LIHU‘E — Kaua‘i Island Utility Cooperative is determined to pursue two ditch hydropower projects despite the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s unwillingness to permit them. Free Flow Power of Massachusetts filed preliminary permit applications with the federal agency earlier this year
LIHU‘E — Kaua‘i Island Utility Cooperative is determined to pursue two ditch hydropower projects despite the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s unwillingness to permit them.
Free Flow Power of Massachusetts filed preliminary permit applications with the federal agency earlier this year for projects located on Koke‘e and Kekaha Ditch Irrigation systems. The permits, once issued, were to be turned over to KIUC, under a paid contract agreement with the co-op for an undisclosed amount. FFP would then explore the feasibility of member-owned hydro projects on the sites and develop plans.
However, at the time FFP filed the FERC applications requesting exclusive rights to explore hydro development on the ditches for a period of three years, another hydro energy developer — Pacific Light and Power of Kaua‘i — was already undergoing the process of state permitting for the same site on state lands, according to FERC.
“Were we to issue a preliminary permit to (Free Flow Power), the company would then have first-to-file priority over (Pacific Light & Power), even though that entity has been working with state authorities to develop a project at the same site,” FERC wrote in its ruling.
“This appears to by a type of unwarranted ‘claim-jumping.’ … Moreover, in order to avoid similar situations in the future, we will, as a general matter, decline to issue preliminary permits for projects in Hawai‘i … This proceeding demonstrates the potential for the Commission’s preliminary permitting process to interfere with hydropower development that is proceeding in accordance with a legitimate state authorization process,” the FERC ruling states.
FERC added that it did not want its preliminary permitting program to be used as way to “chill the development efforts of entities pursuing a legitimate state authorization process.”
Free Flow’s representatives on Kaua‘i, Jason Hines and Dawn Huff, declined to comment on the ruling.
Paolo Luckett, president and CEO of PLP, said, “We’re very pleased for recognizing Pacific Light & Power as developer for project. … It’s vindication, a good affirmation from a federal agency, and it’s not just us but the whole grassroots effort that has been supporting us on the Westside.”
In addition to hydropower, the PLP project involves improvements to the irrigation ditches to better serve agriculture, which is the state’s first priority for the site’s land and irrigation ditches, according to FERC. The power PLP produces would be supplied to farmers in the west first, KIUC second.
“The energy could be used for ag production for food independence and the local market, including slaughter and chill facilities for ranchers, certified kitchens for locally produced foods and crops,” Luckett said. “That’s really what ag needs — power to process food for refrigeration.”
The remaining energy would be sold to KIUC under a power purchase agreement, he said. For PLP to finance its construction and build its project, it needs a signed PPA agreement with KIUC.
Charging ahead
However, during KIUC’s board meeting Tuesday at Hanapepe Library, KIUC CEO David Bissell said the co-op will continue to pursue member-owned hydropower on the ditches despite FERC’s ruling and PLP’s license. He called FERC’s “claim-jumping” comment “an unfortunate choice of words” and added that KIUC has been pursuing hydro on the ditches since 2001. When asked in what way, he said through assessments.
In 2004, KIUC commissioned Black & Vetch to assess the island’s hydropower resources. Its 2005 hydro report identifies the irrigation ditches as a resource, among many other areas. However, it also states, “To our knowledge, … Wailua (is) the only project currently under active pursuit in Kaua‘i.”
In testimony during Tuesday’s board meeting, Kaua‘i taro farmer Adam Asquith — who had filed a petition with KIUC last summer to overturn the board’s decision to pursue hydropower with Free Flow Power by means of FERC — asked the board to make a motion to relinquish the preliminary permits FERC previously approved for four other sites on Kaua‘i. Asquith said renewable energy is a good goal but that not all means are justified in meeting that end.
“As we charge ahead toward that good end, we make mistakes,” he said. “There’s nothing wrong with that. It’s wrong though when you don’t acknowledge and learn from those mistakes. In light of last week’s Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s ruling, I think it’s pretty obvious now that we made a mistake in trying to exercise their authority in the way we have…
“So what I’m asking today is that one of you display … the humility required by good leadership and acknowledge that and put a motion forward for a board action today that we acknowledge that we’ve been misguided in using the powers of FERC and the voluntary permits going forward and withdraw the ones that have been granted and continue to move forward on our hydroelectric efforts without evoking the FERC process,” he said.
Bissell replied that although he isn’t sure what FERC is going to do about the co-op’s four existing preliminary permits, they have not been revoked. He said the primary reason “we went down the FERC road” was the co-op didn’t want to spend a lot of members’ money doing site feasibility studies and end up competing with other energy developers for the same site. He said FERC is mandatory for some of the projects — the ones on navigable waters specifically.
KIUC Board Director Ben Sullivan told Asquith he didn’t intend to make such a motion.
“The benefit of being in the board room is that we can all speak freely and I freely say to you I do believe that we made some mistakes in the early going, but I do believe we’re doing our best in the interest of the community and continue on with an open mind and open options is the way to go,” he said.
Sullivan said there are certain advantages to using FERC for permitting.
“One of the them is the cumbersome nature of the state process — and perhaps even the non-existence of a state process — and that’s an important issue we’ve discussed,” he said. “There’s high cost involved in a process that has no timeline for ending, and it’s difficult to know whether it’s in the members’ interest to even engage in such a process. The FERC avenue offers an alternate to that, potentially. It also lays out a process that we can limit, as you have suggested, and I think that it’s something that the staff is constantly working with the state to do.”
The FERC ruling states, “Hawai‘i has a long history of authorizing and regulating hydropower projects at the state level.” The state has 13 hydropower plants in all and none are commission-licensed hydropower projects, according to FERC.
Clean-energy advocate and former KIUC board candidate Pat Gegen was off island for Tuesday’s board meeting but sent written testimony to the board, which he shared with The Garden Island. His testimony questions the information provided in the KIUC “Voters Guide” last summer, when members were asked to vote on whether the co-op should continue to pursue hydropower with FFP using FERC preliminary permitting.
The “Voters Guide” drew harsh criticism from some co-op members for being unbalanced and misleading. The guide said that without FERC, it would “make progress on hydro in the near term very difficult and more expensive” and would “likely be an end to member-owned hydro development on Kaua‘i.”
Gegen’s letter states, “During the special election, KIUC sent out their voter guide, which had some very strong statements to encourage votes in favor of the KIUC board decision. … My biggest concern is in regards to the second statement regarding an end to member owned hydro development.
“It appears that FERC is no longer in the picture, so my concern is two fold: Given that this statement was in a board-approved and overseen publication, I am concerned that the potential for hydro owned by the members has likely come to an end and, if that is not the case, then I am concerned that the board would approve such statements to go out in a ‘Voter Guide’ as it could appear to be a manipulative effort to get the votes they wanted,” Gegen wrote. “Either way, I question the integrity of the board.”
KIUC and FFP will begin its hydropower community outreach meetings next week, starting Tuesday at Waimea Theater, Hanalei School cafeteria on Wednesday and Kapa‘a Middle School cafeteria next Thursday. All meetings are scheduled from 6 to 7:30 p.m. For more information, visit www.kiuc.coop.
• Vanessa Van Voorhis, staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 251) or by emailing vvanvoorhis@thegardenisland.com.
