NPPD NDEQ Annual Report

to sustain Nebraska’s environmentPARTNERING

NPPD/NEDQ2010 ANNUAL REPORT

2 2010 ANNUAL REPORT

The Environmental Partnership between the Nebraska Public Power

District and the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality is beginning our eleventh year.

The interrelationship between energy issues and the environment is complex and evolving. Over ten years ago, NPPD and NDEQ realized that collaboration, cooperation and communication between the agencies are essential to successfully address the many energy/environment issues they face. The agencies agreed to a formal partnership to share resources, to learn from one another, and to address their common challenges in a manner that benefits all Nebraskans. This annual

report highlights the partnership’s accomplishments in 2010, which are built on ten years of challenging, interesting and fruitful work together. Since the time the partnership was formed, the regulatory environment has continued to evolve in a manner that results in uncertainties for both the regulated community and regulators. The federal approach to addressing greenhouse gases (GHG) is a primary example. At one point, it was assumed that cap and trade would be a central component of a greenhouse gas regulatory program. It appears that option is no longer under consideration, at least in the foreseeable future. EPA has continued to address GHG

INTRODUCTION

2010 ANNUAL REPORT 3

via the existing regulatory program, resulting in a plethora of questions and uncertainties. Both NPPD and NDEQ have benefited from frequent Partnership discussions on greenhouse gas and, as a consequence of those exchanges, have a more comprehensive understanding of the issues.

Partnership team members continue to identify issues that can be pursued in a manner that contributes to the “sustainability” of the wonderful quality of life that Nebraskans enjoy. For example, in 2010, the Partnership examined the capture and use of methane, carbon sequestration, climate change, and energy conservation

efforts. The Partnership team also focused particularly on the productive use of methane and the implementation of energy conservation at publicly-owned wastewater treatment plants. The Partnership team will continue to pursue these issues in 2011.

Partnership meetings are typically held every other month on the last Wednesday of odd numbered months. We welcome anyone who would like to attend the meetings. Contact Ms. Chris Ahlstrom (NPPD) or Ms. Julie Ward (NDEQ) for an agenda – we’d love to have you join us!

Emerging Issues ......................4

Shared Resources ....................6

Topical Presentations ......7

Water Quality Sampling ...7

Refrigerator Recycling .....8

Shared Activities ....................10

Public Outreach ..............11

Power Summit ..................12

Energy Conservation at Publicly-Owned Wastewater Treatment Facilities .........12

Methane ............................ 13 Conclusion/Next Steps .........14

INTRODUCTION

PARTNERING

to addressemerging issues


Photo copy about Clean Water Act

EMERGING ISSUES


O ne of the primary reasons for creating the environmental partnership was to

make the best use of both organizations’ resources. Over the past year, the number of issues related to both energy and the environment has grown rapidly. To stay abreast of these issues, a standing agenda item called “emerging issues” was added and discussions concerning the topics are held at each partnership meeting. The following represents a sampling of issues NPPD and the NDEQ continue to discuss on a regular basis:

• Greenhouse gases • New Source Review • Regional haze • Revisions to National Ambient Air

Quality Standards • Climate change • Mercury • Carbon sequestration • Clean Water Act,

parts 316 (a) & (b) • Regulatory developments/updates • Economic development and

associated environmental assessments

• Potential changes in coal ash by-products reclassification from solid waste to a hazardous waste and coal ash utilization due to changes in air pollution control technology Photo copy here in this area

EMERGING ISSUES

Photo copy here in this area


to share ourcollective resources

UNL Domestic En-ergy Research and ApplicationInitiative photo copy

PARTNERING

SHARED RESOURCES


Topical Presentations

At each partnership meeting, a specific topic of mutual interest is examined in detail. Subject matter experts present the programs, which cover a broad range of topics, including Nebraska’s water quality and UNL’s Domestic Energy Research and Application Initiative.

Through these topical presentations and discussions, NPPD and NDEQ staff has developed a better understanding of each other’s perspective on issues of common interest. In addition, this regularly occurring activity has enhanced our relationship with those people presenting the information of interest.

Partnership photo copy here in this area

Partnership meet ing photo area



COLLECTIVE RESOURCES

SHARED RESOURCES


Water Quality Sampling

NPPD Environmental department staff members assisted the NDEQ with the Nebraska Recreational Season Water Quality Monitoring Program. Statewide, the NDEQ collects water samples on a weekly basis during the summer (April to September) to gather information on the quality of the state’s water resources. The samples are monitored for E-coli, an indicator bacteria used to detect the presence of other harmful pathogens, bacteria and viruses. The

water sampling results are also used to inform Nebraska citizens of the quality of Nebraska’s recreational waters.

In 2010, NPPD personnel took water samples from Loup Power District’s Lake North near Columbus. The NDEQ provided training and test equipment and NPPD personnel collected water samples, ran water tests and submitted results to the NDEQ.

Photo copy here in this areaPhoto copy here in this area

Water qual i ty sampl ing photo area

Water qual i ty sampl ing photo area

SHARED RESOURCES


Refrigerator Recycling

Refrigerator Recycling – Working together toward joint goals of reducing landfill waste, recycling, and saving energy, NPPD and NDEQ continued participation in the Refrigerator Recycling Program for 2010. The program is a partnership with refrigerator recycling specialists JACO Environmental, who are responsible for marketing the program and collecting old units. NPPD residential customers and the customers of its wholesale partner utilities are eligible for the program. To qualify, secondary refrigerators and freezers must be in operating order and measure between 10 and 30 cubic feet in size.

In 2010, 1,359 units were collected. Metal, plastic, glass and other material are separated and recycled. Toxic materials, like Freon and mercury, are extracted, rendered harmless and safely disposed.

The program resulted recycling of the following types and volumes of material:

• Steel – 136,900 pounds• Aluminum – 4,107 pounds• Plastic – 27,380 pounds • Tempered glass – 2,054 pounds• Refrigerants, oil and mercury switches

In addition, the program in 2010 resulted in an additional lifetime savings of 17,612,947 kilowatt hours of electricity and the associated emissions.

Old units get recycled and toxic materials are safely disposed.

JACO contractors rolled into communitiescollecting old refrigerators and freezers.


SHARED RESOURCES


to teach and share our knowledge with the public

Photo copy here in this area

PARTNERING

PUBLIC OUTREACH


Public Outreach

Public outreach activities held in 2010 included:

May 1 Recycle Your Cycles Keep Scottsbluff/Gering Beautiful March 17-18

Elkhorn Water Daze Lower Elkhorn Natural Resources District

July 22 Energy Camp in Halsey

National Rural Electric Association

November 17 Power Summit NPPD and NDEQ

Recycle Your Cycles - NPPD, Keep Scottsbluff-Gering Beautiful, and The Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality, hosted the fifth annual “Recycle Your Cycles” event at the NPPD Scottsbluff Office. The public brings in used bikes and they are either restored or stripped for scrap metal. The Panhandle Community Services donates adult bikes to those in need of transportation and the North Platte Valley Kiwanis distributes the restored children’s bikes. The event was very successful and approximately 26 bikes were restored for further use.

In a spin-off project, local bike enthusiasts took recycling one step further by creating bicycle racks out of the rejected and unusable frames. Five local artists from the North Platte Valley Artists Guild

painted the frames to create some attractive and unique styles. The bicycle racks are on permanent display at the Gering, Nebraska Public Library. Keep Scottsbluff-Gering Beautiful received a national award for their entry in the Keep America Beautiful “Spare Parts to Library Arts” national promotion. The First Place Innovation award was presented for the fish shaped bicycle racks in front of the Gering Library.

Award-winning, fish-shaped bicycle racks made from 2010 “Recycle Your Cycles” event donations.


PUBLIC OUTREACH

John Swanson, NPPD Generation Strategies Manager, speaking at the 2010 Power Summit

Power Summit

More than 60 people attended the November 17, 2010 Power Summit hosted by NPPD and the NDEQ. Utility personnel met with members of government and regulatory agencies for a day, learning about and reviewing energy-related issues. Attendees included representatives from the Electric Power Research Institute, Lincoln Electric System, Omaha Public Power District, NPPD, the NDEQ, the Nebraska Energy Office, the Nebraska Municipal Power Pool, Fremont Utilities, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Grand Island Utilities, Hastings Utilities, and the City of Wayne.

NPPD Environmental Manager Joe Citta was pleased with the large turnout. “We had a really good agenda,” he commented. “The speakers were knowledgeable and right on as far as identifying the environmental and regulatory challenges the electric industry in Nebraska is facing,” he said.

The summit included a panel discussion of current energy efficiency programs implemented in Nebraska. Panel members from NPPD, OPPD, LES and the Nebraska Energy Office described on-going energy efficiency efforts, and examined challenges and opportunities the future holds. NPPD presented an update on carbon capture and sequestration projects. Dr. Jerry Hudgins of the University of Nebraska –Lincoln spoke about progress and accomplishments of NPPD’s Domestic Energy and Application Initiative and the Nebraska Center for Energy Sciences Research. Mike Miller, Director of Environment at Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), gave a presentation on the outlook of environmental technology and research. Mr. Miller also discussed the

outlook and possible challenges of current and emerging utility environmental/energy policy.

“The summit is a great opportunity,” said NDEQ Associate Director Joe Francis, who co-hosted the summit with Joe Citta, “for people who typically don’t have the opportunity to discuss issues, to sit and talk together in an informal setting. It allows everyone to develop a more comprehensive understanding of energy

and environmental issues. Our goal, the goal of the NPPD/NDEQ Environmental Partnership Agreement, is to ensure a sustainable Nebraska, and the summit helps us to accomplish that.”

This year’s event was the sixth NDEQ/NPPD Power Summit. A primary objective of the summit is to enhance the dialogue that has been established between the power industry and associated regulatory agencies.


PUBLIC OUTREACH

Energy Conservation at Publicly-Owned Wastewater Treatment Facilities

It is estimated that 20 to 60 percent of a typical Nebraska municipality’s energy budget is devoted to moving and treating drinking water and wastewater. Energy conservation measures hold the potential to both reduce costs and improve environmental performance at these facilities. The Partnership collaborated with the University of Nebraska and the Omaha Public Power District in sponsoring the internship of Ms. Liz Boyer, a UNL undergraduate in Chemical Engineering. Ms. Boyer examined energy conservation opportunities at the Louisville and Aurora wastewater treatment plants. She received assistance from NPPD at the Aurora facility and OPPD at the Louisville facility.

Over the course of the summer Ms. Boyer identified potential energy conservation actions both facilities could initiate and provided a related report to the Louisville and Aurora City Councils. Louisville and Aurora public works staff were very satisfied with Liz’s efforts and are planning to implement many of Liz’s suggestions.

Currently, participants in the Aurora/Louisville projects are exploring ways that similar energy efficiency projects can be implemented at other Nebraska facilities.

Methane

Methane recovery from livestock operations was one of the first major topics addressed by our environmental partnership. As part of this early effort, the Nebraska Methane Workgroup was formed. Since that time, highly successful

Methane Recovery Workshops were held in York in 2002 and again in 2009.

One of the first lessons learned in the pursuit of methane projects was that many organizations played key roles. NPPD and NDEQ were joined by USDA – Rural Development and the Nebraska Energy Office as critical players on our methane efforts. In 2010, many members of the Nebraska Methane Workgroup formally joined the EPA AgStar State Partnership. Joining organizations include the Nebraska Pork Producers, the Nebraska Cattlemen’s Association, the Nebraska Department of Agriculture, the Nebraska Energy Office, the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources, Olean Energy and PRIME BioSolutions. The primary goal of the AgSTAR Partnership is to ensure that the latest information on technologies, financial resources, and general developments in livestock related methane capture and recovery are readily available to interested parties.

During the last few months of 2010 there was increased interest expressed in methane projects. Responding to that interest, NPPD, NDEQ, USDA – Rural Development and the Nebraska Energy Office met to determine if there was a role we could play in facilitating the potential methane holds in Nebraska. We are optimistic that there will be continuing developments in 2011 and hope we are able to report significant progress in next year’s report.


PUBLIC OUTREACH


to find ways of enhancing Nebraska’s quality of life

Ken Lusche withgrandson, Derek Knapp

PARTNERING

CONCLUSION


In reflecting upon the activities of the Partnership over the years, the

importance of communication and collaboration cannot be overemphasized. As stated in each annual Partnership report, our meetings to discuss issues of mutual interest has resulted in our organizations having a more comprehensive understanding of the issues. Previous reports have detailed the many entities that have joined the Partnership in our methane efforts. This kind of collaboration quickly occurred when we initiated the energy conservation effort at wastewater treatment plants. Key participants in that effort included: the UNL Partners in Pollution Prevention Program, the League of Nebraska Municipalities, Omaha Public Power District, Midwest Assistance Program, the cities of Aurora and Louisville and a number of private engineering firms.

Another example of this collaboration was contained in EPA’s national annual summary of State Brownfield Programs. In that report, the efforts of NPPD’s Economic Development team and DEQ’s Brownfield program were lauded. The communication between NPPD and DEQ resulted in the involvement of staff from the Dept. of Economic Development. In this team effort numerous Nebraska municipalities are provided valuable information related to fully utilizing properties in their communities by addressing pre-existing conditions. Twice a year NPPD hosts video conferences and encourages rural communities and their economic development leaders to participate. While it is not possible to quantify the results of these efforts,

there is no question that more of our communities are being provided with more and better information regarding the development of under-utilized properties.

The efforts of the Partnership related to the recovery and use of methane have been mentioned in just about every annual report. The methane effort was the first major project the Partnership initiated. Mr. Frank Thompson, of NPPD, played a critical role in the initiation and conduct of that effort. Frank retired in 2010 and his expertise in all matters related to the use of methane, and his commitment to the wise use of methane for the betterment of Nebraskans, will be missed. The Partnership welcomes Mr. Brian Wilcox of NPPD who will be replacing Frank on the methane effort.

Our formal Partnership agreement states, “We will work to produce a more sustainable and healthier environment by working together to address energy and environmental issues.” Both the methane and energy conservation efforts at wastewater treatment plants are anticipated to be primary projects the Partnership will pursue in 2011. Partnership team members welcome thoughts with regard to these efforts, as well as other ideas that will help us in our pursuit of a “more sustainable and healthier environment” for all Nebraskans.

The reader is encouraged to contact Mr. Joe Citta, NPPD, or Mr. Joe Francis, NDEQ, with thoughts and suggestions.

CONCLUSION

Annual Report is jointly submitted and approved by:

______________________________ ____________________________Michael J. Linder, Director Ronald D. AscheNebraska Department President & CEOof Environmental Quality Nebraska Public Power District

______________________________ _____________________________Joe P. Francis, Associate Director Joe L. Citta, Jr.Nebraska Department Corporate Environmental Manager of Environmental Quality Nebraska Public Power District

The NDEQ and NPPD share a desire to continue the

development of a sustainable Nebraska, which will leave

our descendents with the same high quality environment

to which we have become accustomed.

This report printed on recycled paper.

G134118.ZIP03/11

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Documents

NPPD NDEQ Annual Report