NWCC NATIONAL WIND COORDINATING COLLABORATIVE

HIGHLIGHTS

August 1, 2008

DATES TO REMEMBER

Midwestern Wind & Transmission Conference A Success! – Governor Granholm (D-MI) kicked off Midwestern Wind Energy: Moving It to Markets, on July 31 in Dearborn, Michigan. The 2-day conference, sponsored by the Midwestern Governors Association (MGA) and co-sponsored by the NWCC and others, was attended by nearly 200 people. Speakers and participants from MGA, MISO, and other leading Midwestern groups discussed implementation of the MGA Energy Security and Climate Stewardship platform for the Midwest. A summary of the meeting is under development and will be made available on the NWCC website.

NWCC CONFERENCE CALLS

Grassland Shrub Steppe Species Collaborative (GS3C) call
August 20, 2:00 pm ET

NWCC WORKGROUP UPDATES

Grassland Shrub Steppe Species Collaborative (GS3C) – On August 20th, the GS3C will discuss Kansas State University’s progress on its greater prairie chickens and wind energy study. Participants will also hear an update about plans for a GS3C meeting to be held October 27th in Milwaukee, to coincide with Wind Wildlife Research Meeting VII. The meeting will focus on GS3C business, primarily whether to pursue activities relating to sage grouse.

Mitigation Toolbox – Bi-annual updates to the Mitigation Toolbox are currently on hold..

Outreach Audit – A questionnaire for assessing the value of current NWCC outreach strategies, the depth of current member outreach, and potential outreach tools and opportunities has been sent to the subgroup. Upon their approval, it will be distributed to the Wildlife Workgroup for completion. Responses will contribute to the development of a proposal for an improved outreach strategy.

Wind Wildlife Research Meeting VII - Review panels are currently evaluating abstracts for Wind Wildlife Research Meeting VII, which will be held on October 28-29 in Milwaukee, WI. Planners have developed a preliminary agenda for the optional introductory session to be held on October 27th. The meeting will be hosted by We Energies and co-sponsored by NWCC, BP Alternative Energy, Horizon Wind Energy, NREL, Audubon Society, Union of Concerned Scientists, AES Wind Generation, and DeTect, Inc. Additional parties interested in co-sponsorship should contact Taylor Kennedy at tkennedy@resolv.org.

Wind/Wildlife Activities & Events Table - The NWCC wind power / wildlife studies, activities, and events table is available online. Please send information on wind / wildlife meetings, studies, or publications to Taylor Kennedy at tkennedy@resolv.org for inclusion in this table and the NWCC calendar.

Midwest - On July 31 – August 1, the Midwestern Wind Energy: Moving It to Markets Midwestern Wind Energy: Moving It to Markets conference in Dearborn, Michigan drew close to 200 attendees, who discussed ways to implement the Midwestern Governors Association Energy Security and Climate Stewardship Platform for the Midwest, as well as the Midwest’s potential to contribute to 20% wind power nationwide. Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm welcomed the conference participants, who included policymakers, utility representatives, regulators, wind and transmission developers, renewable advocates, environmental advocates, and representatives of state, federal, and tribal agencies. Over 50 attendees participated in the 101 workshop on wind and transmission that preceded the conference on July 30.

The event was sponsored by the Midwestern Governors Association and cosponsored by a wide range of stakeholders: the NWCC; CapX 2020; Western Area Power Administration; Wind on the Wires; ITC; Iberdrola Renewables; the American Wind Energy Association; Indiana Michigan Power; Varnum, Riddering, Schmidt, Howlett; Otter Tail Power Company; Stoel Rives LLP; Fraser, Trebilcock, Davis & Dunlap; the Michigan Public Service Commission; the Environmental Law and Policy Center; NextEnergy; the Great Lakes Wind Collaborative; the National Conference of State Legislatures; and the National Association of State Energy Officials.

Copies of the presentations delivered at the conference will be available on the NWCC website. A summary of the proceedings is underway and will be available soon. Many thanks to members of the conference planning committee who dedicated long hours to making the conference a success!

West - Outreach to possible collaborators for a winter meeting is ongoing. If the meeting receives the go-ahead, planning activities will resume in mid-to-late August. After undergoing final revisions and updates in accordance with a later release date, the 6th volume of NWCC’s Implementing Wind Energy & Transmission in the West quarterly newsletter will be issued in early August.

Layperson’s Guide to Wind Integration – Work on incorporating revisions into the draft portion of the layperson’s guide is on hold until the editing team reconvenes in the month of August - stay tuned for further updates.

Transmission Updates – – The Transmission Update brief from the July 7th call on open season financing is in the final stages of editing and will be released soon! The next Update call is in the works for mid-to-late August - more details are forthcoming.