Thursday was encouraging, as the Austin City Council voted 7-0 to continue negotiations with Gemini to build what would be the largest solar power plant in the U.S., a 30-megawatt plant in Webberville.
Encouraging because today Austin put goals first, and economic efficiency arguments (which are greatly lacking in street-cred. these days) in their rightful place. As the seconded motion to vote on the proposal was on the table, a research scientist rushed into the room, asking the council to allow him time to speak.
The scientist stated that a solar plant would reduce Austin’s carbon emissions by .5 percent, whereas a nuclear plant could reduce the carbon emissions by 60 percent.
Nevertheless, the council approved negotiations with Gemini and established parameters: all tax benefits from building a solar plant must pass through to consumers, a council-approved stakeholder task force must be involved in the negotiations, and the related local Green Choice option (a plan that would allow residents to affirmatively indicate their preference for green-produced power) would be specifically labeled as a choice for solar, rather than as a general choice for renewables, which would also include biomass and wind power.
Among the supporters of green lighting the negotiations were Public Citizen, Austin Energy, and a renewables expert who had been part of a losing bid to build the solar plant. The expert, Mr. Sicilliano, recommended that Austin capitalize on Gemini’s below-market bid.
David Power, Deputy Director of Public Citizen, along with several other supporters, urged the council to include all stakeholders in the negotiations process, including both individuals and industry players.
Several benefits of the solar project were cited during the meeting, including the following: a Gemini representative claimed that 50 percent of the labor in building the plant could come from Austin, $30-45 million in local materials could be used, resulting increases in electricity prices could be limited to 1.5 percent, there is no risk of transmission congestion, and solar will fill in wind-power’s gaps during peak demand in the summer.
Tags: austin, austin city council, david power, gemini, green choice, public citizen, siciliano, Solar, solar power plant, webberville
