Another day, another stilted and biased "whole of government" attempt to ignore the hoi polloi.
The U.S. DOE hosted a webinar on the National Transmission Study it is about to engage in yesterday. On its website, DOE says the study will
The U.S. DOE hosted a webinar on the National Transmission Study it is about to engage in yesterday. On its website, DOE says the study will
identify transmission that will provide broad-scale benefits to electric customers; inform regional and interregional transmission planning processes; and identify interregional and national strategies to accelerate decarbonization while maintaining system reliability.
So it's not IF we need more transmission. The conclusion has already been reached. We must have new transmission they say, we just have to figure out what and where to build. Err... don't you think that's a little "cart before pony"? Maybe you should first figure out what you need and where, before you decide to build stuff willy-nilly?
DOE says its study will not identify specific corridors in which to build transmission. But it will identify "clean energy zones" to connect. How does this happen? DOE says it will build a list of localities that currently allow industrial scale energy generators to be built. Well, that's going to be a task that never ends because the list of communities that have banned industrial solar and wind "farms" grows every time they propose another one. Proposal = new laws against = cancelled proposal. And your government wants to construct plans to connect "clean energy zones" 20 years in the future. It's like a very expensive hall of mirrors... propose new generator... build new transmission... cancel new generator and transmission. It just doesn't work!
So, these folks went on for two hours about how they're going to do their study and how "stakeholders" and "communities, and regional and local governments" will participate in crafting the study. Except there were no local communities or governments represented, and DOE refused to answer any questions along these lines. DOE suggested that it will take "nominations" for the study committee, but was very vague about how that process would happen, or where/how nominations could be made.
In fact, the whole thing has the distinct smell of pay to play, where decisions and participants have already been decided. No actual public need show up or apply. One dead give away was the way they managed the Q&A during the webinar. Each participant could only see his/her own questions submitted. You could not see the questions of any other participants (which would be helpful to avoid duplication, right?). It was quite convenient that when it came time to answer questions, the DOE somehow found a pile of softball questions that they did not attribute to any participant. It's almost like the DOE crafted its own questions in advance, and then "answered" them with canned answers also prepared in advance. How is this "public participation"? It's not. Not at all. It's the appearance of public participation so that DOE can check that box somewhere down the line and say that its process was open and inclusive, even though it's not.
There's a reason DOE does not plan or permit new transmission. It's because DOE is the political arm of our federal energy agencies. Everything it does is driven by politics, not science. And real public participation punches so many holes in DOE's pay to play processes that it can't afford to actually be transparent. The inmates are running the asylum!
DOE says it will have another "public" webinar about its study in October. Meanwhile, you can send them your comments via their website.
Go ahead, try it.
It doesn't want to know who you are or how to contact you. It just wants you to check a few boxes and type some nonsense into a few boxes on the form. It's more like an entertainment feature for the masses. Bad day at the office? Comment to DOE! Cat puke in your shoes? Comment to DOE! Get a flat tire? Comment to DOE! Whatever goes on in your daily life, go ahead and unload on the DOE. Shouldn't it be about energy? Of course not... the virtual trash can at DOE where all these public comments end up doesn't care what you type. Have fun! Release stress! Get creative! Nobody is actually reading it.
Does our government think if it ignores the public that we'll go away? Fat chance. Get used to us, we're going to be on you like flies on .....!
DOE says its study will not identify specific corridors in which to build transmission. But it will identify "clean energy zones" to connect. How does this happen? DOE says it will build a list of localities that currently allow industrial scale energy generators to be built. Well, that's going to be a task that never ends because the list of communities that have banned industrial solar and wind "farms" grows every time they propose another one. Proposal = new laws against = cancelled proposal. And your government wants to construct plans to connect "clean energy zones" 20 years in the future. It's like a very expensive hall of mirrors... propose new generator... build new transmission... cancel new generator and transmission. It just doesn't work!
So, these folks went on for two hours about how they're going to do their study and how "stakeholders" and "communities, and regional and local governments" will participate in crafting the study. Except there were no local communities or governments represented, and DOE refused to answer any questions along these lines. DOE suggested that it will take "nominations" for the study committee, but was very vague about how that process would happen, or where/how nominations could be made.
In fact, the whole thing has the distinct smell of pay to play, where decisions and participants have already been decided. No actual public need show up or apply. One dead give away was the way they managed the Q&A during the webinar. Each participant could only see his/her own questions submitted. You could not see the questions of any other participants (which would be helpful to avoid duplication, right?). It was quite convenient that when it came time to answer questions, the DOE somehow found a pile of softball questions that they did not attribute to any participant. It's almost like the DOE crafted its own questions in advance, and then "answered" them with canned answers also prepared in advance. How is this "public participation"? It's not. Not at all. It's the appearance of public participation so that DOE can check that box somewhere down the line and say that its process was open and inclusive, even though it's not.
There's a reason DOE does not plan or permit new transmission. It's because DOE is the political arm of our federal energy agencies. Everything it does is driven by politics, not science. And real public participation punches so many holes in DOE's pay to play processes that it can't afford to actually be transparent. The inmates are running the asylum!
DOE says it will have another "public" webinar about its study in October. Meanwhile, you can send them your comments via their website.
Go ahead, try it.
It doesn't want to know who you are or how to contact you. It just wants you to check a few boxes and type some nonsense into a few boxes on the form. It's more like an entertainment feature for the masses. Bad day at the office? Comment to DOE! Cat puke in your shoes? Comment to DOE! Get a flat tire? Comment to DOE! Whatever goes on in your daily life, go ahead and unload on the DOE. Shouldn't it be about energy? Of course not... the virtual trash can at DOE where all these public comments end up doesn't care what you type. Have fun! Release stress! Get creative! Nobody is actually reading it.
Does our government think if it ignores the public that we'll go away? Fat chance. Get used to us, we're going to be on you like flies on .....!
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