Doyle announces new energy, global warming policies

Doyle announces new energy, global warming policies

LaCrosse, Wis. – On a visit to western Wisconsin, Gov. Jim Doyle has signed executive orders that set in motion several alternative energy and climate change proposals.
Doyle officially created the Office of Energy Independence, appointed a global warming task force, and said Wisconsin will be part of a renewable energy credit trading system for the Midwest.
One executive order creates the new Office of Energy Independence, which is designed to advance energy policy and promote the state’s bioindustry. The office will serve as a point of contact for citizens, businesses, and local units of government that pursue bio development, energy efficiency, and alternative energy.
Judy Ziewacz, currently deputy secretary for the Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection, will be executive director of the office.
One of her first projects will be to work with the Public Service Commission (PSC) on a multi-utility effort to build a “clean coal” electric generation facility.
Tasking climate change
Doyle also signed an executive order creating a task force on global warming that will include representatives from business, government, environmental advocacy groups to examine the effects of, and develop solutions to, global warming in Wisconsin. The governor has directed the task force to create an action plan to reduce the state’s contribution to greenhouse gases, and he directed the state Department of Natural Resources, with help from the PSC, to obtain an estimate of the greenhouse gas emissions in Wisconsin.
The task force will be chaired by Tia Nelson of the Board of Public Land Commissioners, and by Roy Thilly of Wisconsin Public Power, Inc.
The initiatives are part of the governor’s plan to get 25 percent of the state’s electricity and 25 percent of its transportation fuels from renewable sources by 2025.
Alternative energy tracker
To help keep the cost of renewable energy down and stimulate more renewable energy development, Doyle said the PSC will be part of the Midwest Renewable Energy Tracking System. The system is designed to stimulate a trading market to help Midwestern states meet renewable energy standards.
Participating states will include Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, North and South Dakota, and the Canadian province of Manitoba.
Related stories
Tom Still: Wisconsin can offer what a federal energy research lab needs
Johnson Controls adds renewable energy unit
Tom Still: Wisconsin will have plenty of competition in building the energy future
CleanTech gets $1.5M grant for cellulosic ethanol
Wisconsin Rapids to welcome new ethanol plant