Oregon Public Broadcasting

Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski convened a summit Wednesday intended to help chart a path toward a renewable energy future without breaking the bank.  Rob Manning reports.

Oregon has mandates dealing with renewable energy and greenhouse gases - and some tax incentives to help reach them. But the electricity grid needs new transmission lines, and those are expensive.

And new renewable energy has technological and reliability problems. Meantime, power demand is growing.

Participants from the energy production side, like Steven Wright, with the Bonneville Power Administration, stressed efficiency and conservation, as step one.

Steven Wright: “Energy efficiency is the least-cost option, it’s the one that certainly doesn’t lead to CO2 emissions, and so it clearly needs to be at the top of the list.”

Business participants cautioned that there are limits to conservation, especially for manufacturing.

Kulongoski concluded the summit by calling for a council of energy advisors. It would help guide short-term steps, consistent with Oregon’s long-term energy goals.