Two island experts on renewable energy plan to give their insight into the benefits of hydropower-generated electricity for Kaua‘i at a meeting Wednesday. Jeff Deren, Kauai Island Utility Cooperative engineer, and John Wehrheim of Pacific Hydro Inc. will be the
Two island experts on renewable energy plan to give their insight into the benefits of hydropower-generated electricity for Kaua‘i at a meeting Wednesday.
Jeff Deren, Kauai Island Utility Cooperative engineer, and John Wehrheim of Pacific Hydro Inc. will be the keynote speakers at a Apollo Kaua‘i meeting at 5:30 p.m. at St. Michael and All Angels Episcopal Church in Lihu‘e.
Implementation of approved hydropower projects are likely to help cut Kaua‘i’s dependence on imported oil and trim electricity bills, said Benjamin Sullivan, chairman of Apollo Kaua‘i, a group of concerned citizens that fosters a secure energy future for the island.
“We want to raise public awareness so that we can advocate for a greater implementation of such projects,” Sullivan said.
Interest in hydropower plants fell by the wayside in the past because of stiff opposition from environmentalists, but times have changed and now such projects have legitimacy, Sullivan said.
“Global warning and global oil depletion is as significant as local environmental issues,” he said. “So therefore, we need to re-address these issues and solve these local challenges.”
Minimizing the potential damage to ecosystems while the hydropower projects go up and the impact of reduced water flow from such operations are, of course, key public concerns, Sullivan said.
“As a community, our willingness to address these issues must be looked upon, and perhaps, bolstered by the context of our global concern over climate changes and resource depletion,” he said in a statement.
Deren will go over hydropower plants KIUC has studied — information that appears in a report on renewable energy technology.
Sullivan said one chapter mentions the role of Gay & Robinson, the last sugar plantation on Kaua‘i, has played or could play in developing a major hydropower project.
Gay & Robinson operates one of three hydropower plants that have helped Kaua‘i comply with a state mandate requiring Hawai‘i utilities to create more electricity from renewable energy sources.
Hydropower plants may be the answer Gay & Robinson and Kauai Ethanol are looking for as they try to turn more away from coal as a power source for ethanol production, Sullivan said.
He said Wehrheim’s experiences with hydropower are likely to be helpful because he has designed and implemented a number of them in Hawai‘i.
More recently, Wehrheim’s work has taken him to Bhutan, where he is a partner in Bhutan Hydro.
The county has become a leading exporter of hydroelectricity in the Far East.
To illustrate the arrival of hydropower projects, Sullivan cited the reality that world oil supplies could dry up one day, with has prodded biologists and environmentalists to support windmill projects, even though birds can be swept up in them.
“Biologists care as much for the wind projects as others,” he said. “They realize there will be bird kills, and they are willing to accept that issue if there are ways to mitigate bird kill.”
For more information on the renewable energy technology assessment report, go to www.kiuc.coop/about_re.htm.
• Lester Chang, staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 225) or lchang@kauaipubco.com.
