This editorial gives a glimpse into the uppercrust of the BPA and ponders whether President Obama and Energy Secretary Chu will alter the BPA leadership. Could this be an opportunity for a dramatic acceleration in the re-balancing of the Northwest’s priorities: renewable energy, sustainable agriculture, thriving salmon, and healthy killer whales? First and foremost, we should watch during this potential transition for a chance to gain political momentum for removing the dams on the lower Snake River!
by The Editorial Board
Thursday December 11, 2008, 4:20 PM
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Dams, wind, power and politics
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| Who should lead the Bonneville Power Administration into a bold new era of green energy? |
| Obama and his strong choice for Energy Secretary, Nobel Prize-winning physicist Steven Chu, will set a very different course on national energy policy, and by extension, will put different demands and expectations on Bonneville and its executives. |
| But we’d caution against any rush to change the leadership at the BPA. Wright, a careeer BPA official appointed administrator by former President Clinton, and kept by President George W. Bush, is a talented executive who’s done a fine job under difficult circumstances. |
| He’s forged an agreement on salmon recovery with Native American tribes |
| Sure, Wright is effective at making sure the dams produce ‘affordable’ electricity |
| We are also paying through the nose for salmon programs that aren’t working and will never lead to recovery. |
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Interesting post.
A seasoned policy hand at the Sierra Club made the case for change at the Bonneville Power Administration
http://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/index.ssf/2008/12/the_case_for_change_at_the_bon.html
by Bill Arthur, Guest opinion
BPA has consistently ignored its legal obligation to protect salmon, and Wright has been responsible. Let’s get some “clean” energy that doesn’t drive salmon to extinction.