarding the dangers of removing the LSRD. Around four years ago, I was made aware of a $33B proposal to remove those dams and replace them with 80k acres of wind turbines, solar and batteries. Essentially, billions of dollars in Federal funding would be showered on all interested parties as a means to purchase the public's endorsement of the project. The government can gin up an infinite supply of digital currency. You cannot, however, gin up economically viable power systems in terms of replacing a system that is already working with unreliable "green power solutions."
Back in January 2020, I was a participant in a "Listening Session" that took place in Kennewick, where a board of panelists (visibly elevated above the 400 or so "Listeners") told us all about the merits of replacing the LSRDs with the new "green and clean solutions." There were large posters and graphs in the lobby showing what Wind power could produce and how it would efficiently replace Hydro. What the graphs failed to illustrate was the intermittency of the wind -- the power curve was very nicely smoothed out so as to hide that uncomfortable bit of reality. I believe that we are all being Had -- that we are being slowly manipulated into conforming to the Narrative -- the "Listening Session" is just one example of the phenomena. As I sat in the audience, I could see the anger and frustration on the faces of my fellow citizens as we were instructed by our superiors to Think Differently about energy production and the Way of the Future.
Rick -- I think that it is up to you, me and other concerned citizens to stop sitting quietly listening -- instead, we need to get proper representation on the stage, or at least open a microphone for the members of the audience. If we do not Act now, then in ten years, it will be too late. Thank you for your efforts.
Thanks for translating this into science a non-engineer like me can understand. And I have to say, your artist has a new career waiting for her!
What are 2 or 3 actions the average Washington resident can take to help redirect this train from the cliff? I’ve said for years that environmental activists should be resoundingly behind modern modular nuclear, though it may seem counterintuitive. And dam preservation, to me, presents similar opportunities for shared interests across the political spectrum. For example, large Western WA community social services agencies (public and private/non profit) and social activists who (rightly so, in my opinion), care about the human toll of rising housing costs, homelessness, childhood hunger in our own communities, etc, need to understand the reality of downstream (pardon the pun) financial impacts fam removal will have on their ability to achieve their goals and missions. If a family can barely survive now, how many more homeless families will there be for those agencies to serve when electricity is more than a new car payment?
We can debate politics and how social systems are faring and why, but isn’t the reality that we all have a common interest in preventing a slow drive off this cliff? It would seem that more liberal leaning voters, organizations, local government politicians etc. need a wake up call about what’s coming. How do we connect the dots for them?
Great to hear from you Allison. Average Washington residents must take the time to education themselves by finding trusted sources of information they can understand. Local not-for-profit utilities are a good place to start because they answer to their customers directly.
Our goal at Benton PUD by using Substack is to provide comprehensive information that people can read for their own understanding and then easily forward a link to the article/post to every email in-box of every elected official that represents them. And every individual can do their small part by helping eye-opening information go viral. That is the beauty of Substack in that it provides everyone who reads something impactful to forward it easily to their friends, family and business colleagues. Thank you so much for your support and feedback. Hope all is well with you and family. Let's get the dialogue going, and fast!
Rick, just saw this 1/16/24 article on Canada's power situation & thought it might be useful to provide to folks a graphic example of what we're going to live through if the "greenies" have their way.
Wind, solar power nearly leave Alberta without electricity as temperature drops below -40
Alberta required a transfer of electric power from the neighboring province of Saskatchewan as all of its solar and wind production ceased amid the bitter drop in temperature.
Thank you for sharing this article. The complete lack of common sense in the energy policies of Alberta, Canada highlight how far the cult of catastrophic climate change will go. Carbon free at any cost is literally life threatening. It brings to mind something I said in my "Tilting at Windmills" Substack article. "So, what is a better vision? How about an energy future of abundance and human flourishing, not one based on unprecedented land grabs, intermittency, variability, and scarcity?" https://open.substack.com/pub/rickdunn/p/tilting-at-windmills-and-the-great-ce3?r=kv2hx&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcome=true
Somehow, I believe that TPTB are aware of all the pitfalls related to moving in the direction of "green power" -- and yet the move continues as it will create a population that is even more dependent on government solutions as a means to handle the crises that they designed.
P, I agree they are aware of it & are trying to use it as a control mechanism. That control tripe is part of why I use a burner phone & turn it off when I'm not calling someone. I object to being tracked & controlled by anyone. If folks don't like the behavior being pushed on them, we're going to have to stand up & be assertive. (Before it's too late.)
Well researched & presented material! A huge thank you for doing this.
If I might add a few points that could be used to dissuade the states from pushing wind & solar power:
1) Make the cost numbers personal to them (i.e., how it's going to impact them/the individual customer). For example, my electric bill for the month of Sept. '23 was about $100. If I'm understanding the numbers from the article correctly, taking the wind/solar high replacement value of $517/MWH vs the current $17/MWH is an increase of 30 times (i.e., this could make my $100 monthly electric bill increase to $3000/month or roughly $36,000/yr as is showing up in CA & TX electric bills).
(Note to WA state employees pushing wind & solar: Sorry, but this resident of WA State is not made out of money. I'd have to disconnect my home from the grid as I could not afford this.)
2) Quantify the estimated loss of revenue to the state by businesses & citizens relocating out of the state. Politicians like to get money coming into the gov't for them to spend on pet projects that get them re-elected. Electric power is used in everything (i.e., farming, transportation, water purification & pumping, health care, manufacturing, education, communications, etc.). Should the states continue the approach of cutting off cheap, reliable electric power access, businesses & residents will go elsewhere & the money coming into the gov'ts (i.e., local, state, federal) will decrease significantly. Cost benefit/feasibility studies should have been done before wasting taxpayer monies on wind & solar power projects as is done in businesses that do not get gov't handouts.
(Note to WA state employees pushing wind & solar: Rolling blackouts & elevated electrical power costs will not get those elected to office returned to that office.)
3) Mention the wind & solar projects breaks environmental laws by killing/injuring protected species & valuable farm land. Specifically compare the dam & salmon issue vs the wind turbine & solar panel killing &/or injuring wild life and damage to farm land. There are laws protecting that wild life (e.g., eagles, etc.). Why is it now acceptable for the state to break the law & put in place electrical generation technology that causes deaths to another species (i.e., the eagles & other birds & land wildlife)? It isn't. Why is it acceptable to contaminate valuable farm land with wind turbines, solar panels, & battery facilities (i.e., hazardous waste)? It isn't.
4) Finally, include that the removal of the dams will release a huge amount of silt which will severely impact the salmon for years as well as weaken flood control.
According to this very extensive study, which is continually ignored, it is the failing fish hatcheries that affect the salmon the most.
My opinion, they are using the #salmon as a #GlobalWarming ploy, just as they did w the smelt in California. Inslee continues to commission study after study to get the answers he wants. Taking out these dams would be a travesty! Read this article please.
Good, informative article. But I was disappointed with several graphs showing electricity demand over a period of several days. The vertical axes were labeled megawatt hours when they should be just megawatts. The two terms are not the same.
These are U.S. Energy Information Administration graphs representing energy in megawatt-hours each hour. So think of it as megawatt-hours per hour which you are correct in saying is megawatts; or to be precise average megawatts. Thanks for taking the time to read my Substack article and for providing feedback. We need to get the dialogue going amongst the electorate so we can hold politicians accountable from a position of knowledge and understanding.
Appreciate your feedback and support Libby. Utilities need to go viral with our message by joining forces in a consistent and persistent manner. Thank you for your leadership in the region and what you do every day as GM at Hood River Electric Cooperative.
Great information and artwork!
1/24/24
Just ran across this meme on Gab & thought ya'll might appreciate it/the appropriateness/& the humor..... Unfortunately, this site won't let me post the pictures so I'll describe them:
The first picture is a solar panel farm covered in snow (i.e., "impaired" solar uptake).
The second picture is a wind turbine farm with the wind turbines frozen in place with icicles hanging off the blades.
A picture is worth a thousand words.
In support of Rick’s narrative, one may wish to view the latest BPA data (https://transmission.bpa.gov/business/operations/wind/baltwg.aspx) depicting increased electricity demand (driven by extreme cold temperatures) vs the lack of available substantial wind, regionally. This condition (beginning January 12 on the chart) emphasizes the reality of wind intermittency, and the very critical role that hydropower serves, along with other sources such as nuclear and natural gas.
Hello Rick -- thank you for all of the research that you have conducted in this area and for succinctly sharing your findings. While reading, 2/3rds of the way down the article, I found the following:
"Additionally, the wind and solar replacement plan would cost between $277 to $517 per megawatt-hour (MWh) compared to the LSR dams which cost between $13 and $17 per MWh. This multiple orders of magnitude increase in costs would drive northwest retail electricity rates in 2045 to levels between 34% and 65% higher than today."
My question -- wouldn't this increase electricity rates 2100% to 3000%?
FWIW -- Although I now live in Arizona, I did live in the TriCities for 30 years and continue to own 40 acres of multi-use land in West Richland, a portion is now used for growing alfalfa. As such, my interest in Hydro-power and the Pacific NW continues. I was working with the Benton-REA staff to get word out to my neighbors regarding the dangers of removing the LSRD. Around four years ago, I was made aware of a $33B proposal to remove those dams and replace them with 80k acres of wind turbines, solar and batteries. Essentially, billions of dollars in Federal funding would be showered on all interested parties as a means to purchase the public's endorsement of the project. The government can gin up an infinite supply of digital currency. You cannot, however, gin up economically viable power systems in terms of replacing a system that is already working with unreliable "green power solutions."
Back in January 2020, I was a participant in a "Listening Session" that took place in Kennewick, where a board of panelists (visibly elevated above the 400 or so "Listeners") told us all about the merits of replacing the LSRDs with the new "green and clean solutions." There were large posters and graphs in the lobby showing what Wind power could produce and how it would efficiently replace Hydro. What the graphs failed to illustrate was the intermittency of the wind -- the power curve was very nicely smoothed out so as to hide that uncomfortable bit of reality. I believe that we are all being Had -- that we are being slowly manipulated into conforming to the Narrative -- the "Listening Session" is just one example of the phenomena. As I sat in the audience, I could see the anger and frustration on the faces of my fellow citizens as we were instructed by our superiors to Think Differently about energy production and the Way of the Future.
Rick -- I think that it is up to you, me and other concerned citizens to stop sitting quietly listening -- instead, we need to get proper representation on the stage, or at least open a microphone for the members of the audience. If we do not Act now, then in ten years, it will be too late. Thank you for your efforts.
Thanks for translating this into science a non-engineer like me can understand. And I have to say, your artist has a new career waiting for her!
What are 2 or 3 actions the average Washington resident can take to help redirect this train from the cliff? I’ve said for years that environmental activists should be resoundingly behind modern modular nuclear, though it may seem counterintuitive. And dam preservation, to me, presents similar opportunities for shared interests across the political spectrum. For example, large Western WA community social services agencies (public and private/non profit) and social activists who (rightly so, in my opinion), care about the human toll of rising housing costs, homelessness, childhood hunger in our own communities, etc, need to understand the reality of downstream (pardon the pun) financial impacts fam removal will have on their ability to achieve their goals and missions. If a family can barely survive now, how many more homeless families will there be for those agencies to serve when electricity is more than a new car payment?
We can debate politics and how social systems are faring and why, but isn’t the reality that we all have a common interest in preventing a slow drive off this cliff? It would seem that more liberal leaning voters, organizations, local government politicians etc. need a wake up call about what’s coming. How do we connect the dots for them?
Great to hear from you Allison. Average Washington residents must take the time to education themselves by finding trusted sources of information they can understand. Local not-for-profit utilities are a good place to start because they answer to their customers directly.
Our goal at Benton PUD by using Substack is to provide comprehensive information that people can read for their own understanding and then easily forward a link to the article/post to every email in-box of every elected official that represents them. And every individual can do their small part by helping eye-opening information go viral. That is the beauty of Substack in that it provides everyone who reads something impactful to forward it easily to their friends, family and business colleagues. Thank you so much for your support and feedback. Hope all is well with you and family. Let's get the dialogue going, and fast!
Rick, just saw this 1/16/24 article on Canada's power situation & thought it might be useful to provide to folks a graphic example of what we're going to live through if the "greenies" have their way.
Wind, solar power nearly leave Alberta without electricity as temperature drops below -40
Alberta required a transfer of electric power from the neighboring province of Saskatchewan as all of its solar and wind production ceased amid the bitter drop in temperature.
https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/wind-solar-power-nearly-leave-alberta-without-electricity-as-temperature-drops-below-40/
Thank you for sharing this article. The complete lack of common sense in the energy policies of Alberta, Canada highlight how far the cult of catastrophic climate change will go. Carbon free at any cost is literally life threatening. It brings to mind something I said in my "Tilting at Windmills" Substack article. "So, what is a better vision? How about an energy future of abundance and human flourishing, not one based on unprecedented land grabs, intermittency, variability, and scarcity?" https://open.substack.com/pub/rickdunn/p/tilting-at-windmills-and-the-great-ce3?r=kv2hx&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcome=true
Somehow, I believe that TPTB are aware of all the pitfalls related to moving in the direction of "green power" -- and yet the move continues as it will create a population that is even more dependent on government solutions as a means to handle the crises that they designed.
P, I agree they are aware of it & are trying to use it as a control mechanism. That control tripe is part of why I use a burner phone & turn it off when I'm not calling someone. I object to being tracked & controlled by anyone. If folks don't like the behavior being pushed on them, we're going to have to stand up & be assertive. (Before it's too late.)
Well researched & presented material! A huge thank you for doing this.
If I might add a few points that could be used to dissuade the states from pushing wind & solar power:
1) Make the cost numbers personal to them (i.e., how it's going to impact them/the individual customer). For example, my electric bill for the month of Sept. '23 was about $100. If I'm understanding the numbers from the article correctly, taking the wind/solar high replacement value of $517/MWH vs the current $17/MWH is an increase of 30 times (i.e., this could make my $100 monthly electric bill increase to $3000/month or roughly $36,000/yr as is showing up in CA & TX electric bills).
(Note to WA state employees pushing wind & solar: Sorry, but this resident of WA State is not made out of money. I'd have to disconnect my home from the grid as I could not afford this.)
2) Quantify the estimated loss of revenue to the state by businesses & citizens relocating out of the state. Politicians like to get money coming into the gov't for them to spend on pet projects that get them re-elected. Electric power is used in everything (i.e., farming, transportation, water purification & pumping, health care, manufacturing, education, communications, etc.). Should the states continue the approach of cutting off cheap, reliable electric power access, businesses & residents will go elsewhere & the money coming into the gov'ts (i.e., local, state, federal) will decrease significantly. Cost benefit/feasibility studies should have been done before wasting taxpayer monies on wind & solar power projects as is done in businesses that do not get gov't handouts.
(Note to WA state employees pushing wind & solar: Rolling blackouts & elevated electrical power costs will not get those elected to office returned to that office.)
3) Mention the wind & solar projects breaks environmental laws by killing/injuring protected species & valuable farm land. Specifically compare the dam & salmon issue vs the wind turbine & solar panel killing &/or injuring wild life and damage to farm land. There are laws protecting that wild life (e.g., eagles, etc.). Why is it now acceptable for the state to break the law & put in place electrical generation technology that causes deaths to another species (i.e., the eagles & other birds & land wildlife)? It isn't. Why is it acceptable to contaminate valuable farm land with wind turbines, solar panels, & battery facilities (i.e., hazardous waste)? It isn't.
4) Finally, include that the removal of the dams will release a huge amount of silt which will severely impact the salmon for years as well as weaken flood control.
#hatcheries
According to this very extensive study, which is continually ignored, it is the failing fish hatcheries that affect the salmon the most.
My opinion, they are using the #salmon as a #GlobalWarming ploy, just as they did w the smelt in California. Inslee continues to commission study after study to get the answers he wants. Taking out these dams would be a travesty! Read this article please.
The U.S. government promised Native tribes in the Pacific Northwest they could keep fishing as they’d always done. But instead of preserving wild salmon, the government propped up a failing system of hatcheries. Now, that system is falling apart." https://childrenshealthdefense.org/defender/u-s-taxpayers-fund-failed-plan-wild-salmon/
Good, informative article. But I was disappointed with several graphs showing electricity demand over a period of several days. The vertical axes were labeled megawatt hours when they should be just megawatts. The two terms are not the same.
These are U.S. Energy Information Administration graphs representing energy in megawatt-hours each hour. So think of it as megawatt-hours per hour which you are correct in saying is megawatts; or to be precise average megawatts. Thanks for taking the time to read my Substack article and for providing feedback. We need to get the dialogue going amongst the electorate so we can hold politicians accountable from a position of knowledge and understanding.
Thanks for the excellent explanation of a critical topic.
Appreciate your feedback and support Libby. Utilities need to go viral with our message by joining forces in a consistent and persistent manner. Thank you for your leadership in the region and what you do every day as GM at Hood River Electric Cooperative.