The following actions items evolved out of the Governor's Institute 2008 Winter Weekend. We don't have to go with this, but it's a place to start the discussion about what the solution is.

• Tax all fossil fuels used for heating in the state of Vermont at x% above current rate. x= ??? optimum to facilitate transition to biomass-based market
  • The purchase of fossil fuels is a drain on the Vermont economy. 85% of this money leaves the state. Thus the purchasers are creating a burden on the state economy.
• Use this money to fund the following actions:
  • Authorize Efficiency Vermont to contract in the bulk purchase of sets of x pellet furnaces. These should be of a type that will burn high and low ash content pellets. Through the bulk purchase the price and quality can be optimized. These furnaces would then be leased at cost to families that currently receive fuel assistance and other low income house holds. The furnaces would be distributed and installed by current stove and pellet furnace distributors, and contractors working with Efficiency Vermont.
  • Borrow ten million dollars to be financed by the fossil fuel surcharge. This money along with matching federal grant money will be used to establish a Bio-fuel research facility in Vermont to be run by UVM. This facility will study optimum sources of bio fuels in Vermont, pelletization methods of different feed stocks, storage and delivery technologies. The goal is to have a pellet plant in production by January 2009.
• Create a $x Fund for Vermont farmers to apply for grant monies to plant and harvest a variety of bio-fuels during the summer of 2008. This program would be run through the Extension Service of Vermont.

   

• Create a bio-fuel futures market in Vermont under state charter. It needs to be totally transparent and run as a cooperative for the people of Vermont. This would allow farmers to pre sell their bio fuels and consumers to purchase their fuel needs in advance.
  • The price stability created by such a market will help the bio-fuel infrastructure grow.
  • The pellets produced by the research facility would then be made available to families needing fuel assistance.

In order to fill in these x's we need the in-put from multiple academic sources (economic professors, grad students, professionals) in order to facilitate this transition. Please ask them.

Other thoughts? ...

I'm not sure how this will affect our plans, but - I thought you all ought to know:

I just talked to a woman who works for the Dept. of Buildings and General Services and she was saying that they're debating two Renewable Energy Billls RIGHT NOW - You can find the text of these bills S.339 and S.350, and they're so related that they're talking about combining them. 

Here's a quote from S.339

"The bill proposes to require development of a state biomass plan, with components that include the following:  biomass inventories, evaluation of technologies, establishment of proposed siting criteria for wood-fired electricity generating facilities, consideration of distributed heat and combined heat and power, identification of a developer for a regional wood-fired electric plant, biomass market development measures such as increased rail transport options and biomass use by the state and local governments, strategies to divert biomass from municipal waste streams, and establishment of a wood harvest and ecosystem monitoring program."

and

"It requires the board to establish a loading order according to which resources shall be called upon to meet the state’s needs, with energy efficiency and demand response activities being the resources of first resort.  It proposes to establish a Green Mountain energy incentives program under which a utility and a property owner agree that the utility will fund installation of renewable energy equipment, and the property owner will pay through utility rates.

and from S.350

"The bill proposes to encourage the development of combined heat and power (CHP) facilities, and to require the adoption of a state biomass plan, a timber management program, and a forest land conservation program.  It proposes to establish goals for the electrical energy efficiency program, and to establish a process for the commissioning and energy tracking of buildings."

This woman also mentioned that they're really trying to avoid the word "taxes", they're apparently "dancing around it", and instead talking carbon credits - trying to find other ways of generating revenue.