Winds of Power at the Yakima Herald-Republic
 
September 6, 2003
1182 words
Yakima Herald-Republic
 
 By DORI HARRELL
 YAKIMA HERALD-REPUBLIC
 
 Some may howl when the wind gusts across Central Washington, but others
 plan to harness it. Despite a regional power surplus, the Northwest has
 become a hub for wind farm development, which is predicted to continue
 growing here and nationwide.
 
 At least eight projects are proposed for Central Washington, including
 three in Kittitas County and one in Benton County. Hundreds of wind
 turbines could rise as early as next year if the projects are approved.
 
 Spinning out more than 800 megawatts, the projects would double the
 state's current wind power production, providing power for more than
 100,000 homes.
 
 And while some may question the effect wind farms have on scenery and
 wildlife, two large operations are already running in Washington. The
 Stateline Wind Project along the Oregon border west of Walla Walla is the
 world's largest wind farm, generating 300 megawatts. The Nine Canyon Wind
 Farm west of Kennewick produces 60 megawatts.
 
 Among wind farm customers is Pacific Power.
 
 "Wind energy is huge for us," said Deston Nokes, a Pacific Power spokesman
 based in Portland. "We like wind because it has no pollutants, it's
 plentiful in supply, fairly quick to construct and can be put in remote
 places."
 
 Pacific Power currently purchases 83 megawatts of wind power out of
 Wyoming, enough to power 13,000 homes.
 
 That's still only a fraction of the 8,300 megawatts Pacific Power
 provides. But that gap is expected to close over the next 10 years as the
 company plans to acquire 1,400 megawatts of renewable energy, most of it
 wind power.
 
 The growth of wind energy is, in part, due to utilities facing volatile
 natural gas prices, said Jeff King, a senior resource analyst with the
 Northwest Power Planning Council.
 
 But even with higher natural gas prices, wind power remains more expensive
 to generate from 3 to 5 cents per kilowatt hour compared with coal, oil
 and natural gas, which can be lower than 2 cents.
 
 Most of wind power's growth, though, is a result of a federal tax subsidy.
 
 Under the program, the government pays wind farm companies 1.8 cents per
 kilowatt hour produced by a wind power plant.
 
 The tax credit makes generating wind energy competitive with the other
 power resources, said Kathy Belyeu, a spokeswoman with the American Wind
 Energy Association, based in Washington, D.C.
 
 The subsidy is credited with creating a spike in wind farm developments
 that hasn't slowed.
 
 Nationwide, the industry should grow by more than 25 percent this year,
 according to the association.
 
 In the United States, wind mills produce about 4,700 megawatts. That will
 likely jump to more than 6,000 by year's end. That's enough to serve 1.5
 million homes, but less than 1 percent of the nation's energy production.
 
 "We are definitely not at a peaking point," Belyeu said. "We would like to
 see the industry produce 6 percent of the nation's power by 2020."
 
 Approved in 1995, the tax credit is up for renewal this year. If Congress
 doesn't renew the subsidy, companies with proposed wind farm projects
 would likely suspend development, she said.
 
 "The proposals in Washington, no doubt, are contingent upon the extension
 of the tax credit," she said. "If the tax credit goes away, we will see
 some decline at first. It's a big part of the driver right now."
 
 But most in the industry expect the tax credit will be renewed.
 
 Also pushing wind farm developments are technological advancements.
 Larger, more efficient turbines produce more and have led to a 90 percent
 decrease in costs, down from 38 cents per kilowatt hour in the early '80s.
 
 Many welcome the advancements, the nonpolluting power and the related
 jobs, and are willing to pay to supply wind energy to their homes.
 
 For example, Pacific Power offers a Blue Sky program, which allows
 customers to purchase wind power at an additional cost.
 
 Pacific Power's average Washington residential customer's monthly bill is
 about $65. Blue Sky would increase the amount by nearly 3 percent to
 $66.95.
 
 Of its 120,000 Washington customers ? most of them are in Central
 Washington ? only 500 choose to pay the extra cost.
 
 But in Oregon, 3,900 customers pay for it. In Utah, more than 6,000. All
 told, that's still less than 1 percent of the utility's 1.54 million
 customers.
 
 "But it's a growth program," Nokes said.
 
 Pacific Power has not yet committed to buy from the Central Washington
 wind farm proposals, but it will seriously consider any offers, he said.
 
 But not everyone is a fan of wind power. There's serious concern about
 birds, particularly migratory ones, getting caught up in the blades.
 Critics worry about sullying pristine landscapes and dropping property
 values.
 
 And critics worry consumers may be paying for something they just don't
 need and that wind farm developers are merely looking for tax breaks.
 
 Such is the thinking of Glenn Schleede, founder of Energy Market and
 Policy Analysis consulting firm in Reston, Va.
 
 Schleede is a former White House staffer, and he served under the Nixon
 and Ford administrations in the Office of Management and Budget.
 
 Tax breaks for wind farm companies, even when excluding the federal tax
 credit, amount to millions annually, which boosts development. But wind
 power still largely costs more to generate than other energy sources,
 Schleede said.
 
 He estimated that even a 0.02-cent-per-kilowatt-hour increase over other
 electricity sources would amount to consumers paying an extra $11 million
 per year.
 
 "Wind farms are a bad idea," he said.
 
 Keith Johnson isn't so sure he agrees, but he is worried about birds and
 other wildlife near the proposed windmills in Kittitas County.
 
 Johnson is president of the Kittitas Audubon Society.
 
 "Most wind farms are put up on ridges, and guess where birds normally
 fly?" he said.
 
 Hawks and eagles are particularly vulnerable to getting snagged by
 windmill blades because they use the wind to soar, he said.
 
 "They're huge developments," he said. "The problem is, they're all slated
 to go up one after the other. If the birds escape one, they could get
 caught in the next row, or the next."
 
 The state Department of Ecology shares Johnson's concerns and has
 developed guidelines for companies to create or protect twice as much as
 is destroyed, ideally near the site.
 
 "Some of our members are all for wind farms, because they're green
 energy," Johnson said. "Others are against it. We just have to have some
 biological studies to make sure we don't do something wrong."
 
 Maybe some economic studies are in order, too, suggests Bill Murlin with
 the Bonneville Power Administration.
 
 The agency, under the jurisdiction of the federal Department of Energy,
 buys about 198 megawatts of wind power, less than 1 percent of its energy
 purchases, from six existing facilities.
 
 But it has yet not committed to purchasing any power from proposed wind
 projects, Murlin said.
 
 The agency approaches wind power cautiously and first makes sure it's cost
 effective to it and rate payers before buying. Like Pacific Power, it will
 consider proposals, he said.
 
 "We don't want them to go away," Murlin said. "We think developments are
 good if they're cost-effective and meet environmental concerns of
 communities."

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