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Until green energy is a reality, make the most of what we have
Now that all the hype about green energy is subsiding, reality is beginning to settle in.
The economic crisis and lower gasoline prices have put pressure on the ethanol industry, an idled plant in Cambridge among its victims.
T. Boone Pickens, despite his $58 million marketing campaign, has given up on his plan to build a $10 billion, 4,000-megawatt wind farm in Texas. (He already has 667 wind turbines on order, so perhaps wind farms in our area might be able to buy them at a bargain price. One of the problems in Texas was a lack of heavy transmission lines to carry the power to the grid, certainly something for Nebraska to consider.)
But energy concerns aren't all as far away as Texas.
SourceGas is asking for more money for delivering gas to 90,000 customers in central and western Nebraska, including McCook. Although we can now pick among a variety of gas suppliers, we probably will pay SourceGas more to maintain the pipe and supply to our homes and businesses.
The company is asking the Public Service Commission for permission to charge an extra $7.43 a month to the average residential customer's bill, and an additional $8.76 to the average small businesses's bill.
Then, on Monday, NPPD announced it will ask for a 6.5 percent increase in the rates it charges wholesale customers, ironically caused by a drop in natural gas prices. The utility is looking at a rate increase for retail customers as well.
If any of the dire predictions about the Obama administration's cap-and-trade proposals come true, the current rate hikes will only be the beginning.
And, who knows when or if solar, wind or other alternative energy sources will ever become financially viable.
In the meantime, to avoid financial hardship on individuals and the resulting decline in general economy, we need to make the most of energy sources available today.
That means more development of readily-available energy like oil, natural gas and nuclear power.