Susitna dam a short-sighted solution

To the editor:

From Fiscal Year 2011 through FY 2012, money spent on the proposed Susitna dam for environmental permitting and necessary fieldwork for federal licensing has been approximately $78.2 million.

This year’s capital budget, Senate Bill 18, contains $95.2 million for the project. This is a whopping total of $173.4 million so far for this Railbelt project. By contrast, the same budget contains only $2 million for alternative energy and energy efficiency programs and $25 million for Renewable Energy Project Grants for the whole state. Seems like some mixed-up priorities. Many people do not consider large hydroelectric projects a renewable energy source, especially since the dam will impact the real renewable resources of fish, wildlife, clean water, tourism, recreational uses, hunting and fishing that are the backbone of Southcentral Alaska.

Marine energy advances are developing quickly on a worldwide basis. Nationwide, the federal government, private industry and universities are working on approximately 50 tidal projects. New studies show that England and Australia have enormous marine energy potential. Both countries have projects in research and development.

There at least 200 different wave energy devices in various stages of development throughout the world. The most common source of power is wave energy. The others are tidal energy, ocean current energy and temperature differential energy.

Oregon is the first U.S. test site for wave energy and wants to create the first commercially licensed grid-connected wave energy device. California’s 1,200 km of coast could potentially create 20 percent of its electricity needs.

Advances in wind energy are also in development. The Saphon Energy group has invented a bladder wind turbine. The turbine collects wind energy that moves pistons that generate hydraulic pressure that can be converted into electricity. It is more efficient and less expensive than blade wind turbines. The bladder’s turbine is not a threat to birds and other wildlife, and is much quieter.

The state of Alaska, with far more coastline than any other state and many countries and with high wind speeds in hundreds of locations, is going backward in energy development as fast as it can by prioritizing the proposed Susitna dam. This project is one of the most short-sighted projects in existence.

Denis Ransy

Talkeetna