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Three public meetings were conducted in Idaho during February. The meetings were held at the Sacajawea Convention Center in Lewiston Feb. 12, the Idaho Falls City Council Chambers Feb. 13 and the Hall of Mirrors State Office Building in Boise Feb. 14. Ten people attended the Lewiston meeting, about 25 were in Idaho Falls and more than 60 in Boise.
Governor's representative Todd L. Maddock conducted the Lewiston meeting. Because of Mr. Maddock's illness, William Drummond--a steering committee member from Missoula, Montana, conducted the Idaho Falls meeting. Chuck Hedemark, another steering committee member, presided over the Boise meeting.
All three meetings began with an overview of the Northwest energy system and the changes facing it. These summaries used the overheads and handouts prepared by Central staff. An informal discussion followed in each case.
Comments made during each meeting are summarized below. More detailed notes, together with lists of attendees and written comments submitted by individuals, are available from the Boise office of the Northwest Power Planning Council, (208) 334-2956.
Lewiston
Those attending included representatives of public power, the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA), the Port of Lewiston, one member of the general public, Washington Water Power (WWP) and Potlatch Corp., a major customer of WWP as well as a substantial cogenerator of electricity.
The Potlatch representative stressed that his company's concern was competitive rates. Conservation and stranded assets are two major problems, along with the social costs assigned to BPA and how those costs will be paid in the future. He noted that those must be paid, whether by a utility tax or some other system. The bottom line, he said, is consumer choice: "Even the smallest industrial customer must have a choice." He said care should be taken to preserve the parts of the current system that are working well.
A representative of a public power co-operative noted that, currently, urban customers are subsidizing his rural ones. "Who's going to pick up that tab?", he asked. "If you charge by the mile, you'll kill us. Urban customers will go with the cheapest power they can get; we may not have that choice."
The Port representative questioned how a new system would deal with such issues as transportation and salmon costs. The question of appropriate allocation of costs must be shared equitably among all beneficiaries of the system, he said.
The WWP representative stressed that it's critical for regional consensus on these issues. If we're not, he said, Washington, DC will make the decisions. He also noted that the region's surplus of electric power could reverse rapidly because of such issues as hydro relicensing.
A Public Power Council representative questioned the meaning of "long-term" planning. "We have members," she said, "who think it's three years. She asked whether it is a foregone conclusion that legislation would result from the review.
The WWP representative argued that legislation would be necessary, particularly in the area of transmission. The BPA representative said the administration doesn't want to legislate retail wheeling, and urged that we let the FERC process work itself out. "We're the only ones doing a regional review," he said. He also noted that Washington, DC, won't listen to any regional consensus unless BPA is fiscally healthy.
The Potlatch representative said his company had an interest in a uniform system region-wide. He questioned the need for separate generation, transmission and distribution. He noted that the FERC process has a lot to say about anything going interstate. The WWP representative felt industrial customers would be the driving force behind retail wheeling.
The Public Power Council representative said while large industrial customers can demand whatever they want from public utilities, but it's not the same for small public power entities.
Mr. Maddock asked where public power saw itself fitting in a horizontally structured industry. "Would you play the role of a DISCO?", he asked. "What if there's a big used in the middle of your territory you're concerned about somebody plucking off?"
The co-op representative said the big question is who decides what wheeling charges are going to be. "If it goes to an open market free-for-all, I'm nervous," he said. "We have to have a higher price because we're serving far-flung customers. What happens to them when the good, easy load gets plucked off?"
The Potlatch speaker noted that it's a market economy. "If you live where you don't pay city taxes, you don't have garbage collection," he said. "You might have regulated universal service, but you have to realize if you choose to live further out it's going to cost you more."
Mr. Maddock asked for views of the future of conservation. The Potlatch representative said utilities can't afford it. Unless everyone must do it, it's an uncompetitive cost. The WWP speaker agreed: green power costs too much and leaves the utility with excess power it must get rid of. "If there's a margin of profit," he said, "we'll do it." The Public Power representative noted that conservation "...becomes a religious argument faster than anything else. We've been doing conservation the same way for 15 years. There's too much interest in preserving the current conservation approach."
Maddock asked about system efficiency. The Public Power speaker noted that efficiency is "...something we do every day. Every time we work on a line, we upgrade."
Maddock asked about fish mitigation. The Potlatch representative called for regional uniformity, while Public Power noted that mitigation is a big issue.
Idaho Falls
Attendees included representatives of the City of Idaho Falls, Public Power, several current and retired employees of the nuclear industry and general public concerned about fish and the environment.
A retired chemical engineer complained that meeting organizers should have brought "something for us to respond to." He asked whether the environment is a top priority of the review, and noted his concern for the dangers associated with the release of nitrogen oxides by the burning of fossil fuels. Drummond noted that the review would be concerned with the environment, but the 180-day review is handling salmon recovery.
A representative of Argon National Laboratories noted that the lowest-cost energy producers in Montana and Wyoming are mine-mouth coal plants. Gas plants aren't efficient, he said, compared to hydro. Drummond noted that there aren't many hydro sites left. "An advantage of gas is that you can get your electricity in smaller chunks, closer to consumers," he said.
A retiree asked about retail wheeling, and Drummond noted that that is one of the big questions facing the review. A retired federal employee noted that PURPA, and its requirement that utilities buy high-cost power from anyone who produces it, is a real drag on the market. Drummond agreed, and speculated that Congress probably wouldn't repeal PURPA but could modify it.
Drummond outlined the National Energy Policy Act of 1992. It gave the states the right to decide on retail wheeling, and gave FERC the ability to force open access to transmission facilities. He said some people think the only way to guarantee equal access to transmission facilities is to split up utilities.
An INEL representative asked whether consumers will figure into the process. Drummond said the law mandated regulators, for example, to take socioeconomic and environmental values into consideration in the relicensing process.
Mayor Linda Milam of Idaho Falls noted that the city has "...a nuclear plant in our back yard. We've proven it's a safe way to generate electricity." In a written statement (included with the available, more detailed notes), she outlined the city's 96-year-old hydro system. "We must hold on to and embrace the core principles that have been public power's proven formula for success." The process, she said, should preserve public ownership and control of the federal power system in the Pacific Northwest.
A public power representative said he'd like to see a continuation of our dependence on nuclear power. "I don't expect it to happen," he said, "but I wanted it on the record." He urged open competition and said the review should do everything it can to encourage it.
An INEL employee said the government's going to have to get out of the electric business. "You can't both regulate something and deregulate it," he said. BPA, he forecast, will be taken over; the government will be and should be out of it.
A Raft River Electric representative addressed questions on the environment. He outlined the 180-day review. "We need to consider how we're going to pay for the social and environmental values," he said. "Look to your right and to your left; those are the people who're creating the load."
A BPA representative said the administration favors allowing the FERC process to work through rather than advocating laws on such issues as retail wheeling.
An Argon representative said if we're going to use the electrical system for social engineering, those values should be itemized in the consumer's bill. The Raft River speaker noted that not all taxpayers or ratepayers currently pay for the social costs; only BPA customers pay.
A retiree expressed frustration with salmon recovery efforts. "The four lower Snake dams are killing the salmon; the Governor's muzzled the Fish and Game Department." Another retiree said that others have different opinions.
The INEL representative stressed that whatever system evolves, no one must be held captive to one power supplier. It's also important, he said, to avoid monopolies.
The Argon speaker urged consideration of how research into power generation, transmission, fish recovery and other concerns will be funded. Without research, he noted, we'll become third rate or worse. Again, he noted, research funding should be noted in the consumer's bill.
Boise
An environmentalist urged removing the four lower Snake dams. He was countered by a representative of Kootenai Electric, who called that an extreme position designed to make anything less look reasonable. Only BPA customers pay for salmon recovery; if you take out those dams, my customers will have to pay even more. There's no equity here.
An Idaho Power speaker urged speed. "Change is so rapid there's a good chance this process will become irrelevant," he said. The main issue is the degree of control over the process that the region can retain.
A self-described ordinary citizen said he didn't believe the region could reach a consensus; we'll need a federal solution. He urged the Power Council to seek public input, particularly on fish issues. He also advocated consistent plans region-wide so multistate companies can operate effectively.
A retired Fish and Game administrator said the developer of the system must mitigate for fish and wildlife losses. Don't overlook the possibilities of off-site mitigation if it'll do more good than on-site, he added.
Another environmentalist called himself a stockholder in BPA, and advocated removing the lower Snake dams and agricultural subsidies. He said the costs of transportation had been "shoved under the rug."
The Kootenai Electric speaker noted that BPA must be allowed to be competitive. Because of social costs, he noted, his customers are already paying more than WWP customers. If BPA's large customers go to the competition, who'll pay those costs? We need to talk in terms of realistic solutions, he said. "We have a big job in front of us (reaching consensus)," he said, "especially with such extreme measures as breaching the dams being proposed."
A representative of the Idaho Council on Industry and the Environment noted that there's considerable emphasis on how low power rates have consistently been in the Northwest. What's not considered in the arguments, and should be, is that wages are also very low. Most of us live here because of the good quality of life, she said. We need to remember that a part of that quality of life is cheap power, which has also fueled our economic growth. Low rates need to be protected in the future, she said. She submitted written comments which are available in the detailed notes.
An Eagle resident, retired from managing TVA's hydro system, emphasized the need for combined rather than single cycle gas plants, which he said waste heat and energy.
A Potlatch representative noted that we need to look at our areas of agreement rather than polarizing the questions. Also, he said, before your throw a wall around the Northwest, consider that the time could come when you'd want to buy out-of-region power.
An economic developer and former legislator was concerned about what will happen when deregulated transmission lets others undercut an established utility. "I'm interested in talking about that," he said. "I'm not interested in listening to what I call 'matchstick environmentalists'--you rub them and they flare up."
The Idaho Power representative, whose written remarks are also available in the extended notes, argued that transmission access creates competition. The FERC regulation that's in the works will finish the definition of what open transmission access means. Whether BPA should be in that game is a legitimate question, to be answered by the region. Idaho Power, he said, does not consider open access a threat.
A Potlatch representative said we're not talking about increases in the amount of power moved, just who moves it. The Idaho Power speaker disagreed, pointing out that the marketplace has grown and the intertie is improving. This lessens the need for individual utilities to harbor large reserves. "In the past," he said, "we've paid a high premium for reliability."
Idaho Power asked what rate system would be preferred: one in which you pancake rates across multiple systems with each system charging its own rate, or a postage stamp concept. Most, he noted, will argue for the lowest rate. Whatever the system, he said, we won't see volume discounts.
Hedemark said further public input would be welcome, and said the steering committee hopes to have a draft product on the street by April or May. More public meetings will be held after that.
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Last modified: March 26, 1996
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