RAHALL BACKS DOWN?

National Academy of Sciences: Wind turbines kill 3 birds of 100,000 that die. Cats kill 3000. Angling for strict controls on wind energy, Rahall seems to have clean, safe wind energy confused with the dangerous, dirty coal industry in his home state.

Lawmaker backs off rules for wind energy
H. Josef Hebert, June 6, 2007 (AP via Yahoo News)

WHO
Natural Resources Committee Chairman Nick Rahall, D-W.Va., Rep. Edward Markey, D-Mass., Jaime Steve, legislative affairs director, American Wind Energy Association (AWEA)
The arrow points where wind energy is going: "Come senators, congressmen/Please heed the call/Don't stand in the doorway/Don't block up the hall/For he that gets hurt/Will be he who has stalled..." (courtesy of Mr. Dylan)

WHAT
Rahall had proposed legislation severely penalizing wind energy installers for failing to obtain or meet certain scrutiny. He remitted on an aspect of the legislation pertaining to siting and operation in bird and bat habitat, calling for “guidelines” instead of “regulation.”

WHEN
Rahall’s gesture of compromise came June 6. Final committee vote is expected June 7.

WHERE
House of Representatives Natural Resources Committee

WHY
- Rahall’s legislation singles out the wind energy industry, impeding development of the renewable, non-greenhouse gas-emitting form of power generation.
- The compromise is seen as acknowledgement of wind energy’s legislative clout, backed by major corporations (the single biggest installer of turbines is General Electric) and a growing, 1000-member trade organization.
- Wind energy supplies 0.9% of US electricity.
- Congress is moving toward a national Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) which would require the country to obtain a specified percent of electricity (commonly assumed to be (15%) by a specific year (probably 2020).
- The wind energy industry is laying plans to provide 20% of US electricity by 2030, if legislation like Rahall’s does not get in the way.
- Republican advocates for coal, natural gas and oil have also attacked the legislation.
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QUOTES
- Rahall: "I think it was a good compromise. It will allow the development of wind and still allow for a process…"
- Markey: “[This] will allow wind power to continue to thrive…"
Steve: "We turned around what was a very bad provision…"