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Dear Editor;
As a proud member/owner of Scenic Rivers Electric Cooperative, it pained me to read Dairyland Power Cooperative's (DPC) account of a recent annual meeting. Why is a non-profit, member-owned cooperative selling energy to members even talking about "earnings?" There are no "earning" benefits; our rates and fees are increasing. Such for-profit corporation talk is inappropriate and counter-productive.
Using honest, net generation figures instead of deceptive faceplate numbers, DPC's "portfolio diversification" plan would not reduce CO2 impacts. Blending in half of the power from DPC's proposed, $700 million 525 MW natural gas Superior power plant would result in 12.2% renewable energy going forward compared to 12.4% in 2017. DPC touts some of the "better" 2017 sales to the frac sand mining industry as "earnings" ignoring the millions members saved reducing use.
In contrast, I admire my coop's regional leadership in developing Non-Transmission Alternatives- placing large amounts of hot water use into load management and sustaining very costly substations with member community solar. Alert DPC coops credit solar power from home and farm investments 100%. These member-based efficiency and solar sufficiency improvements guarantee large savings and CO2 reductions, whereas the new power plant and transmission expansion lines DPC leadership seek only guarantee debt, rate increases and delayed CO2 reduction.
We enjoy flat energy use because electric customers want to use less energy. For only $1-2 per month, the same as a single rate increase of many for new power plants and transmission expansion lines, energy efficiency and solar rebates could be tripled into a 30% reduction in use over the next 30 years. A 2013 DPC video boasts that "Coop members have votes and can influence the way their coop does business," but there was no mention at 2018 membership meetings of the DPC board, deciding on it own, to pursue a $49 million loan to buy 9% of the Cardinal Hickory Creek (CHC) high capacity expansion line in Southwest Wisconsin. The for-profit transmission builders admit that CHC could only return potential net savings of 2 to 24 cents per month if our energy use increases. No CO2 emission reductions are guaranteed. The builders and DPC refused to quantify utility bill impacts though asked by more than 30 municipal governments and 2 counties.
DPC leadership, your members are capable and want to help you slip back into your working clothes. With revived cooperative spirit and transparency, we can do energy planning that truly lowers costs and emissions. Utility expansion is old, dangerous thinking.
Dave Swanson
Platteville