Pete Altman's Blog
Texas First to Rise to Gore Challenge
July 18, 2008
Posted by Pete Altman in Solving Global Warming
While Al Gore was challenging Americans to invest in a carbon-free energy future, Texas utility regulators voted to to invest nearly $5 billion to build the transmission system needed so the state can harness its expansive wind resource and send it to the metro areas of the state.
This pretty much makes Texas the nation's leader in stepping up to the massive challenge Gore was talking about, since investing in the system of power lines to move clean electricity to where its needed was one of the obstacles Gore said need to be overcome.
The Texas investment won't just expand wind power; it will create a lot of jobs. Lots of companies are interested in building the lines, as the Dallas Morning news reports, which means they'll be hiring lots of workers to build, deliver and install the transmission towers and related equipment needed to build out the grid. That's a whole lot of jobs created by clean energy investments.
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Comments
Dan Troutman — Jul 18 2008 01:58 PM
As a resident of west, central Texas living near some of the world's largest wind turbine "farms", I can assure you that the approval process for the high capacity electric lines was in motion long before Al Gore decided it was time to make a speech! T. Boone Pickens is way ahead of Mr. Gore and has put up $350 million of his own money for wind turbines. How much personal money has Mr. Gore spent on helping the environment and "saving the planet"? $5,000 monthly electric bills don't count. :)
Apparently NRDC hangs on every word Mr. Gore says, but ignores a former Texas oilman who is actually doing something about the problem (besides just giving dire speeches).
So, does NRDC support T. Boone Pickens' plan or not?
Peter Altman — Jul 18 2008 02:44 PM
Dan - I don't think anyone is likely to think that Texas regulators were watching the webcast of the Gore speech and were so inspired that they spontaneously decided to vote on the transmission proposal. I spent several years in Texas advocating for clean energy with the SEED Coalition, so I know that the transmission issue isn't new.
What I find interesting is that for all the talk about how lofty Gore's goals are and criticism on how much they will cost, well, here's the State of Texas already moving in this direction and making significant public commitments to make the clean energy grid happen.
Re your question about Mr. Pickens' plan, I don't know if NRDC has a formal position on it, but I do think that we need more voices like his urging a refocus on cleaner and greener.
Dan Troutman — Jul 19 2008 01:01 AM
Your title seemed to imply that Mr. Gore had something to do with getting the transmission line done. Nothing could be further from the truth. (Kinda like "inventing the internet. :) )
Down here in Texas we have a saying about 2 types of folks: "doers" and "talkers". I'd put Mr. Pickens down as a "doer", but I'm afraid Mr. Gore is still just a "talker." :)
Thanks for allowing me to comment. Rock on!