20070911Comment.pdf

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Jean Jewell
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Izirker~yahoo.com
Sunday, September 09 20072:12 PM
Tanya Clark; Jean Jewell; Gene Fadness; Ed Howell
PUC Comment/Inquiry Form
A Comment from Larry Zirker follows:
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Case Number: IPC-e-07-03
Name: Larry ZirkerAddress: 3155 Rawson
City: Ammon
State: idaho
Zip: 83406
Home Telephone: [phone]Contact E-Mail: lzirker~yahoo. com
Name of Utility Company: Idaho Power Co
Add to Mailing List: no
Please describe your question or comment briefly:
Dear IPUC,
The problems I see are detailed in the following bulleted list:
When I think about how much wind power potential Idaho has and how little gets
developed is a direct relation to how hard it is to get the power companies to allow small
PURPA sized wind farms to develop.
They want them (PURPA plants) to pay for all upgrades everywhere. If the grid or
infrastructure is so bad, then how are they allowed to operate now?
The Idaho Power Corp. is chipping away at the small profit that it makes the smallproj ects un-profitable.
If a real avoided cost were re-calculated using today s costs of steel, copper, and
concrete, the avoided cost were be substantially higher. The cost of raw materials hasraised the cost of all proj ects 15+% per year. The real avoided cost can be justified in
being 50% more that it is. I am sure the IPUC and Idaho Power Corp is afraid of finding
out this new avoided cost rate.
Other states and power companies don t seem to throw the road blocks like Idaho and
the Idaho Power Corp.
Send your staff to visit progressive states and see how they do wind. This is not
rocket science.
I am sure the cost of running the peak power generating plants that Idaho Power Corphas put up all over, are not running just during peak power usage times like they tell
everyone that they are, but closer to 24/7s.
The constant running of these peak power plants are not in the best interest of the
environment (air quality), usage of a non-renewable energy source (natural gas), and the
usage of water that is needed in Idaho.
The building of or buying the power from out of Idaho wind farms, hurts the economy
of Idaho, and sends the money out of state. No local land taxes, wage earners, or trickle
down benefits.
With the reduction of water in the rivers and the continued drought, it is less that
progressi ve to not have more renewables to take the load off of the hydropower.
Plus hydro is under constant pressure from the dam breakers. If the dams were
breached, where would they buy the power? Surely from somewhere out of Idaho, and for
sure at a coal burner that is so bad for the global warming.
Wind power sells for more money than hydro power. But Idaho Power Corp. appears to
be not interested in Idaho, but the corporate returns. Why not build our own
infrastructure and home-grow our own energy sources.
Thanks for the forum
Larry Zirker