The Vermont Department of Public Service will hold public hearings on the State of Vermont Comprehensive Energy Plan. The public is invited to comment at the following forums:
Middlebury – Sept. 27st (7-9 pm)
Middlebury High School (73 Charles Avenue)
Brattleboro – Sept. 28th (7-9 pm)
Brattleboro Union High School (131 Fairground Road)
Rutland – Sept. 29th (7-9 pm)
Rutland High School (22 Stratton Road)
Colchester – Oct. 3rd (7-9 pm)
Colchester High School (131 Laker Lane)
Danville – Oct. 6th (7-9 pm)
Danville School (148 Peacham Road)
Copies of the Draft plan are available at: http://www.vtenergyplan.vermont.gov/. Persons requiring special accommodations please call (802) 828-2811 prior to the event to make arrangements. Comments also may be submitted in writing to the Department at PSD.energyplan2011comments@state.vt.us or CEP Comments, Department of Public Service, 112 State Street, Montpelier, VT 05620-2601. Comments must be received by 5:00 pm on October 10, 2011.
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The plan does not mention capital cost estimates and estimates of the subsidies required to attract the billions of dollars needed to implement it.
Here is a partial list of subsidies that are available:
- Federal grant for 30% of the total project cost which also applies to Spanish, Danish, German and Chinese wind turbines thus creating jobs in those nations instead of the US. These nations would not dream to have such a measure benefitting US wind turbine companies.
- Federal accelerated depreciation allowing the entire project to be written off in five years which is particularly beneficial to wealthy, high-income people looking for additional tax shelters.
- Federal production credit of $0.022/kWh of wind energy produced.
- Owners of wind turbine facilities receive Renewable Energy Certificates which they can sell on the open market. The RECs are subsequently bought by polluting companies that find it less expensive to buy the RECs than clean up their pollution.
- Above market Feed-in-Tariffs and generous power purchase agreements.