Post by Admin on Mar 3, 2020 9:18:05 GMT -7
Sign The Petition to Help Save Hydro-power!
Your Montana electric cooperative needs your help!
The Columbia River System Operation Draft Environmental Impact Statement [DEIS] has been released. You can find the entire report (thousands of pages) here. You can also find a shorter (36 page) executive summary here.
We fully expect anti-dam groups--pushing for the breeching of cost-based, carbon-free hydropower dams on the Lower Snake River--to dismiss the outcome, but this DEIS is important! It has been called the most comprehensive study in the history of the Columbia River Basin, and it will show that a balanced examination of environmental, fish & wildlife, and socio-economic concerns has led the federal Action Agencies to recommend non-breaching alternatives.
That result is critical to protecting the stability and reliability of our regional power grid. Particularly in Northwestern Montana, some cooperatives receive as much as 95% of their energy from hydropower. Furthermore, as other existing power plants close and no new dispatchable fuel sources are constructed, regional energy stability will be in even more trouble if any dams are breached.
While we respect the collaborative conversations that are taking place in the region, we sincerely encourage you to champion the Lower Snake River Dams [LSRD] in the process. Policy makers will be watching, and you can be certain that people who support breaching will be out in full force. This is not a time to be complacent.
What You Can Do:
1. Sign & Share a change.org petition in support of the LSRD. The petition is part of a larger grassroots effort that will include a paid social media campaign to encourage people to show their support for the LSRD. Sign The Petition here and send the link to your friends and colleagues! Responses to this petition will be sent to Senator Tester and Senator Daines.
2. Get Prepared! We have attached a DEIS pre-release briefing provided by our friends and sister organization Northwest River Partners to help you better prepare. It includes a brief explanation of the NEPA process, what they anticipated the DEIS would find, and suggested talking points once the DEIS was released.
Thank you for taking time to help protect the affordable, reliable, and carbon-free energy that keeps energy prices in the Northwest so low.
Regards,
Gary Wiens
CEO
Montana Electric Cooperatives' Association