There was one thing that everyone agreed on at last night's forum at the City Opera House: Traverse City Light and Power's goal to have 30 percent local, renewable energy sources by 2020 (billed as 30×20) is a great thing.

There was unanimous consent for 30×20, praise for TC L&P's leadership role on this issue, and their efforts to diversify their energy portfolio, reduce carbon emissions, and have increased local and renewable power generation sources.

During the opening presentations, Ed Rice, TC L&P's Executive Director said, "$18 million dollars goes out of this area each year and it doesn't create one job. It is time to capture some of that money and keep it in our region. All forms of electrical generation are under scrutiny right now."

Linda Johnson, Chairperson for TC L&P, said "The base-load is going away." She was speaking on the energy base-load which is defined as essentially power on demand. It is reliable and available at least 85-90% of the time. Meaning, when you flip the light switch you can expect the light to turn on. "We're looking for a diversified portfolio, not just one resource" Johnson said. "It takes time to plan, design, engineer, and construct."

Currently, 99% of TC L&P's energy sources are coal and natural gas. The roughly 1% of renewable energy it creates comes from the lone windmill on M-72 in Leelanau county.

The 30×20 goal is their attempt to have 30% of their electricity generation come from renewable sources, including solar, landfill gas, wind and other renewable sources.

One of those sources under consideration is Biomass, specifically wood Biomass. The State and Federal government list it as a renewable resource, and Mike CoCo Vice-Chair for TC L&P who facilitated last night's forum, said that TC L&P considers Biomass to be a renewable energy source based on the life cycles of the trees, forest management, and the utilization of new, and not old, Biomass technology.

But the public raised a litany of doubts on the matter.

The major questions centered on how much wood would be needed, and how would competition from other biomass plants figure into the picture? Are Michigan forests truly renewable, which some claim are still recovering from the razing that occurred at the turn of the twentieth century from logging. Some questioned the length of time required to harvest trees. Could it take upwards of sixty or more years for a tree to grow before it could be harvested? Others questioned the effects that would occur to the land, soil quality, and watershed from harvesting large acres of trees. There was considerable questioning on the waste generated from Biomass and how would it be stored or taken care of? There were questions of water use/consumption, and the effects that several Biomass plants could have on other industries that rely on timber.

Mancelona and Cadillac already have or are in the process of getting Biomass plants, and the Record-Eagle reported Thursday that Frankfort is "pondering" building a Biomass plant as well.

Several audience members asked for more incentives to conserve energy. An informal straw poll of the audience showed that some would be willing to pay around 20-30% extra to raise funds to build more local generation sources. Some wanted TC L&P to scrap the whole idea of Biomass. Others wanted more feasibility studies and proof that Biomass is carbon neutral, renewable, and will have minimal impact on the environment. Some kept trying to steer focus back to wind, solar and hydro for power sources.

Jeff Stratton of J.D. Stratton Electric Inc. attended Thursday night's forum. Stratton is an electrical contractor and his company installs residential renewable energy systems. Speaking with him after the forum, he said that the forum was unique insofar as TC L&P was able to have a forum. "The bigger companies are bound by their investors," Stratton said. "It was good to see that the public is out here voicing their opinion. I think they [TCL&P] are listening."

When asked about the future costs of energy, Stratton said, "the days of cheap energy are behind us." He claimed that he was doubtful that TC L&P could offer Biomass at 8-10 cents per kWh.

During the opening presentations, TC L&P said they were considering Biomass because of its low price (an estimated 8-10 cents per kWh), its capability for base-load generation and the fact that it would be a renewable, local energy source. Towards the end of the forum, it came out that a 10 megawatt Biomass plant runs upwards of $40 million dollars to build. When audience members asked how much a windmill costs, the response was that to build a 2 megawatt windmill would be around $2 million dollars.

Traverse City Light and Power will hold another forum tomorrow (Feb 27) at NMC's Hagerty Center at 2p.m.

They will then compile the information gathered from the two forums and present it on April 7.

Want more Biomass news?

Click here to go to our Grand Vision Energy Issue Area that has been keeping tabs on this story as it develops.

Interlochen Public Radio has a dedicated page on their website with news and interviews, click here for that.

9&10 News was at last night's forum, you can watch video of their report here.

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Photo: Trapp Farm Nature Preserve in Beulah, Michigan.