Energy expert says RI should focus on current energy source efficiency

By: Chris Curtis

Posted: 4/3/08

04/03/08 - John Farley doesn't want you to get the wrong idea about energy in Rhode Island.

Farley, who spoke yesterday at the University of Rhode Island's Coastal Institute, is executive director of The Energy Council of Rhode Island, or TEC-RI, a private nonprofit consortium of businesses and manufacturers. According to its Web site, the organization's goal is to achieve greater efficiency and lower energy costs in Rhode Island.

The lecture was the third installment in the university's Energy Lecture Series, which is sponsored by the URI Partnership for Energy.

Titled "The role of Energy in the Rhode Island Economy: Blessing or Curse," yesterday's lecture looked at the state's energy issues and potential for economic development.

Farley described the state economy as anemic, too weak to support a normal level of state spending on the private sector, "so helping out our economy by creating more private sector jobs ought to be the number one budget strategy in our state."

Farley said he is concerned that many Rhode Islanders may misunderstand the realities of energy production and consumption in the state.

In a top 10 list of common misconceptions about energy issues in Rhode Island, Farley disputed the economic practicality of wind and solar power. The state is not naturally or geographically suited for either, he said. He described the idea of the wind power industry bringing jobs to Rhode Island as "energy policy by wishful thinking and not fact," backing up the statement by citing incidents of Rhode Island wind energy companies outsourcing manufacturing jobs to Iowa and Mexico.

Farley said he believes that the state should concentrate on investing in increasing the efficiency of currently available energy, rather than in developing renewable alternatives. The energy available should be seen as a blessing, Farley said.

"How much fun would it be to schedule a surgery in a hospital that loses power whenever the wind dies down?" he said.

Farley said Rhode Island has energy prices higher than the national average, a lack of natural resources and a difficulty building new energy infrastructure in the state.

At the same time, Rhode Island is at the head of the nation in terms of energy efficiency, Farley said.

"When you look at total energy use per capita, little Rhody is at the head of the class."

Farley said he does not see the limitations facing the state as curses but as potential sources of motivation, using the example of Japan to illustrate his point.

The Japanese have had to deal with low natural resources and a fragile fuel supply chain, he said.

"As a result, the Japanese developed the proven ability to weather oil price increases and shortages and they did it by dramatically increasing fuel and energy efficiency," Farley said.

Farley equated Japan to Rhode Island in terms of limitations and said he sees the potential for similar improvement.

"Japan is to the world as Rhode Island is to America," he said.

"If we're going to look at energy in the economy and try to figure out how we chart a course to make ourselves a leader in the competitive economic market ,we have to look at our relative strengths," he said.

Farley also advocated "buying American" as a means of protecting the environment.

"If you want to reduce carbon emissions from electricity generation the best thing you can do is take economic activity away from China and give it to the United States."

Chinese power plants produce 59 percent more carbon emissions than U.S. plants, Farley said.

The lecture series, held in the Coastal Institute's Weaver Auditorium, is free and open to the public. Previous topics have included the ethics of energy consumption and a discussion of the energy challenges faced by the state. The next Energy Series lecture will take place on April 16 at 5 p.m. in the Coastal Institute's Weaver Auditorium.