Dear Editor: Dams - I really like them

Dear Editor,

Dams – I really like them.

As the manager of Vigilante Electric Cooperative, I am very thankful for the 31 federal hydroelectric dams that the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) uses to supply us with low-cost, renewable, carbon-free power. In addition to this power being low-cost, renewable, and carbon-free the driving force is reusable and is used several times to generate power before it reaches the Pacific Ocean. Unlike large nuclear and fossil fuel generation sources, with these hydroelectric dams, the generation is more easily ramped up or down allowing for far easier integration of wind and solar generation sources that are only there when the wind is blowing and/or during the daytime. Without the dams, very little of wind and solar generation could be counted on to be there when you absolutely needed it.

There has been talk recently about breaching the Lower Snake River Dams. This is 1,000 average megawatts of clean, renewable, carbon-free, reusable generation. For a size comparison, Vigilante Electric’s peak usage time is during the summer for mainly irrigation load and our peak rate at which we use power for our entire system is 50 MWs. So needless to say, the generation from just these four dams serves a significant amount of services. In this carbon-free embellished thought process we hear so much about, how can these generation sources be removed? What are the alternatives if everyone isn’t going to cut their energy usage very significantly? Wind or solar generation that is only there 40% of the time? Coal, natural gas, or nuclear? Remember that this generation needs to be there when you need it. 1000 MW”s of battery storage is clearly not even remotely a reasonable solution. Also, how are we to charge all the proposed electric vehicles I’ve heard are coming with the current electric infrastructure? It can’t happen. In fact, I have heard multiple times that the generation is going to have to double to meet that need. Where is that going to come from?

BPA and thus Vigilante Electric members spend a significant amount of money for fish and wildlife mitigation on these dams already. More than one-fourth of our wholesale power costs go to this effort now with very good results achieved.

I haven’t even mentioned the significant recreational and irrigation uses the dams provide as well. Please just try to imagine what the city of Dillon and surrounding areas would be like without the Clark Canyon dam. Would there even be a city of Dillon here? There would be very little irrigation. There would be routine spring floods, very few fishing opportunities and the Beaverhead River would be frozen over most winters. Obviously, there would be no boating or recreation during the summer. Would there even be a University of Montana – Western here without the Clark Canyon Dam? I’m all in for the dams, with or without hydroelectric generation, and the numerous benefits they provide. Especially with the fish passage mitigation that BPA has provided for the dams on the Columbia River.

Rollie Miller, General Manager

Vigilante Electric Cooperative