The Wind Coalitions Executive Director released the following statement on Texas Comptroller Susan Combs report on renewable energy: Today, Comptroller Susan Combs office published a report attacking renewable energy in Texas. This unbalanced, misinformed report is simply a restatement of the flawed talking points pushed by the anti-renewables lobby and ignores key information about renewable power and its benefits for Texas. Texas wind energy industry has now invested more than $26 billion in 56 counties Texas and now provides 10% of the states electricity supply cleanly, reliably, cheaply, and without using water. As part of a technologically advanced grid, and generation mix, Texas wind is bringing a wide variety benefits to Texans, including: • Providing Low-Cost Power and Long Term Pricing, A Financial Hedge Against Price of Other Fuels • Revitalizing Rural Economies and Provides Much-Needed Capital Investments to Boost Tax Rolls • Creating Jobs in Several Sectors Including Development, Manufacturing, Construction, Operations, and Maintenance • Providing Greater Energy Independence from Imported Fuels • Supporting Agriculture by Providing Payments to Farmers and Ranchers, Keeping Them on Their Land • Using No Water to Make Electricity, Saving More than 7.8 Billion Gallons of Water Each Year • Protecting Clean Air and Water, Making Environmental Compliance Achievable. The wind power installed in Texas will avoid 23,103,000 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions a year, the equivalent of taking 4,075,000 cars off the road. With regard to subsidies, governments at the state and federal level have long used policy to support energy development as vital to our national security. Just a few years ago, the Comptrollers own report (The Energy Report – 2008) estimated federal subsidies for energy with wind receiving 3.4% of 2006 support. The office, in the same report, presented data showing that the oil and gas industry in Texas received 99.6% of state and local incentives. window.state.tx.us/specialrpt/energy/subsidies/ Winds competitors are still heavily, and permanently subsidized in the tax code. The CREZ transmission project is a singled out by the Comptroller without acknowledge the savings in power costs these lines facilitate or the stability these lines helped to provide. They point to the transmission investment under Competitive Renewable Energy Zones as a subsidy for wind without referring to the other recently built transmission lines or the 37,000 miles of previously built transmission lines, as a subsidy for coal, gas, nuclear and other forms of generation. Furthermore, the CREZ lines will be used not only by wind generators, but all forms of electricity generation. With wind energys economic contributions to the state and the incredible savings it brings consumers, the Comptroller should support Texas energy development instead of promoting continued reliance on out of state fuels. Whats wrong with letting Texas supply our power needs and reap the economic benefits in the process? Why should Texas rely on other states when Texas energies including wind, solar, and natural gas can get the job done? Texas can power Texas affordably, cleanly, reliably, and securely. The public supports diverse, cleaner energy for Texas because they know that the energy security and fiscal health of our state depend greatly on a diverse, reliable, affordable, and abundant energy supply. I wish our Comptroller did. The Comptrollers report and message ignores the facts and pushes Texas further from those goals.
Posted on: Tue, 23 Sep 2014 22:31:00 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015