In the oil price shocked 1970s…
Chester Smith, President of the National…
Energy Office Director Bob Harris…
Since November, businesses and owners…
On November 2, 1939, the Falls City Journal's…
Have there been changes in who can borrow…
Relocation to reduce space and save…
Ways to reduce energy use and maximize…
Fact sheets, brochures, videos and publications…
In the oil price shocked 1970s, America and other petroleum-dependent nations charted courses and policies they hoped would lead to greater utilization of renewable energy resources such as wind and solar power.
Nebraskans reacted the same way. By the early 1980s, solar panels could be found on the roofs of homes throughout the state. A few Nebraskans even invested in small-scale wind generators -the 1980s version of windmills or wind chargers that used to be a common feature on every Nebraska farmstead.
Then came the worldwide oil bust of the mid-1980s when a barrel of oil cost not $50 or $100 as predicted, but about $10 - $15. As America's domestic oil industry collapsed, the fledgling renewable energy industry followed suit.
As quickly as Americans and Nebraskans embraced energy efficiency and renewables, they reverted to their practices before oil embargoes as the price of oil plummeted. Despite dramatic increases in energy efficiency, the nation's petroleum addiction continues to mount.
Recent news accounts have focused on Americans switching from cars to less efficient trucks and utility vehicles. Are America and Nebraska making any headway on those renewable energy goals established two decades ago?
New reports from federal and state energy sources provide some encouraging news.
The 1996 Renewable Energy Annual from the U.S. Department of Energy's Energy Information Administration found the nation's total energy supply from renewable energy resources increased to an all-time high of 7.6 percent in 1995. Use of renewable energy has increased 2.2 percent annually since 1991. Comparatively, petroleum accounted for 38.3 percent of the total energy supply during the same period.
According to the report, conventional hydroelectric power accounts for about half of all renewable energy produced. About 40 percent comes from biomass resources that include wood, wood waste, peat, municipal solid waste, agricultural resources (including the production of ethanol), tires and miscellaneous gases, oils and wastes. The remaining ten percent is split among geothermal, solar and wind resources.
Use of renewable energy resources in Nebraska is about half the level of national use. According to the state's Energy Office, in 1995 an estimated three percent of all energy used in the state came from renewable sources. Five-sixths of the renewable energy came from conventional hydroelectric power. Slightly less than one-sixth came from ethanol used as a fuel additive in gasoline. Wind and solar power supplied the remainder.
Historically, use of renewable resources in Nebraska has grown at a pace similar to that of the nation. In 1993, only 2.5 percent of all energy used in the state came from renewable sources. Two percent came from hydroelectric while four-tenths of a percent came from ethanol. In 1994, the growth in ethanol use resulted in a near doubling to eight-tenths of a percent while hydropower remained constant at two percent.
The federal energy agency's report indicated the greatest gains in renewable energy would likely occur in less developed nations, not in the United States. Regions without existing electrical infrastructure represent a prime growth area for photovoltaic panels because installation is more economical than building power lines.
The ultimate outcome of deregulation of the electric industry may have substantial impacts on current and future renewable resources in America.
Some experts have suggested that utilities now required to purchase electricity from renewable resources may seek exemptions to those requirements. Since electricity from wind and solar sources tends to be more expensive than that from other sources, some utilities may try to cancel required renewable purchases as a means of competing in a cost-competitive deregulated environment.
To foster renewable energy development, others are proposing that federal or state deregulation policies require use of some electricity generated from renewable resources. Several bills being considered in Congress require just such a “renewables portfolio standard.”
While promising, Nebraska's renewable horoscope is unclear. The three brightest hopes continue to be ethanol, wind and solar. Each renewable option has strengths and weaknesses.
The state's unparalleled success remains ethanol production. Over time, Nebraskans have traded increased use for increased production. In a series of policy decisions, state leaders decreased incentives for using imported ethanol by removing price incentives at the gas pump and increased incentives for producing ethanol from local grains. This strategy vaulted Nebraska into the third largest ethanol producing state.
However, further gains in either production or consumption are uncertain. A few states have matched or exceeded Nebraska's ethanol production incentives. As a result, new plant construction has shifted to other states. Expansions of current facilities remain an option, since this is a cheaper alternative to constructing new facilities. Federal tax policies on ethanol will be the determining factor in continued growth of this industry.
Increasing in-state use of ethanol may also be ultimately determined by state or federal policies. For example, the Environmental Protection Agency recently said Nebraska was not a source for air pollution in states to the east. If the federal agency had determined Nebraska was a pollution source, vehicles in the state might have been required to use less polluting gasoline that included oxygenates such as ethanol.
In 1997, state legislators considered a law that would set minimum goals for ethanol additives in gasoline. The legislative session ended before final action could be taken on this proposal. It will probably be considered again in the 1998 session of the Unicameral.
As of today, the energy potential in Nebraska's winds remains just that a potential. Nine different sites across the state are being evaluated for placement of wind turbines. No utilities are currently generating electricity from wind, but interest in its potential remains high.
Not until July 1994 near Ainsworth, did the latest round of wind monitoring get underway. Nebraska Public Power District and KBR Rural Public Power District began studying wind speeds and turbulence at a site 5 1/2 miles from Ainsworth.
Less than a year later, a consortium of utilities, interest groups and the state's Energy Office, began a three-year study of eight sites from Wahoo to Kimball. This study is expected to end in 1998. First year results indicated that six of the eight sites have good near-term potential for wind generation development according to experts who studied the data collected.
Today, four Nebraska utilities Nebraska Public Power District, Lincoln Electric System, the Municipal Energy Agency of Nebraska and the City of Grand Island are negotiating with the Electric Power Research Institute for partial funding to install two 750 kilowatt state-of-the-art wind turbines.
“This project will help participants learn the most cost-effective ways to use wind turbines as part of their electric generating mix. It is a significant step in learning how well renewable wind energy will complete in Nebraska,” said John McClure of Nebraska Public Power District.
According to sources working on the project, the turbines will likely be located near Springview in north central Nebraska. The Springview site had one of the top profiles for wind generation of the nine sites currently being studied.
One of the purposes of the project is to evaluate the performance, reliability and cost of the latest design of wind turbines. If the new turbines operate as designed, the anticipated electrical output would be equivalent to that used each year by 350 residential customers, slightly more than the population of Springview.
If the project proceeds, the wind turbines are expected to be operational in late 1998.
The best hope for gains in solar power remains in remote sections of the state where installation of photovoltaic panels make more economic sense than building power lines.
For more than five years, several rural electric systems such as McCook Public Power District and Northwest Rural Public Power District, based in Hay Springs, have pioneered in placing photovoltaic systems used to power fencing systems in remote ranching locations. Small solar cells charge batteries when the sun is shining.
Now, larger and more expensive applications are being tested that do not rely on battery storage.
Near Ainsworth, on the 4,200 acre Pinney Ranch photovoltaic panels that power water pumps began operating in April. This renewable energy test is part of a much larger project that is one of five in the nation undertaken by farming, utility and conservation groups to test more efficient and environmentally-sound ways of cattle ranching.
The Pinney Ranch test involves both stationary and mobile solar panel arrays. "This project allows the farmers to make the best use of their resources, and also brings together a unique group of organizations to help Nebraska's rural economy," said Larry Liss from Nebraska Public Power District, one of the cooperating utilities.
Others involved in the Pinney Ranch project include the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Upper Loup Natural Resource District, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, Farm Service Agency, The Sandhill Task Force, KBR Rural Public Power District, Ducks Unlimited, Pheasants Forever and Nebraska Electric Generation and Transmission.
This is not the first time solar power units have been tested for use in livestock watering. In 1995, Wheat Belt Public Power District in Sidney was testing photovoltaic units on the ranch of one of the utility's customers.
In the late 1980s, a ranch near Thedford tested photovoltaic water pumping systems that utilized alternating current pumps. The water pumping test failed when equipment problems with the inverters proved insurmountable.
Current state-of-the-art solar technology being used on ranching rangelands in Nebraska is very reliable compared to the technology that was tested in the late 1980s.
Chester Smith, President of the National Association of State Energy Officials (above at right), presents the group's 1996 Energy Efficiency Advocate Award to Governor Nelson during a news conference in Lincoln.
“It is always gratifying to be recognized for doing what needs to be done,” Nelson said. “Energy efficiency is one of the easiest ways this nation can reduce its reliance on oil imports.”
The national energy group has members from 54 states and territories and presents the award annually to the person who has demonstrated a commitment to sound energy policy.
According to the Association, Nelson was selected as co-recipient because of his commitment to the Nebraska Energy Office, a balanced national energy policy and for his work in domestic oil, natural gas and alternate fuel organizations.
Energy Office Director Bob Harris (at right) receives the 1996 State Energy Program Award for the agency's Dollar and Energy Saving Loan Program from Governor Ben Nelson.
The U.S. Department of Energy said, in making the award, that the Energy Office "consistently demonstrates program commitment and, through their initiative, makes a significant impact."
The low-interest energy efficiency loans, available since 1990, have financed more than 12,000 improvements totaling more than $75 million.
Since November, businesses and owners of multi-family housing have been finding ways to make their operations more profitable with the assistance from the state's Energy Office because of a federal/state effort called Rebuild Nebraska.
Rebuild partners voluntarily agree to improve energy efficiency and reduce waste. In exchange for that agreement, Rebuild Nebraska partners gain access to services and low-cost financing that are not available to others in the state.
To date, 32 local, state, public, private and nonprofit organizations have become partners. The Energy Office attributed its success to its unique approach and combination of services. “Not all states are able to offer audits and other types of evaluations as well as locally available financing, if needed,” said Lynn Chamberlin, the state's Rebuild manager.
“We see each of Nebraska’s Rebuild partners as unique,” said Chamberlin. “We combine the Energy Office's technical expertise with the partner's needs and provide the services that are most valuable.” Chamberlin estimated the cost of an evaluation of a typical commercial business ranges from $1,000 to $1,500. “The Energy Office provides the evaluation for free,” Chamberlin said.
Other Rebuild partner services include access to inexpensive local financing. Nebraska's Rebuild commercial business partners can borrow up to $100,000 at 6 percent if financing is needed to make cost-saving improvements. Multi-family housing owners can borrow up to $60,000 at the same low interest rate.
“These loans are just like the agency's very popular 6 percent Dollar and Energy Saving Loans,” said Chamberlin. “If a Rebuild partner needs to finance an improvement, in most cases they can go the financial institution that already handles their business.” Chamberlin said about 70 percent of the banks, savings and loans and credit unions in Nebraska at more than 600 locations offer the 6 percent loans.
“Since 1990, the Energy Office and its participating local lenders have financed nearly $9 million in improvements in small businesses across the state,” Chamberlin said. “We helped more than 500 businesses in the past seven years get financing.” According to the Energy Office the average loan is less than $16,000.
Some of the state's Rebuild partners see the effort differently. “Rebuild Nebraska helps us serve our customers better,” said Bob Rye, Northwestern Public Services Nebraska manager, “and it allows them to improve the efficiency of their operations using low interest loans.” Northwestern provides natural gas service in Grand Island, Kearney, and North Platte and also became a Rebuild partner.
One of the newest Rebuild partners is another state agency, the Department of Economic Development. Director Maxine Moul sees energy efficiency as a way to make communities stronger by stimulating economic growth, creating jobs, saving money and improving the environment.
Stromsburg, nestled on the banks of the Big Blue River in the east central part of the state, made a commitment to its elderly residents decades ago.
In 1963, Midwest Covenant Home opened its doors and offered a place for aging local residents to live when staying in their own home became impractical. Nearly every decade since, additions to the original building have been added.
Today, more than 90 residents call Midwest Covenant home. The nursing facility was also one of the state's first Rebuild Nebraska partners.
In November, 1997, Pat McElhose, the administrator of Midwest Covenant, received a letter from the Nebraska Energy Office offering a number of services free of charge including finding ways to reduce operating costs.
“The adage ‘I'm from the government and I'm here to help you’ didn't deter me from contacting the Energy Office,” said McElhose. “When a building is more than 30 years old, it's time to examine the facility. What the Energy Office was offering could easily cost $1,500 that we didn't have.”
When the agency's Rebuild team evaluated Midwest Covenant in February, they first asked the staff about any problems with the building or the energy-using systems in it. Complaints about drafty rooms were common and some faucets had to run for 15 minutes before getting any hot water.
An evaluation of the facility indicated that if only cost-effective improvements were made, Midwest Covenant could expect to save about $7,000 yearly from reduced energy bills. Additional savings would come from reduced water use.
When the evaluation was completed, the results were shared with McElhose. One of the recommendations suggested operating only one of the facility's boilers at a time, not both. That simple action could save more than $1,000 a year.
The solution to getting hot water faster could cost about $2,000 and could be recovered in ten years or less if the savings in water are considered.
Another area of possible savings was the lighting system. While the yearly savings were smaller -- ranging from $55 to $1,300 per project -- they added up to $3,500, nearly half of the improvements recommended. “Some of the lighting projects paid for themselves in a year,” McElhose said.
“What I really liked about the analysis,” McElhose said, “was that the Energy Office examined several options for the problems. Now I know that replacing the windows is the most expensive, and uneconomical, solution to the problem with drafty rooms. It would take 45 years to recover the cost of the project.”
At a recent national gathering of energy professionals, the state's Energy Office was one of three to receive special recognition by the U.S. Department of Energy.
According to Jean Van Vlandren, director of the Office of State and Community Programs, the agency was recognized for its leadership and contribution to federal and state energy programs. Van Vlandren singled out the agency's early success in recruiting Rebuild Nebraska partners.
In March, Nebraska Public Power District became one of the state's Rebuild Nebraska partners. The utility will be assisting in promoting and marketing the effort throughout Nebraska.
“NPPD has a rich tradition of working with its customers to constantly help them find ways to use energy more efficiently. We focus on providing our customers with recommendations that are in their best, long term, economic well being,” said the utility President Bill Mayben. “Our goal is always to do that in a cost effective and environmentally friendly manner so that we preserve our quality of life and maintain the lowest possible energy costs here in Nebraska,”
According to the utility, a number of trained energy analysts will work with the Energy Office and the utility's customers to build awareness of the Rebuild Nebraska.
“The program is important, not only for energy efficiency and economic development, but also to help revitalize communities throughout the state and contribute to improved environmental quality,” said Dennis Grennan, Senior Vice President of the utility.
“We will also provide our customers with information on technology, how to apply it to reduce energy usage and make their facilities more energy efficient, and methods of financing new energy efficient technologies.” Grennan said.
Grennan continued, “We view this program as another tool in our diversified services for customers. Improved information on energy efficiency makes good economic sense for all Nebraskans.”
In May, officials in Beatrice and York agreed to become the initial focus of the joint utility/state effort. By working with local entities such as the Greater York Area Chamber of Commerce already a Rebuild partner and Beatrice's Public Works Board the two hope to find 30 additional partners in the two towns.
On November 2, 1939, the Falls City Journal ’s banner headline trumpeted “State's First Commercial Oil Well Believed Struck Near City” High hopes rested on Boice One, an oil well being developed on the nearby Boice farm. The well was being drilled by the Pawnee Royalty Company of Odessa, Texas, which was owned by brothers Bill and Burl Guinn.
Boice One appeared capable of producing 130-150 barrels of oil daily. That amount would easily qualify for the bonus created by the Legislature in 1903 for the first oil well in the state that could produce fifty barrels of oil a day for sixty consecutive days.
The Guinns were confident that Boice One would capture the $15,000 bonus offered by the state that had remained unclaimed for more than 35 years. "It took some of us Texas rookies to show you there was oil in Nebraska,” Bill Guinn said. Local newspaper accounts record crowds mobbing the Boice farm to see the well and fill a pop bottle with oil from the well as a souvenir.
Richardson County boomed with excitement as news of the oil strike brought royalty and lease buyers as well as other oil industry players to the area. Even Alf M. Landon, the successful Kansas oil man, but unsuccessful 1936 presidential candidate, stopped in Falls City. Landon was enthusiastic about the oil field and the possibility of establishing a refinery in the city.
After nearly two weeks of pumping, two truckloads of oil totaling 6,972 gallons were hauled to the Searle refinery in Omaha. A welcoming convoy accompanied the oil truck as it paraded through Omaha on its way to the refining plant.
The landowners on which Boice One was located made only $19.50 on the first truckloads delivered to Omaha. Under the lease, the landowners received an eighth of the oil without paying any of the expenses. The refinery paid 94 cents per barrel, about $10.56 in today's dollars.
Pumping to qualify for the $15,000 bonus offered by the Legislature began on November 20, 1939. As production began to fall at Boice One, efforts to boost production only resulted in an increase in water with the oil. The Journal's December 9 headline told Falls Citians the news: Boice One Fails. Pumping at the well came to a halt because of paraffin clogging (Paraffin is a hydrocarbon-based component of oil that is separated from oil during the refining process. Excessive amounts of paraffin in the oil often led to abandonment of wells).
Undaunted, the Guinn brothers persevered in their attempts to bring in a commercial well in Nebraska. But, the second well on Mabel Meyer's farm also encountered excessive water problems, yielding several barrels of water for each barrel of oil.
The brothers' third attempt was at the Bucholz farm. On May 29, 1940, official testing of Bucholz One began, and on July 27, 1940, the Pawnee Royalty Company's Bucholz One was declared the winner of the $15,000 bonus, about $170,000 in today's dollars. Bucholz One had produced an average of 169 barrels of oil a day.
As a commercial well, Boice One was a failure. Its success was that it created interest in oil well prospects around Falls City and verified that commercial production in the state was possible.
Production in Richardson County peaked in 1941 with 1.88 million barrels just two years after Boice One and quickly subsided to 1.3 million barrels in 1942. In spite of the oil production decline, Falls City was still calling itself "Oil Capitol of Nebraska” in 1951.
While oil wells are still pumping in Richardson County more than 55 years after Boice One, the region long ago relinquished the state's oil crown to Red Willow and Hitchcock Counties.
Loan forms may be obtained from participating lenders or the Energy Office.
Relocating to reduce space and save approximately $140,000 in rent over the next five years, the Energy Office will be moving across the street to Energy Square in downtown Lincoln by September.
“Since leaving the State Capitol building in 1992, we have continued to streamline the agency's operations,” said Bob Harris, Energy Office Director. “Over the past five years, staffing levels have been reduced by more than 20 percent to just 23 people, so we need far less space than we currently have. Doing more with less is the goal of the Energy Office,” Harris said.
The new address for the Energy Office after September 1st is Energy Square (formerly known as Centrum Plaza), 1111 "O" Street, Suite 223 in Lincoln. The agency's post office box, zip code, phone and facsimile numbers remain unchanged.
Ways to reduce energy use and maximize water recovery in the food processing industry will be held around August 20 in Lincoln. Staff from the Electric Power Research Institute will provide information on the latest in energy management and membrane technology.
The six hour conference is being organized by Nebraska Public Power District, Omaha Public Power District, the Energy Office and Food Strategy, an entrepreneur assistance effort of the Food Processing Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
For more information about the food processing workshop, contact Loisjean Tush in the Energy Office.
The Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) provides fact sheets, brochures, videos and publications on energy efficiency and renewable energy.
Shop 'til your energy bill drops! The Department of Energy's free publication, Making Energy Smart Purchases (FS113), provides information on buying efficient appliances, insulation materials and caulking and weatherstripping.
The Department of Energy’s (EERE)
Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
Office of the Assistant Secretary
Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
Mail Stop EE-1
Department of Energy
Washington, DC 20585
Toll Free: 1-877-337-3463
A new web site recently
joined the ever-growing list of Nebraska state government
sites:
the website for the Nebraska
Energy Office.
The site continues to evolve and new features are being added regularly. The web site now includes information about:
An increasing number of information resources, previously available only in printed form are now on the web site:
The site parallels the organization of the printed publications and is divided into six section with appendices:
The Energy Office has a limited supply of several publications that can be handy resources:
From light bulbs to furnaces, air conditioners to washing machines, the Consumer Guide will help you find energy saving products.
To get a free copy of any of these resources, contact the Energy Office.
“The mission of the Nebraska Energy Office is to promote the efficient, economic and environmentally responsible use of energy.”
In accordance with the American Disabilities Act, the state will provide reasonable accommodation to persons with disabilities. If you need reasonable accommodation to participate in any program or activity listed in this publication, please contact the Energy Office at 402-471-2186 to coordinate arrangements. Upon request, this publication may be available in alternative formats.
This material was prepared with the support of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Grant No. DE-FG47-92CE60410. However, any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed herein are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of DOE.