>>April
      3, 2001

      
Energy crisis problems beginning to spark
      in Idaho

      
By Brian Snyder
     Argonaut Staff

      
As the long-time recipient of
      Idaho criticism, California continues to provide jocular ammunition
      in the form of the recent energy mess gripping the Golden State.
      

      


      Yet laugh as they may, Idaho residents are also quietly sliding
      into a power crisis of their own.

      


      An unusually dry winter is winding down with regional snow pack
      levels barely at 60 percent of normal. 

      
For all but a few scattered watersheds
      west of the Cascades, the National Weather Service predicts summer
      streamflow levels for the Northwest to run less than 70 percent
      of average. 

      


      In Idaho, the situation appears even drier. This year's spring
      runoff is expected to be among the lowest on record, slashing
      the state's hydroelectric potential by almost half.

      


      This does affect the average citizen. With the drop in hydroelectric
      capacity, utility companies must look elsewhere for supply. 

      


      "We're going to have to rely more heavily on our coal-fired
      plants," said Russ Jones, corporate communication specialist
      for Idaho Power, the company that supplies electricity for most
      of central and southwestern Idaho. However, increases in coal-fired
      production ultimately generate more air pollution and still fall
      significantly short of meeting demand.

      


      Jones then admitted that Idaho Power would be forced to purchase
      larger portions of its electricity on the wholesale market and
      in turn, raise customer rates. 

      


      Starting in April, the company plans to enact a 1.7 cent price
      increase across the board. This hike translates into an average
      monthly jump of anywhere from 34.4 percent for residential customers
      to 62.8 percent in the industrial sector.

      


      While not devastating, the rise lays a heavy burden on consumers.
      For a typical home, the average monthly bill will rise from $62.40
      to $85.20. 

      


      But large families that consume far greater amounts of electricity
      may see their payments climb by as much as $40-50 a month.

      


      To prepare for the impending shortages, Idaho Power is instituting
      an "Irrigation Buyback Program," where farmers are
      actually being paid not to irrigate their land. In short, for
      every 100,000 kilowatt hours or more per month they save, irrigation
      customers will be reimbursed 0.15 cents/kilowatt hour for that
      amount. 

      


      Put another way, farmers will receive double the money they would
      have spent on 100,000+ kilowatt hour of electricity used for
      irrigation. 

      


      Jones claims the measure alone will save almost 500 million kilowatt
      hours of electricity, or enough to power nearly half a million
      homes for a month.

      


      Still, the outlook appears somewhat dire. "We don't think
      the lights will go out," Jones said, when asked if Idaho
      could face blackout conditions similar to those in California.
      "We think the crisis will be more of an economic crisis
      than a supply crisis."
 
 

      
news | opinion | arts | sports&leisure
contact us | ui | front | archives