Senate Utilities – KDHE mercury briefing and (one of) last year’s coal bills appears to possibly be coming back
January 26, 2009
Summary: KDHE briefed Senate Utilties on NOX SOX mercury and ozone control efforts. Chair Sen. Apple told committee that they would be receiving a copy of SB 148 which got put into HB 2412 last year (MH – the second and third coal bills), but with the eco-devo portions of HB 2412 struck out. The committee will begin its discussion of a comprehensive energy plan with this material on Wednesday.
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Today is KDHE’s briefing on NOX SOX and mercury. Aka, NOx, SO2, and Hg. It looks like we might discuss ozone, particulate matter, lead, carbon monoxide, and some other air pollutants as well.
No bill introductions.
Tom Gross – KDHE – Apologizes that this will be deadly boring stuff. You can raise your hand and say give anytime (laughter) because I can talk about this as long as you want. BTW I am not talking about CO2 in this presentation, this is all about currently regulated pollutants.
(MH doesn’t usually try to capture really technical info, because she will get it wrong. She will go along at normal level)
(Hmm. Turns out there isn’t much of a normal level.) How about a paraphrase:
There’s lots of emissions and they are all measured at different points in the emissions process and counted in different ways – rates, volumes, etc. Different pollutants have to be reduced by different technologies, and those technologies are all in different generations. Technology keeps improving, and industries have to build to the best available technology for their pollution control (there are actually different standards here but that gets confusing). Since they build at different times, power plants, ethanol plants, etc., all have different levels of technology on them. Clean Air act regulates emissions, and KDHE administers, with some variation.
Sen. Taddiken follows up on the KC ozone problem, and what counties need to be brought into compliance.
Notes from House Utilities – air emissions, fossil fuel generation standards, climate registries, etc.
January 26, 2009
Summary: Presentation by Ray Hammarlund of the KCC’s Energy Programs Division. Testimony heard on HB 2038, HB 2033, HB 2034. No votes taken. Rep. Kuether made motion to create a bill for a “semi-comprehensive energy plan.” Motion passed.
Busy morning ahead. Lots of conferees, three bills, and one presentation. Gaveled in. Bill introductions – Rep. Sloan has four bills on rural water district issues.
Ray Hammarlund, Director of Energy Program Division, KCC
Big packet of testimony, he just gives overview. Kansas Energy Council is now closed down, but he includes some of their research. Energy efficiency is his office’s priority, FCIP in particular. Kansas very much underutilizes EE programs currently, his office trying to redress that. FCIP is fee-funded, three party system with KCC, local govt, and contractor. Etc. Also lots of public info and outreach, big conference, state fair booth, etc. Facilitates Wind Working Group. Looking toward town hall meetings on energy and environment. March 3 (??)– solar round table at KCC. Big push to get USDA rural development funds for 9007 and CREBs grants, for EE and renewables projects by KS towns and stakeholders. KS very underfunded in that respect. Green Schools funding as well. Also part of delegation to Midwest Governors cap and trade – he outlines where that negotiation process. Notes a lot of work to be done on offsets aspect of soil sequestration – KS ag could take a lot of advantage of this but we need to do groundwork. He also goes through KEC’s 2009 policy recommendations . Also notes the KEC research on baseload – http://www.kec.kansas.gov/reports/KS_Elec_Gen_Summary.pdf – and peak load – http://www.kec.kansas.gov/reports/Capacity_and_Load_Forecasts.pdf – in Kansas.
Chairman Holmes – Those do need to be kept updated, because demand can often outstrip projections. Questions for Ray?
Rep. Moxley for Ray – Q: Re the wind map, what’s the difference between power density and wind speed? A: (Explains), and AWS Truewind did the maps. Q: If you are wind generation company, do you need any more than this map? A: Nope, you need lots of studies at the site, due diligence etc. This map is just an outreach tool.
Rep. Wetta for Ray – Q: I know there are some anemometers in Sumner County. IS that you? A: We are not funded to put up anemometers (met towers) (essentially).
Rep. Holmes – many of the companies signing leases will monitor conditions on the ground up to two years. And there’s lots of anemometers along the highways now – also metereological stations.
Rep. Kuether Q: re cap and trade map, do you think cap and trade will happen or carbon tax? A: I don’t think carbon tax has a chance. Cap and trade – Waxman, Boxer… – I don’t know how much the economic crisis has changed that picture. They will do all the mark-ups and background and probably take preliminary votes at end of 2010.
Hearing opens. HB 2033.
Melissa Dublin briefs. Bills requires all utilities to become members of climate registry.
No proponents.
Opponents
