Renewable electricity?

By MARK NEWMAN Courier staff writer

January 24, 2007 11:07 pm

— OTTUMWA — Farmers in Iowa already sell renewable fuel for vehicles. A logical next step would be selling crops for electricity, too.
That’s what the Union of Concerned Scientists say. Representatives were in Ottumwa Wednesday to promote their plan.
“We’re saying there’s a whole ’nother side of the equation and that’s renewable electricity that comes from Iowa’s farms,” said Ben Larson who helps run the science union’s Clean Energy program in Washington, D.C.
He said the scientists in his non-profit research and advocacy organization believe in laws stating a percentage of fuel must be from renewable sources. And those laws are a good model. There should be a similar law that requires 20 percent of all electricity to be produced by renewable sources by the year 2020, Larson said.
UCS Iowa Rural Outreach Coordinator, Rich Dana of Guernsey Iowa, said the Ottumwa area is already ahead of the game: In Chillicothe, experiments with burning switchgrass instead of coal have reached the point where the Ottumwa Generating Station could soon start to use 2 percent less coal.
“This part of the state is known nationally and internationally as a [leader] in renewable energy,” Dana claimed.
While 2 percent doesn’t sound like a lot of coal at one plant, when considered on a nationwide level, it’s a great first step, he said.
And, added Larson, while the new law would bring benefits to the environment, there’s a benefit for Iowa’s farmers.
“With the federal renewable energy portfolio, it creates a new market for their product,” he said.
Corn, cornstalks, switchgrass and wind are examples of the renewable energy sources available in Iowa, Larson said.
“In this case, we think it’s a good mandate [that] actually saves consumers money,” he said.
There’s a bill going through the U.S. House of Representatives now.
“We have a bipartisan list of sponsors,” said Larson.
He’d like to see southern Iowa’s two Congressional representatives, Reps. Dave Loebsack and Leonard Boswell, get on board once the bill makes it to the floor.
“[They] have the opportunity to become leaders on renewable electricity and to help Iowa’s farmers in a new way,” he said, adding that the new market would create new demand for Iowa farm products.
“Biomass is ‘ready for prime-time’ and this is the kind of legislation that is going to make it possible for farmers to get their foot in the door,” said Dana.
Mark Newman can be reached at 683-5358 or by e-mail at mgnewman@mchsi.com.