Is ‘green’ always good? It may not be for the power bill

“Going green” appears to be the going thing these days. Terms like “renewable” and “sustainable” energy and “carbon footprints” fill newspapers and other media.

“Going green” could provide advantages in many areas, but one area where there could be problems down the road is in generating electricity. Gulf Power Manager Darrin Wall was on hand at the meeting of the Tri-County Homebuilders Association Thursday night at Bailey’s Restaurant to review how “green” legislation is affecting utilities like Gulf Power.

Wall said that traditional concerns of utilities were being challenged by other priorities. “Concerns about demand and peak time are not the focal points of utilities in Florida,” Wall said.

What are increasing concerns are finding ways to reduce a utility’s “carbon footprint,” which is defined as the total amount of greenhouse gases produced to directly and indirectly support human activities, usually expressed in equivalent tons of carbon dioxide.

Another concern is increasing use of renewable energy, which is defined as electrical energy using biomass (burning something to produce energy), solar, geothermal, wind, oceans and hydroelectric.

Yet another concern comes from action by the state legislature in recent weeks. HB 7135 passed the state senate 40-0 April 30 and awaits the governor’s signature. The main provisions of the bill direct the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to develop a cap and trade proposal to limit greenhouse gas emissions, allow sale of credits for reductions with legislative ramifications, and develop a “renewable portfolio standard” for electric utilities with legislative ratification.

The bill also provides for a new governance structure for energy in the state, procedural improvements for transmission line and nuclear plant siting, requires more energy efficiency in buildings and requires more ethanol in gasoline.

One provision would have made power companies give away water systems “to anyone who wanted one,” Wall said, but that idea was shot down.

Wall questioned how many of these requirements would be met, and how much they would cost consumers. Using “alternative” energy sources would be difficult:

•Although Florida is “the sunshine state,” the southwest of the U.S. is the ideal area for using solar power. Solar is also very expensive, in fact, the most expensive way to generate power at 30 cents a kilowatt hour.

•Except for coastlines, Florida is one of the worst possible places for wind turbines. Both solar and wind generation would require backup from regular power plants.

•Gulf Power is considering converting the aging Scholz plant to biomass.

•Landfills are one source of energy, but, for example, the large Campbellton facility only produces about four megawatts a day. “A super Wal-Mart burns about one megawatt,” Wall said.

Coal by far is the most efficient fuel for large-scale power generation, but leaves a larger “carbon footprint.” Wall said that 70 of the power generated by Gulf Power’s parent company, Southern Company, is from coal. There are also three nuclear plants, natural gas facilities and hydroelectric. “We try for a diverse fuel mix for price fluctuations in one area or another,” Wall said.

Under the various decrees over the past year by Gov. Charlie Crist and recent legislation, it appears that the state has decided that the best way to reduce the “carbon footprint” is to scrap coal plants, keep some natural gas plants and, interestingly, build more nuclear plants.

“There are incentives to reduce energy demand (peak demand) by 20 percent a year,” Wall said. Gulf Power already reduces this about three percent a year through its GoodCents program, but such a large reduction is probably impossible, Wall said.

“These are sweeping changes, and you will eventually see them in your rates,” Wall said.