Bob Jenks at Portland City Club
Posted on March 31, 2010 by oregoncub
Tags, Climate and Conservation
Bob Jenks, CUB’s executive director, joined a select group of energy experts on Friday, March 26, 2010, for a lunchtime presentation on “Powering the Future” at the City Club of Portland’s weekly discussion series, the Friday Forum.
Bob was joined on the panel by Rachel Shimshak, executive director of the Renewable Northwest Project, and Angus Duncan, president and founder of the Bonneville Environmental Foundation, as they addressed the question, “Where Will Energy Come From?”
Each panelist had a slightly different perspective on the future of Oregon’s energy portfolio and the outlook for meeting—and one day exceeding—Oregon’s stated renewable energy goals, but an undeniable consensus emerged between the three: our priority must be energy efficiency.
Bob began, “I start with the assumption that we have to deal with climate change. It’s not a question of ‘Is it affordable?’ but a question of, ‘How do we make it affordable?’”
The key to addressing climate change, Bob explained, is to prioritize. We need to figure out what actions we need to take, and what investments we need to make, that will ultimately allow us to reduce carbon and greenhouse gas emissions while keeping electricity costs affordable for all Oregonians.
The answer, first and foremost, is investment in energy efficiency. As Bob explained, “Energy efficiency actually deals with the climate and saves us money.”
Bob further pointed to the Energy Trust of Oregon and its household residential energy efficiency program as a key asset in helping to both reduce greenhouse gas emissions and utility bills at the same time, as Rachel and Angus echoed his sentiments.
After the discussion delved deeper into the particulars of various renewable sources of energy, including wind turbines, solar panels, and biomass, an audience member questioned the panelists about nuclear energy.
Referencing the recent decision to halt the opening of the national Yucca Mountain nuclear depository, the questioner wondered about the cost debate and asked whether the nation’s energy problems couldn’t be addressed by a reinvestment in the development of nuclear energy as a cheap—and carbon-free—alternative.
Bob was quick to point out, however, that the ultimate costs of nuclear energy might very well be far beyond our ability to afford them.
“I don’t think we can responsibly build new nuclear plants without having answered the waste question,” he replied.
In addition to citing the large up-front costs of building a new reactor, he continued that building new reactors would be “taking on a cost risk and having customers be on the hook” for an as-of-yet unquantifiable costs associated with nuclear waste disposal and storage. Bob further pointed to Oregon’s old Trojan nuclear plant and the current Hanford storage site as an example of the ongoing issues associated with nuclear energy technology and the ongoing costs to utility customers.
You can listen to a recording of the forum on the Portland City Club’s website.
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03/22/17 | 0 Comments | Bob Jenks at Portland City Club