County Energy Use Assessments and Renewable Energy Potential

Transcription

1 County Energy Use Assessments and Renewable Energy Potential Becker, Clay, Otter Tail, and Wilkin Counties West Central Initiative Sethrena Stigen, Intern Greg Wagner, Planner August 31, 2009

2 The Northwest Region Clean Energy Resource Team funded the labor to populate the County-Level Energy Assessments and to prepare this final report. The original template of energy assessment spreadsheets provided was created by Cecil Massie with 6Solutions LLC and paid for by the Agricultural Utilization Research Institute. The content of the templates and final report have not been reviewed and are not necessarily endorsed by West Central Initiative Foundation. Notice: This document is a work product prepared with best efforts based on available information. Neither West Central Initiative nor any other party makes any warranty, express or implied, as to the preparation of this document or for any use of, or reliance upon any information. No party assumes any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product, or process disclosed, or represents that its use would not infringe privately owned rights. West Central Initiative Clean Energy Resource Teams Greg Wagner, Planner Melissa Pawlisch / Joel Haskard, Co-Coordinators 1000 Western Avenue UMN RSDP Fergus Falls, MN St. Paul, MN (218) (612) / (612) greg@wcif.org pawl0048@umn.edu / haska004@umn.edu 6Solutions LLC AURI Northern Office Cecil Massie Randy Hilliard, Project Development Director Executive VP of Technology UMC Campus, Owen Hall Bloomington, MN PO Box 599 (612) Crookston, MN Cecil07@6SolutionsLLC.com rhilliar@auri.org

3 Table of Contents I. Background and Summary... 1 II. Using the Template... 1 III. Recommendations on Using the Data... 2 IV. Limitations... 2 V. Analyzing the Data... 3 VI. Outlook... 5 List of Summary Tables Table 1 Estimated Annual Renewable Energy Potential... 3 Table 2 Estimated Annual Energy Comparisons and Coverage... 4 Table 3 Estimated Annual Energy Use... 4

4 Background and Summary West Central Initiative (WCI) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit foundation that assists with planning activities and serves the counties of Becker, Clay, Douglas, Grant, Otter Tail, Pope, Stevens, Traverse, and Wilkin in west central Minnesota. WCI serves in the absence of a Regional Development Commission (RDC) in west central Minnesota and is federally designated as the region s Economic Development District. In that role, WCI was contacted by Clean Energy Resource Teams to conduct county-wide energy assessments using a given template. Originally assessments were to be done by WCI for Becker, Clay, and Wilkin Counties; Otter Tail County was later added. Several other counties have been studied by RDCs in the surrounding regions. Agricultural Utilization Research Institute (AURI) funded the creation of the AURI Renewable Energy Template by 6Solutions LLC used in the assessments. The template s intended users are county and regional economic development coordinators and other planners. Using the Template A main objective of this energy study is to estimate individual county-wide annual energy usage and renewable energy potential. To accomplish this objective, data is collected primarily from online sources for input cells in spreadsheets containing formulas to process the data and give estimates. A summary of energy use is compiled from estimates found in spreadsheets on the following end users: residential (2) transportation (2) on-farm industrial commercial/public space A summary of renewable energy potential is compiled from estimates found in spreadsheets on the following renewable sources: agricultural crop residue livestock residue methane logging residue wind energy Other sources may be considered as well. Due to the nature of solar and geothermal energy, estimates are not shown in a spreadsheet format; the inclusion of the total potential from just those two sources would be nearly limitless. 1

5 Recommendations on Using the Data This energy study gives a baseline of information, identifying the amount of local energy demands and local renewable energy resources in each county. It is essentially a simple assessment of what a county has. However, it does not touch on what is possible, as that would require a feasibility study. Estimates demonstrate what is technically possible not what is practically feasible. Although determining what is possible in terms of energy is not within the scope of this project, the inventory of energy may be used as a starting point for: determining order of magnitude, which may identify potentially underutilized resources and be of help in ranking opportunities. It is important to note though that just because a resource exists does not mean that there is a green light to exploit it; there are many implications (environmental issues, legal agreements in acquiring the resource, ability to transport energy where it is needed, creation of jobs, cost and efficiency to harvest/harness energy, available incentives, etc.) with each renewable energy source that must be considered. making comparisons with other counties and possibly identifying areas in which counties may work together. (Ex. A county may not have enough of a certain resource to warrant investment in a particular technology to harvest the energy, but there may be an opportunity for two or more counties to partner and share a technology.) matching up largest energy users with sources of renewable energy. Finally, it is worth noting that the template has been designed to be completed in parts or in its entirety. Desired information may be obtained without completing the entire template. Limitations The estimations produced in the template are only as good as the input data. The most updated and relevant data should be used. With that said, care should be taken when collecting the data due to the following obstacles: Data may be old Data may be inconsistent Timing of reporting data may vary Data definitions may vary Some data may be withheld to avoid disclosure Data may not be in the form needed Furthermore, the input data is of course somewhat speculative, and conditions (i.e. a new ethanol plant in the area) may change the environment and decisions made in a new environment. The estimations produced in each spreadsheet are dependent on the validity of input data, other data provided in the spreadsheets, and the formulas used in the cells. 2

6 Some specific obstacles may be encountered while collecting input data. For example, much of the data on industrial energy usage is protected. Where data is not available, new methods may be necessary to estimate usage. If given statewide data, it may be broken down by county using the county population as a percentage of the entire state and multiplying it by the given statewide data. This was especially necessary in estimating commercial energy usage for Clay and Wilkin Counties, as detailed commercial energy use data is not available. The energy summary tables do not take into account all sources or uses of energy. Other energy sources, such as solar, geothermal, hydro, mill residues, landfill and wastewater treatment methane emissions, and others may be recognized if relevant to the situation. As mentioned earlier, solar and geothermal energy potential is not included in the template, but both sources are very important and significant players in terms of energy potential. Although identifying conservation techniques to reduce local energy use is not within the scope of this document, it is highly encouraged to use the energy demand estimates to prompt conservation efforts. Analyzing the Data Great potential for renewable energy (RE) exists in west central Minnesota. The total annual estimated RE potential for the four counties is trillion Btu. Of that, over 90% comes from wind energy. With agriculture being a major part of west central Minnesota, it may come as no surprise that agricultural crop residues contribute the next greatest energy potential at over 27 trillion Btu for the four-county total. The most RE potential in the four counties for livestock residue methane comes from Otter Tail County, and the most potential for logging residue comes from Becker County. Estimated Annual Renewable Energy Potential Summary Table Energy Content (Trillion Btu/yr) Resource Becker Clay Otter Tail Wilkin Total Agricultural Crop Residue Livestock Residue Methane Logging Residue Wind Total

7 In comparing RE potential to the estimated energy used annually in each county, there is enough RE potential to cover the current estimated energy usage in Becker, Clay, Otter Tail, and Wilkin Counties. Wilkin County shows the highest potential coverage at times. This number would be drastically higher if solar energy potential was also figured in (technically solar energy alone could cover all the energy demands). The four-county total shows that the RE potential could cover the energy usage over seven times! Much of that is due to the wind energy estimates, but when taking wind energy potential out of the equation, there is still enough potential to cover about half of the energy usage. Estimated Annual Energy Comparisons and Coverage Summary Table Energy Content (Trillion Btu/yr) Becker Clay Otter Tail Wilkin Total Renewable Energy Potential Energy Use # of times renewable energy could meet energy needs One highly beneficial way to use local energy is to meet local energy demand, promoting self-reliance. In order to match up demand with energy sources and appropriate technology, it is helpful to know from where the demand comes. Of the four counties, estimated annual energy use is the highest in Otter Tail County at trillion Btu and the lowest in Wilkin County at trillion Btu. In three of the four counties, the biggest energy user is from the residential sector. Estimated Annual Energy Use Summary Table Residential Transport Agriculture Industrial Commercial/ Public Building Totals All Units in Trillion Btu/yr Becker Total Clay Total Otter Tail Total Wilkin Total Total Identifying the big local energy users, such as agricultural processing plants, medical facilities, and large manufacturers, may be useful in determining a starting point for matching up the demand with renewable energy sources. 4

8 The estimated four-county crop residue alone, if able to be converted to energy, would be enough to meet about half of the total estimated energy demand from the four counties. In fact, the crop residue from Clay County alone could cover about one-fifth of the energy demand from all four counties. Outlook With west central Minnesota s great potential in agriculture, it may become a bigger player in RE production. Determining ideal energy crops with low input requirements that are easily managed, processed, harvested and cultivated with little erosive effects will be key. Milbrandt expands on the potential specific to biomass in the National Renewable Energy Laboratory report titled A Geographic Perspective on the Current Biomass Resource Availability in the United States 1 : Biomass is receiving increasing attention as scientists, policy makers, and growers search for clean, renewable energy alternatives. Compared with other renewable resources, biomass is very flexible; it can be used as fuel for direct combustion, gasified, used in combined heat and power technologies, or biochemical conversions. Due to the wide range of feedstocks, biomass has a broad geographic distribution, in some cases offering a least-cost and near-term alternative. (1) More people are realizing the wealth of energy potential wrapped up in the wind, too. Evidence is popping up on the horizon with every new wind turbine. As technology improves, more RE potential will be realized. With technological changes, ways to collect and harness the solar, wind, and geothermal potential may become more viable and less cost prohibitive. Renewable energy potential in west central Minnesota is incredibly abundant. If able to overcome obstacles, such as cost, transferability of energy, differing ideas on land use, etc., and make use of incentives and tax credits, it will be possible to realize more of the potential of renewable energy, cover more and more of the energy usage now and well into the future, and lessen our carbon footprint. 1 Milbrandt, A. A Geographic Perspective on the Current Biomass Resource Availability in the United States. National Renewable Energy Laboratory Technical Report [online]. December [Cited 31 August 2009]. Available from: 5

9 Contact information for questions or requests for further information as well as the completed county energy assessment templates are available on the WCI website:

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