Mid-Atlantic Power Pathway

Filed under:News coverage — posted by admin on February 19, 2008 @ 12:37 pm

Here’s an example of how it’s all connected, it’s the same story everywhere… It’s another MAPP, this one a Pepco Holdings transmission line from Maryland, through Delaware, to New Jersey:

mapptransmissionoverview.jpg

Pepco Holdings is Pepco, Delmarva Power and Atlantic City Electric, Conectiv, Pepco Energy Services, and Potomac Capital Investment.

WHOOOO-EEE, they’re launching a new website, www.powerpathway.com!

And the purpose of this transmission is clear — just look at that map!  They are doing this to enable bulk power transfer from Maryland (and further south and southwest?) through Delaware to New Jersey and points northeast.   Look how it connects the obsolete nuclear and fossil generation plants.  This is part of the problem of Renewable Energy Standards/Mandates… where there is no market, and where renewables aren’t mandated in conjunction with closing down non-renewables, the renewables enter the market and the non-renewables are then still up and running and are off to market, if we allow the transmission.

Simpler:

1) Mandate: Increase renewable generation (RES)

2) Don’t couple RES with a mandate to decrease non-renewable generation

3) Give them “cap & TRADE” which lets them use non-renewable

4) Non-renewable keeps generating, DUH!

5) Non-renewable can be sold on open market, unregulated!

6) Power companies build CapX/MAPP transmission to facilitate #4

7) We pay for transmission to facilitate #4

8) We pay by giving up land for new transmission lines for #4

9) They increase unregulated profits from bulk power sales on our dollar!

Jeez, what’s wrong with this picture?  Is anyone thinking on this bus???  It’s basic economics with a much-too-inelastic supply — increase RES and decrease non-renewable.  Instead, we get this scenario.  How many ways can we be screwed? At the very least, if utilities want to increase their profits, well, THEY ought to pay for the infrastructure to do it.  Or at least, cut us in on the profits, eh?

And what we need to do is to assure that every renewable energy mandate is associated with a mandate to SHUT DOWN non-renewable energy.  It’s that simple…

Shouldn’t we have learned this lesson in Minnesota, where all the wind mandates were associated with expansion of nuclear waste, relicensing of nuclear and even more nuclear waste, the biggest transmission infrastructure in history (CapX, duh!), turkey turds, “garbage” classified as renewable, I mean really, whatever are they thinking.  None of this renewable energy push reduces CO2 generation or emissions of pollutants.  It just moves it around and makes us feel good, like we’re doing something.  Renewable energy mandates that aren’t coupled with decrease in non-renewable generation just don’t cut it!

Here’s where they want to stick this thing in Delaware, in order of the flow of electrons (click on the maps to pull up the real ones, because when I shrunk them down, they lost their quality):

Sussex County:

mapp_gis_county_sussex2-small.jpg

And Kent County:

mapp_gis_county_kent-small.jpg

And Newcastle County:

mapp_gis_county_ncastlesalem-small.jpg

CLICK HERE – LINK FOR ALL THE MAPS! 

Here’s the funny part – Project Details?  CLICK HERE FOR PROJECT “DETAILS.”  The details just aren’t there!  I guess, like CapX, they’ll just make them up as they go…

Dig this“PROJECT BENEFITS PAGE” and the oh-so-familiar what-a-bunch-o’-crap list:

* Improve the flow of electricity throughout the eastern Mid-Atlantic region
* Increase the region’s power import capabilities
* Connect numerous points on the grid that are currently underserved
* Enhance local power distribution systems through multiple upgrades
* Provide a pathway for clean, renewable energy (such as wind and solar power)to move across the region
* Support additional transmission which encourages economic growth
* Begin improving transmission in as little as five years after starting construction
* Benefits all utilities in the region including co-ops and municipals

And exactly how many access points are there to this line?  What will interconnection cost?  As I asked the CapX folks, how many wind projects connect to a 345kV line?  And this one?  Here’s from their FAQ page:

What kinds of energy will the line deliver? Will this line encourage the use of dirty energy sources such as coal?

MAPP will be used to transport electricity from many different power generation sources – this includes existing fossil fuel plants and future renewable energy projects such wind and solar. As we seek to transition to more renewable power generation, a strong transmission system will continue to be important.

… sigh… “future renewable energy projects…”  uh-huh… maybe somebody ought to remind them of their resistance to Bluewater Wind’s offshore project?

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