Rare earth metals and their importance in new energy innovations were topics in one session of the Colorado Rural Electric Association’s 2012 Energy Innovations Summit October 29 in downtown Denver. Sessions also discussed electric vehicles, nuclear energy, biomass development and more.

In this ever-evolving world of energy policy, CREA works to keep its members on top of the latest developments. As part of that effort, CREA has hosted the Energy Innovations Summit for the past three years and opened it to others outside the electric co-op community who are interested in these topics.

This year’s Summit included a robust discussion of the future of coal-fired generation with executives from Xcel, Colorado Springs Utilities and Tri-State. All of the panelists agreed that the currently-low natural gas prices are a boon for utilities and their consumers, but the companies will all continue to rely on generation from their coal-fired fleets for a long time to come. The utilities representatives also reviewed the technologies they are exploring to reduce emissions from the coal plants to keep them viable into the future.

One of the highlights of the conference was the luncheon presentation by Dr. Tom Anklam from the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. Dr. Anklam provided a fascinating look at the Laser Inertial Fusion Energy or LIFE project that he and his team are working on in California. The potential for energy production from elements found in seawater is game changing and Dr. Anklam's presentation demonstrated that great strides are being made in that technology.

The day wrapped up with a discussion of energy venture capital opportunities in Colorado.

Attendees declared the day a success as the Summit brought together diverse stakeholders to talk about challenges and solutions in today’s electric industry. Many points of view were offered and many opinions were shared. It was a day of looking to the future, working to find ways to keep electricity reliable, affordable and safe for electric co-op members.

—Kent Singer, CREA Executive Director

On October 29, the Colorado Rural Electric Association will hold its annual Energy Innovations Summit in downtown Denver. Those interested in the latest in energy issues are encouraged to attend.

On the agenda are several leaders in the energy industry who will enlighten guests on the latest research and developments in energy. Key topics include: 
• Rare earth metals: Critical shortage or workaround opportunity?
• A regional project overview on power from biomass.
• The newest developments in car technology.
• The future of coal-fired power generation.

Energy experts who will be speaking about these topics and more include United Power CEO Ron Asche, San Miguel Power Association CEO Kevin Ritter, and Tri-State Generation and Transmission Senior Vice President of Production Mike McInnnis. 

Several exhibitors are scheduled to attend including GE Appliances, USDA Rural Development, Hamilton Associates, and Western Area Power Administration. 

Anyone who wants to attend the Energy Innovations Summit, either as a guest or as an exhibitor, can find more information and register by visiting www.regonline.com/EnergyInnovationsSummit. Additional information, including literature from the 2011 Energy Innovations Summits, can be found at crea.coop.

The Cooperative Research Network, a service of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, is helping Colorado’s electric co-ops as well as our nation’s other co-ops introduce new technologies that will increase service reliability, decrease outage time and improve safety for line crews and the public.

One of the major areas where advancements are taking place involves down-line automation. An umbrella term describing the use of digital meters and equipment, software applications and two-way communications, down-line automation allows electric cooperatives to effectively monitor the flow of electricity in near real-time; identify voltages out of allowed ranges; pinpoint outages; and transmit signals to transformers, capacitors, circuit breakers and other devices to initiate diagnostic or corrective actions that can isolate, reroute power around or even remotely repair the cause of a power interruption.

With down-line automation, co-ops can decrease the number of members who lose power and the duration of an outage as well as reduce “line losses”— electricity that dissipates in the process of being distributed over power lines. This saves co-ops and their members money by not having to buy electricity that doesn’t get used.

One of the most promising advances in down-line automation, distribution fault analysis (DFA), taps high-resolution monitors installed on electric lines and cutting-edge algorithms to zero in on hard-to-find electric system trouble spots before they morph into full-blown outages. In its purest form, DFA reads and identifies specific fault signatures in a waveform, such as a cracked insulator or a tree limb occasionally brushing a line and causing a blink. Instead of learning about an event, such as an outage, after it happens, co-ops can fix a potential problem ahead of time.

An electric cooperative in Tennessee has been testing a DFA system designed by Texas A&M University and the Electric Power Research Institute, a Palo Alto, California-based non-profit consortium whose members include co-ops. Other electric cooperatives have signed up to test DFA’s potential through the Cooperative Research Network.

Another down-line tool that could go a long way toward improving electric reliability entails using robots to check the condition of transmission lines. Like DFA, robots seek to prevent outages. But unlike DFA, robots directly inspect cables and other components rather than waveforms. Robots can work on the ground or in the sky, and some even operate while suspended from live power lines.

It may surprise some folks that electric co-ops have emerged as leaders in the down-line automation field. But innovation is a key part the cooperative DNA. It embodies the same spirit that drove rural residents to find ways to overcome seemingly insurmountable technical, engineering, legal, political and financial hurdles and bring central station electric service to all corners of America.

The not-for-profit, consumer-oriented business structure ensures all decisions ― technology-based or otherwise ― focus on the electric co-op core mission: providing members with a safe, reliable and affordable supply of power.

In sprawling, rugged service territories with densities sometimes as low as two or three consumers per mile, down-line automation can substantially lower costs by reducing truck rolls. Following massive storms, the ability to target outage locations from the office and efficiently dispatch line crews can significantly speed up getting the lights back on.

Innovation — it’s proof positive, if there was any doubt before, that cooperatives build a better world.

By Amy Higgins

While firefighters work diligently to contain Colorado’s many wildfires this summer, electric cooperative linemen have been up against the damage the fires left behind. They might not be in turnout gear and wielding hoses, but, much like firefighters, linemen need to be fully armed and alert to work with one of our most dangerous resources: electricity.

Electric co-ops must generate power for their members, but with the extensive fire damage to the electric equipment, time constraints and high costs of repairs, getting power up and running again has been a monumental task following the various fires.

High Park Challenges
According to several news sources, the High Park Fire is the second largest wildfire in Colorado history. The lightning-provoked fire was declared contained on June 30, but in the fire’s wake were approximately 260 homes and 88,000 acres destroyed. Within the burned areas were more than 450 electric poles and 150 transformers that were damaged or destroyed.

The sheer number of electric resources lost in the fire make Poudre Valley Rural Electric Association’s rebuilding efforts more demanding. But the rocky landscape west of Fort Collins is sometimes difficult to access, therefore it’s an even bigger challenge to repair and rebuild these structures.

“Our regular trucks and digger trucks don’t work well in such conditions, so we’re using small backhoes and skid steer loaders to drag equipment and materials in,” Myles Jensen, PVREA’s manager of member services and external affairs, told reporters. “In some places we’re using dynamite to blast holes for poles, and when that doesn’t work we’re doing it by hand.”

The obstacles PVREA linemen are up against means a longer turnaround time to complete the necessary repairs. PVREA officials told Electric Co-op Today, a National Rural Electric Cooperative Association news site, it could take more than a month.

Last Chance Efforts
Local news outlets reported that the Last Chance fire in northeastern Colorado, ignited by sparks from a motorist’s tire blowout June 25, burned approximately 45,000 acres as the fourth largest fire in state history. It also burned 11 structures and a fire truck in southern Washington County before it was contained. What many did not report is the devastating damage it did to power equipment in the Morgan County Rural Electric Association’s service territory.

According to Geoff Baumgartner, MCREA’s communications specialist, the fire seriously damaged or destroyed 202 electric poles, damaged the co-op’s South Woodrow Substation and left more than 210 services without power. At one point, MCREA crews reported standing at the substation and watching electric structures burn in all four directions.

Tri-State Generation and Transmission, which supplies power to the co-ops in the area, lost 18 line structures for its 115-kilovolt transmission line.

Once line crews were permitted to access the area, workers repaired most of the substation and all but 44 services that first day, June 26. By the third day, the evening of June 28, the line crews had replaced all the lines and poles and had power fully restored.

Y-W Electric, Highline Electric and the city of Fort Morgan were an enormous help to line crews in restoring the electric structures with such an amazing turnaround.

All Over the Map
The High Park and Waldo Canyon fires consumed most of the media coverage in June, but several other areas of the Centennial State have been affected by wildfires as well. According to 9NEWS, the following fires were blazing in late June:

• Chimney Rock Fire – near Pagosa Springs
• Little Sand Fire – near Pagosa Springs
• CR 102 Fire – Elbert County
• Pine Ridge Fire – Grand Junction
• Flagstaff Fire – Boulder County
• Stateline Fire – along U.S. Highway 550, near the Colorado-New Mexico line
• Treasure Fire – near Leadville
• Weber Fire – near Mancos

The Weber Fire damaged a line in Empire Electric Association’s system but spared Tri-State’s nearby Menefee communications site. The backup generator at that site, however, provided power that assisted Empire in repairing its system.

This year’s wildfires have been cataclysmic for many Colorado residents. Lives have been lost, crops have burned, property has turned to ash and, for some, sources of revenue perished with the fires. Residents and business owners throughout the state are faced with the challenge of rebuilding their lives out of the wildfire ash.

The long hours of hard work co-op linemen withstood in the blistering heat illustrate how dedicated your electric cooperative is to its members.

In November 2011, Colorado Country Life announced that the Colorado Rural Electric Association, Tri-State Generation and Transmission, and CoBank support the Colorado Meth Project and its efforts. Since then the prevention program has been made great strides in getting its message out.

On November 8, 2011, the Colorado Meth Project announced the launch of MethProject.org, a website aimed toward teens that provides a slew of information about methamphetamine. Through the project’s website, teens can gather facts; take polls and quizzes; read, watch and listen to first-hand accounts through literature and videos; ask questions and more. In essence, the website is a resource of more than 350 pieces of content that tells you what meth is, explains its physical and mental affects, teaches you how to recognize the signs of a user, and offers ways to find help for anyone affected by the drug.

The results are noticeable. Since the launch of MethProject.org, Colorado site traffic has increased eight fold, reaching teens where they live across the state, according to the Project’s statistics. The Meth Project’s online videos garnered more than 6 million views by Coloradans since the launch.

Additionally, the project formed a teen advisory council designed to help raise awareness about meth and offer a teen perspective on how to reach other teens.

On June 12, the project announced its 2012-2013 Teen Advisory Council members at the Young Americans Center for Financial Education in Denver. The 13-member team is comprised of eighth to 12th graders from Colorado. These students will participate in outreach activities and implement a service project for each of their communities over the next school year.

“We are making great progress in changing teen attitudes about methamphetamine. Thanks to the Colorado Meth Project, more young people in our state understand how dangerous this drug is,” said Attorney General John Suthers at a Colorado Rockies pre-game ceremony. “The Teen Advisory Council is helping us spread the word about the risks of using meth throughout their own communities, as well as to a broader audience online. I want to thank them for the commitment they have made to speaking out against meth, which will help us prevent its use among a new generation of teens.”

MethProject.org was created with teens in mind, but the information it contains is also valuable to adults who are concerned about methamphetamine use in their communities and around their loved ones.

Lines went down. Poles burned. Members were without power. The High Park Fire was only 15-20 percent contained. That was life in one part of Poudre Valley Rural Electric Association’s territory in north central Colorado as this magazine went to press.

At one time, PVREA had more than 1,100 homes without electricity. There were also several hundred others who had intermittent power as those directing the firefighting asked the local electric co-op to de-energize lines in areas where planes were dropping water and fire retardant.

The fire broke out Saturday, June 9, northwest of Fort Collins and quickly grew to more than 52,000 acres. At deadline, PVREA estimated that it had more than 100 poles burnt or damaged and miles of line gone. One new three-phase line, which had just been rebuilt and energized about a week before the fire, was destroyed.

The co-op also nearly lost its Bellvue Substation when, early in the fire, flames got within 50 feet of the substation, which has four feeds sending power out to members. Firefighters were diligent in protecting this infrastructure and turned back the fire.

The co-op itself was quick to begin the rebuilding process. While firefighters were still trying to contain the fire June 13, PVREA crews set the first poles to rebuild their system. They were able to energize that new line June 14 while other lines were going down as the fire continued to spread along Highway 14 and the Poudre River.

DENVER ­— Wednesday, June 13, 2012 — Gov. John Hickenlooper today appointed Pam Patton to the Colorado Public Utilities Commission. 
 
Patton, of Bayfield, has served on the La Plata Electric Association (LPEA) board since 2000 and is a past board president and the current board secretary. She serves on LPEA’s Administration and External Organizations & Issues Committees.
 
“Pam has demonstrated the ability to work with wildly different groups of people throughout her career,” Hickenlooper said. “She also hails from one of the most beautiful parts of Colorado, one that is rich in traditional energy exploration. Pam understands firsthand the important balance between promoting innovation and protecting Colorado’s beautiful landscapes.”
 
Patton served for 20 years in the U.S. Navy before returning to southwest Colorado, where she grew up on a sheep farm in La Plata County.
 
“This is truly a great opportunity to serve the public in my home state,” Patton said. “I look forward to bringing my telecommunications and electric utility experience, work ethic and concern for the environment to the commission.”
 
Patton is a Credentialed Cooperative Director and has a Cooperative Board Leadership certificate from the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association. She also serves on the boards of FastTrack Communications Inc. and the LPEA Round Up Foundation. She is active in a number of community service organizations in La Plata County and southwest Colorado, including the League of Women Voters and the Salvation Army Extension Unit.
 
Patton was awarded the Barbara Conrad Leadership Award by Leadership La Plata in 2001. She was honored to receive the Morley Ballantine Award for business leadership from the Durango Area Chamber of Commerce in 2008. She and her husband have placed an open space easement on their home and organic garden north of Bayfield.
 
Patton earned a bachelor’s degree from Fort Lewis College and a master’s degree from the University of Southern California.
 
Patton’s appointment is effective June 21 and she will be sworn in June 25. Her appointment must be confirmed by the Colorado Senate in the next legislative session.
 
About the Colorado Public Utilities Commission
The Commission serves the public interest by effectively regulating utilities and facilities so the people of Colorado receive safe, reliable, and reasonably-priced services consistent with the economic, environmental and social values of our state.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency could force coal ash and coal combustion byproducts to be defined as “hazardous waste.” Electric co-ops across the country are fighting against this designation.

The issue of whether or not coal combustion residuals should be treated as hazardous under federal law has been thoroughly researched and evaluated for nearly three decades. Overwhelmingly, the conclusion has been that the coal ash should be treated as a nonhazardous substance. In fact, in previous reports to Congress, the EPA has affirmed that a hazardous designation is not necessary to protect public health and the environment.

A hazardous designation would add huge costs to consumer electric bills and eliminate the beneficial recycling of coal ash into usable products. Senate Bill 1751 strikes the right balance between both environmental protection and impoundment safety in a way that also protects human health, jobs and electricity consumers. During a recent visit to Washington, D.C., electric co-ops representatives asked that senators support this bill.

The event, which fell during the International Year of Cooperatives, emphasized the importance of cooperatives to their members and their communities. Following educational sessions Saturday and Sunday, the program opened with a visit by the co-op representatives to the state Capitol. Co-op members had an opportunity to meet with Public Utilities Chairman Joshua Epel and with Rep. Frank McNulty (R), speaker of the house. (Senate President Brandon Shaffer [D] was unavailable.) 

Following a panel discussion on renewable energy and the grid, the group heard from Attorney General John Suthers, Mark Detsky of the Independent Energy Association and CoBank Chief Banking Officer Mary McBride. A reception with legislators followed along with several business meetings the next day. 

During the CREA board meeting Bob Bledsoe of Hugo, who represents Tri-State Generation and Transmission, was elected president of the CREA board. Bill Midcap of Morgan County Rural Electric Association in Fort Morgan was elected vice president; Don Kaufman of Sangre de Cristo Electric Association in Buena Vista was elected secretary; and Jack Schneider of Poudre Valley REA in Fort Collins was elected treasurer. 

The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association has awarded Ray Clifton, former executive director of the Colorado Rural Electric Association, with its 2012 President’s Award. Clifton was honored for his nearly 50-year career dedicated to advancing rural electrification and the goals of rural electric cooperatives. Clifton retired from CREA in 2009 after more than 24 years at the helm of the Colorado Rural Electric Association. He began his career half a century before as a part-time employee in the mailroom at the Georgia Electric Member Corporation, the statewide trade association for Georgia’s electric cooperatives. Clifton held many of the top jobs at the Georgia statewide association before leaving for Denver in 1986.

In Colorado he built the statewide association from four employees to an organization with 16 employees. Those employees provide services for Colorado’s electric co-ops that include communication assistance, safety and loss control training, education, a complete legislative agenda and more. During his years of service, Clifton served on multiple committees and task forces at the state and national level.

At CREA, Clifton took on numerous challenges on behalf of electric cooperatives including deregulation of electric distribution cooperatives, attacks by municipalities on the electric service territory of association members and other legislative initiatives that threatened co-ops on the state and federal levels. He also served as president of the national Rural Electric Statewide Managers Association. “Throughout his 49-year career, Ray Clifton showed his determination, and it took those qualities to build a viable statewide association in Colorado in the midst of turbulent political upheaval and industry changes. Clifton’s leadership and expertise has been essential to advancing the goals of rural electric cooperatives and has benefitted thousands of cooperative consumers,” said NRECA CEO Glenn English.

Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association has signed a 20-year power purchase agreement to buy the electricity from the state’s newest planned renewable energy resource, the 67-megawatt Colorado Highlands Wind project. The facility will be built on a 5,200-acre site in northeast Colorado’s Logan County, within the service territory of Tri-State member co-op Highline Electric Association, and is scheduled to be operational by the end of the year.

The project will use GE wind turbine generators and will be developed by Colorado Highlands Wind, LLC, which is jointly owned by Alliance Power, Inc. of Littleton, Colo., and GE Energy Financial Services of Stamford, Conn. Financial terms of the contract are being held confidential and were not disclosed.

“Increasing the amount of renewable resources in our energy mix further diversifies our overall generation portfolio,” said Tri-State executive vice president and general manager Ken Anderson. “It not only attracts investment to the communities our member co-ops serve, but it also keeps us on schedule in assisting our members to meet their obligations under state renewable portfolio standards,” he said.

“Highline Electric is pleased to be in position to provide service to Colorado Highlands Wind and we’re looking forward to working with them during the construction process,” said Mark Farnsworth, manager of the local electric co-op. “We also appreciate the economic development opportunities that the project provides in our service territory.”

The agreement culminates a process begun in October 2011 when Tri-State issued a request for proposals for renewable energy supply, which resulted in nearly 50 responses consisting of a variety of technologies and potential locations.

Colorado Highlands Wind will be the third utility-scale renewable energy facility from which Tri-State receives all of the electrical output and renewable energy credits.  In 2010 the wholesale power supplier began purchasing the electricity generated at the 51-megawatt Kit Carson Windpower Project in eastern Colorado as well as the 30-megawatt Cimarron Solar Facility in northeastern New Mexico.