Energy, Transportation & Missouri News

ENERGY

Buyer of TVA Nuclear Plant Plans to Run It

We previously posted that the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) was auctioning an unfinished nuclear power plant near Hollywood, Alabama. The buyer, Nuclear Development LLC, announced its intention to complete the plant and put it into operation.

Before this can be done, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission must transfer the operating license from TVA to Nuclear Development. In addition, Nuclear Development must complete financing arrangements.

Nuclear Development bid $111 million for the plant. In addition to two nuclear reactors and supporting facilities, the property includes 1,600 acres of land.

Canada, Finland Plan to Phase Out Coal

Canadian officials announced plans to phase out coal-powered electric generation by 2030. They hope the country will be 90 percent powered by sustainable sources by that time.

Findland also proposes to phase out coal by 2030. The country plans to be carbon-neutral by 2050.

MISSOURI

Bill Would Make Sale of Municipal Utilities Easier

A bill filed in the Missouri General Assembly (HB 247), would lower the threshold of voter approval needed for a municipality to sell a utility. If passed, it would lower the requirement from a five-seventh majority to a simple majority. The Missouri House Local Government Committee has taken up the bill.

TRANSPORTATION

Bill Would Transfer Some Missouri Roads from State to Counties

Two bills in the Missouri Senate (SB 38 and SJR 3), propose pathway for the transfer of responsibility for certain road, letter routes, from the state to counties. About two-thirds of the current state funds for maintaining these roads will be distributed to counties, the remainder remaining with the state for other transportation needs.

County officials are opposed to the measure, saying it will shift much of the state’s burden for road maintenance to even more cash-strapped counties. These routes were maintained by counties until 1952, when the state took them over as part of a road improvement program.

A similar proposal failed to pass in the 2016 session. SJR 3 also includes a provision for raising fuel taxes. You can find out more about these bills here.

Noisy Electric Cars

New rules will require electric cars traveling slower than 19 miles per hour to produce a sound. This is to prevent accidents involving pedestrians who can’t hear the very quiet electric motors operating in these vehicles. The National Transportation Safety Administration anticipates this measure will prevent 2,400 injuries to pedestrians annually. New electric and hybrid cars must comply with the rule by September 2019.

Energy & Transportation News

ENERGY

Missouri Municipal Electric Utilities, Governor Support Power Line Project

Earlier this year, the Missouri Public Service Commission (PSC) rejected a proposal for a power line that would carry electricity generated at wind farms in Kansas to the grid in Indiana. The PSC’s decision was based, in part, on the fact that no Missouri customers would use the line or the energy it carried.

Clean Line Energy, which proposed the project, has been looking to overcome this object. It has brokered a deal with the Missouri Joint Municipal Electric Utility Commission (MJMEUC), which represents a pool of municipal utilities that pool resources to by power. MJMEUC has 67 municipal utility member and 35 are expected to take part in the deal if it is approved.

In addition, Missouri Governor Jay Nixon has expressed his support for the transmission line. In his statement, Nixon emphasized the energy savings and jobs that would be created the $500 million construction project.

The line must be approved by the Missouri PSC. It is likely to be opposed by affected landowners who campaigned against the original proposal. Official in Kansas, Illinois and Indiana have already approved the project.

What Are the Advantages of Microgrids?

This is the second in a series of posts on microgrids. See the previous post for a description of what is a microgrid.

Microgrids have several potential benefits. These include

-backup energy supply and improved reliability,

-environmental benefits,

-exploitation of local and alterative resources,

-increased energy efficiency and reduced energy consumption, and

-reduced cost.

Backup Energy Supply and Improved Reliability

Because microgrids can operate independently of the larger grid, they may be able to continue to operate when there is an outage elsewhere on the main grid.

Environmental Benefits

Microgrids are not inherently less polluting than large grids, but they may afford opportunities to manage energy resources in manners that may reduce pollution. Microgrids may be more easily able to exploit variable or small renewable sources including solar and wind energy. These smaller power supplies may also be able to address local peaks and reduce the need to ramp up production at larger, and potentially more polluting, power plants.

Exploit Local and Alternative Resources

Sometimes local energy resources are available that are not suitable for use on a large grid because they are not sufficiently powerful or reliable. Solar energy, an alternative energy source that is variable and relative low power, is an example of a resource that may be more easily exploited by a microgrid.

Reduced Cost

Microgrids might be managed in a manner to reduce costs. For instance, when prices are high during periods of peak demand, a microgrid might switch to a local power supply that is less expensive. This will also reduce the peak on the larger grid, meaning larger power plants do not have to ramp up production as much or be built to address large peaks.

If you’re interested in finding out more about microgrids, here are some resources to get you started.

How microgrids work (Lantero, A., Energy.gov, June 17, 2014)

What is a microgrid? (Infrastructure Watch, April 23, 2016)

TRANSPORTATION

60 Years of Interstate Highways

President Dwight Eisenhower signed the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 on June 29 of that year. Though previous legislation had authorized interstate highways, it was under this act and the Eisenhower administration that our interstate system began in earnest.

Interstates have proven to be a safe way to travel (the fatality rate on interstates is less the rate on other routes).

Even so, the roads are showing signs of aging. Many sections are in poor condition and many bridges are structurally deficient.

Keeping up with the maintenance needs of the interstate system is an enormous task. The U.S. Department of Transportation estimates that the backlog if needed improvements totals $189 billion.

Relate Posts and Articles

At 60, U.S. Interstate Highway System is Showing Its Age (Hill, C., Equipment World, June 28, 2016)

Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 (Weingroff, R. F., Federal Highway Administration, June 15, 2015)

Missouri Legislature Fails to Act on Transportation Tax

Though a bill passed in the Missouri Senate, the state’s General Assembly did not act on a proposed fuel tax increase before closing its session in May. You can read more about this issue here.

COMPLAINTS DEPARTMENT

Blogger Considers Career Change

That doesn’t mean I’ll quit blogging. I’ve never made a living (or even a dime) from blogging, and it has always taken a back seat to other things. By day, I’m an employee of a state that pays the lowest wages of any state (even our legislators are starting to complain about it). Maybe I should cross the river and go back to school where I can learn to be a brewmaster, or possibly a vintner. As I recall, looking through the fog of a couple of decades, I did reasonably well in my undergraduate food processing class, so maybe I can build on that.

Energy, Transportation & Water News

ENERGY

Bill Would Change Electric Ratemaking in Missouri

State Rep. Rocky Miller, who represents parts of Camden and Miller Counties near Osage Beach, introduced the 21^st Century Grid Modernization and Security Act (HB2816). The bill would substantially change the state’s method of regulating electric utility rates. The method is modeled on processes in Illinois and would allow annual adjustments to electric rates.

Another portion of the bill substantially changes provision related to special electric rates for aluminum smelters. This is largely driven by Noranda, which operates smelter in New Madrid. It seems unlikely that lower or more flexible electric rates will save the company from plummeting aluminum prices.

With the exception of Noranda, large electricity users in Missouri have generally come out against the proposal. Some companies that have expressed opposition to the bill are Purina, Bayer, Ford, General Motors and Procter & Gamble. You can read more about this topic here.

Poop to Power Project Coming to North Carolina

Duke Energy has contracted with Carbon Cycle Energy for the construction and operation of a facility to process animal waste to produce methane gas for fuel. Waste will come from area pig and chicken farms. The gas will be piped to Duke plants as fuel in electric power generation.

North Carolina is the second largest pork producing state in the U.S. Duke is a major electric power producer, particularly in the Carolinas. Carbon Cycle is based in Colorado.

TRANSPORTATION

Barrel Bob Found

Barrel Bob, a character that serves as spokesman for worksite safety for the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT), was found in Columbia on April 1 (no fooling) after he was stolen from his roadside station at highway construction site in Jefferson City on March 19.   The statue, constructed from used orange and reflective white barrels and cones, was previously set on fire by vandals at this location.

This statue was one of seven Barrel Bobs. Each of MoDOT’s districts has one. Bob was scheduled to make appearances at events to promote highway worksite safety beginning April 11, so the agency had resorted to building a new statue before Bob was found. You can find out more here, here and here.

Missourians Could Vote on Fuel Tax Increase

A bill (SB623) is making its way through the Missouri Senate that could increase the state fuel tax from 17 cents per gallon to 22.9 cents per gallon. The tax, if implemented, is expected to bring in $240 million annually. The bill would place a referendum on the November ballot, meaning it would have to be approved directly by voters. Before getting that far, it must complete its path through the General Assembly. The Senate is expected to pass the bill in its final vote in the first full week of April. Afterward it will be considered by the state House of Representatives, where it is not expected to be warmly received. You can read more about this here, here and here.

Significant funding for Missouri roads comes from the federal government (which has its own funding issues). MoDOT is preparing to use cash reserves to match federal grants for transportation projects (more here).

Name a Missouri Highway

An alternative to increased fuel taxes could be the auctioning of naming rights for highways. There is no estimate of how much revenue it could raise, but I’ll go out on a limb to say not enough to persuade the General Assembly to this bill. You can read the bill here. I have the impression the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reporter who covered this story must have chuckled as he typed.

WATER

Antibiotic Resistance Found in Bacteria Downstream of Wastewater Discharge

Researchers studying the biofilm in a Spanish river found antibiotic resistance genes. These genes occurred as far as 1 km (0.6 mile) downstream from the of a wastewater treatment plant. The genes provide resistance to some antibiotics commonly used in hospitals. You can find more here. In response to the issue of pharmaceutical pollution, some chemists are considering biodegradable drugs.

Infrastructure & Environment Review

ENERGY

Ameren Missouri Efficiency Program Ends

Unable to resolve differences with state regulators, Ameren Missouri has let its energy efficiency rebate program lapse. Staff of the Missouri Public Service Commission and the state’s Office of Public Counsel believed that Ameren customer overpaid the cost of the program, and opposed a three-year extension. A proposal from Kansas City Power & Light has been approved, and it might serve as a model for a compromise between the state and Ameren. You can read more about this issue here.

TRANSPORTATION

Bans on Texting While Driving Introduced in Missouri

Bills that would prohibit or greatly restrict texting while driving have been prefiled in the Missouri General Assembly session that started January 6: HB1542 and SB821. Currently, texting while driving is banned for drivers younger than 21 and for drivers of commercial vehicles. You can find more about these bills here.

Bill Would Add Missouri Highway Commissioners

HB1446 would increase the size of the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission from six members to eight. Each of the seven Transportation Department districts would be represented by a commissioner, and an eighth commissioner would be appointed without regard to district residence.

Missouri Legislators Propose Fuel Tax Increase

Two proposals have been floated by Missouri state legislators. One would increase the tax on gasoline by 1.5 cents and diesel by 3.5 cents. Another would increase all fuel taxes by 2 cents. You can find more about these proposals here or here.

As an alternative to the fuel tax, SB645 would redirect 3 percent of automobile sales tax revenues from state general revenue to the road fund.

WATER

Flooded Wastewater Plants Release Sewage in St. Louis Area

Wastewater treatment plants operated by the Metropolitan Sewer District of St. Louis have released millions of gallons of sewage into rivers. The Grand Glaize and Fenton plants were inundated by the recent floods in Missouri. The two plants, which combined treat and average of 20 million gallons of wastewater per day, discharge into the Meramec River.

White House Announces Water Strategy

The White House announced a strategy to the sustainability of U.S. water supplies and systems. The cynic in me suspects that these strategies, programs, and actions were things that were mostly in the works anyway, but someone cobbled them together into a seemingly unified program (you can can get the details here). Even so, we need to take a serious look at our water resources, policies and practices. Good policy that addresses today’s water situation is needed, but sustainable water for our nation will come when we have a culture that values water for the many roles it plays in our environment, industry, health, recreation and almost every other aspect of human life.

Energy & Water Update

ENERGY

Illinois Approves Power Line Rejected in Missouri

We previously posted that the Missouri Public Service Commission rejected a power line project called the Grain Belt Express, which would connect wind energy generation in Kansas to users in Indiana. The Illinois Commerce Commission has approved the project, making Missouri the only holdout.  Clean Line Energy, the company behind the project, plans to continue to seek approval either by reapplying to the state or seeking an overriding federal approval.

Texas Utility Offer Free Nighttime Electricity

TXU energy has offered customers free energy at night. This unusual offer is an attempt to shift use from daytime, when wholesale energy costs are high, to night, when prices drop.

Texas may be better able to adopt a program like this. It has more wind resources than other parts of the country, accounting for 10 percent of generation, and wind blows more at night. In addition, the Texas grid operates largely independently from the other grids in the country, so it cannot easily sell and deliver excess generation to the larger wholesale market.

You can find out more about this free electricity program here.

WATER

Cardboard Sewers Collapse in Canada

In the building boom after World War II, many Canadian sewer service lines were built of a tar-impregnated cardboard. These pipes have been failing with increasing frequency. Some Canadian cities are facing replacement costs of hundreds of millions of dollars.

It appears that these pipes stood up well until dishwasher became common and the hot water began to soften them. This is an interesting illustration of how we are putting new demands on our infrastructure that could hardly have been imagined decades ago when it was originally built.

You can read more about this issue here.