 |
NWCC NATIONAL WIND COORDINATING COLLABORATIVE |
HIGHLIGHTS
June 15, 2007
DATES TO REMEMBER
NAS Study Briefing Online! - A summary of Dr. David Policanksy’s May 7th briefing on the NAS study, Environmental Impacts of Wind-Energy Development, is now available at: http://www.nationalwind.org.
Upcoming Transmission Update - June 19th, 1 pm ET is the next NWCC Transmission Update call and will focus on the California ISO's new transmission category for "locationally constrained resources" and the Texas PUC's docket on implementing competitive renewable energy zones, also known as CREZs. To join the Transmission Update listserv and receive the call details, contact Katie Kalinowski at kkalinowski@resolv.org.
Save the Dates: Fall Wildlife Workgroup and Risk Assessment Meetings (Nov 13-14) - A workshop on applicability of risk assessment methods to wind power planning is set for the morning of Tuesday, November 13th. The fall Wildlife Workgroup Meeting will begin that afternoon and will continue though Wednesday, November 14th. Venue and hotel information will follow.
Save the Dates: Upcoming Transmission Workshops - The next NWCC Southwest Power Pool workshop will be Wednesday, August 22 in Dallas, TX. The Western Governors’ Association, Geothermal Energy Association, and NWCC are co-hosting the summit Increasing Renewable Energy in the Western Grid on September 27-28 in Ft. Collins, CO. Finally, planning is underway for transmission meeting on November 29-30 in Sioux Falls, SD on overcoming transmission constraints in South Dakota. Additional information and online registration for these events is coming soon on the NWCC website.
NWCC CONFERENCE CALLS
Transmission Update Call
June 19th, 1:00 pm
Steering Committee Call
June 28, 1:00 pm ET
Wildlife Workgroup Call
July 11, 2:30 pm ET
Transmission Workgroup Call
July 17, 2:00 pm
Working Groups
Western Transmission Leadership Group Call
June 1, 3:00 pm ET
GS3C Subgroup Call
June 18, 11 am ET
SPP Transmission Planning Committee
June 21, 2:00 pm ET
Western Transmission Leadership Group Call
June 21, 3:00 pm ET
South Dakota Transmission Meeting Planning Call
June 22, 2:00 pm ET
NWCC EVENTS
NWCC SPP Transmission Workshop
August 22, Dallas, TX
WGA / NWCC /GEA Increasing Renewable Energy in the Western Grid Summit
September 27-28, Ft. Collins, CO
NWCC Wildlife Workgroup Fall Meeting
November 13, Denver, CO
NWCC Risk Assessment Workshop
November 14, Denver, CO
NWCC Wind Energy & Transmission: The South Dakota Landscape meeting
November 29-30, Sioux Falls, SD
MAGIC MOMENTS
Updated Calendar of Events: click here
NWCC STAFF CONTACTS
Katie Kalinowski
Outreach Coordinator
(202) 965-6383
kkalinowski@resolv.org
Taylor Kennedy
Program Associate
(202) 965-6392
tkennedy@resolv.org
NWCC WORKGROUP UPDATES
Recent Wildlife Workgroup subgroup activities include:
Grassland and Shrub Steppe Species Collaborative (GS3C) - The GS3C is having its next call on June 18th. KSU researchers will share its latest quarterly report with the Oversight Committee.
The grassland songbirds monitoring protocol has been finalized within the GS3C and approved by the Core Group. It will be made available as a resource on the NWCC website in the coming days.
Feedback from the literature review advisors is being compiled by NWCC staff to share with the Ornithological Council. The next step is to do a technical edit before publication
Mitigation Toolbox - Members of the Wildlife Workgroup are discussing an approach for periodically updating the Mitigation Toolbox, which is now available on the NWCC website at: http://www.nationalwind.org/publications/wildlife/Mitigation_Toolbox.pdf. The toolbox provides information on the effectiveness of various methods of avoiding, minimizing, or compensating for direct and indirect impacts on wildlife caused by wind power facilities and illustrates gaps and overlaps between existing policies or guidelines and current research. To get involved in the discussion regarding a process for regular updates, please contact Taylor Kennedy at tkennedy@resolv.org.
Nocturnal Methods and Metrics - This week, Dr. Tom Kunz and his team of authors will submit the Nocturnal Method & Metrics manuscript to the Journal of Wildlife Management for publication. Having completed its objective to develop a nocturnal methods and metrics document, the subgroup will now come to a close.
Research Priorities Subgroup - The Core Group decided to move ahead on revising the Research Priorities White Paper which was last discussed in November 2006. NWCC staff is preparing process suggestions on this revision for the Core Group’s consideration.
Risk Assessment - The subgroup will conduct a meeting on November 13th in Denver to further discuss development of a framework for assessing risk to wildlife from wind development. NWCC staff is drafting a workshop agenda for review and discussion by the risk assessment planning committee.
The next Wildlife Workgroup call is scheduled for July 11, 2007 at 2:30pm ET. Please mark your calendars.
West -Check out the latest draft agenda for the Increasing Renewable Energy in the Western Grid Summit on September 27 - 28 in Ft. Collins, CO. The Western Governors’ Association and Geothermal Energy Association are our co-hosts. Outreach to financial sponsors is underway; if your organization is interested in sponsoring this or other NWCC workshops, please contact Katie Kalinowski at kkalinowski@resolv.org.
The second issue of NWCC’s Implementing Wind Energy & Transmission in the West quarterly newsletter is now available online. The next issue is due out in August. To join the newsletter mailing list or to contribute an article idea, please contact Katie Kalinowski, kkalinowski@resolv.org.
Midwest - Planning is now underway for a transmission workshop on Nov 29 - 30 in Sioux Falls, SD to discuss possible solutions to transmission constraints in South Dakota that would facilitate more wind energy in the region and engage leaders in implementing those solutions. The draft workshop agenda is still evolving but will be available next month on the NWCC website.
A transmission workshop in Indiana is anticipated in January 2008. An initial planning call is currently being scheduled with NWCC members. If you would like to be involved in planning for the Indiana or South Dakota workshop, please contact kkalinowski@resolv.org.
SPP - A draft agenda for SPP Transmission Workshop III on August 22nd in Dallas is now online here. We are finalizing the meeting venue and workshop registration will open soon.
Transmission Updates - The next Transmission Update call features Cindy Hinman from the California ISO talking about CAISO’s new transmission category for "locationally constrained resources" and Annette Mass with the Texas PUC discussing their docket on implementing competitive renewable energy zones, also known as CREZs. The call is on June 19th at 1 pm ET and a written brief will be available after the call.
Workgroup Call - The next Transmission Workgroup call is scheduled for Tuesday, July 17th at 2 pm ET and the next Transmission Update call is scheduled for June 19th at 1 pm ET.