Via Think Progress:

Last month, Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA) announced a congressional investigation of the DC lobbying firm Bonner & Associates. The firm, which has a long history of astroturfing, was caught forging anti-clean energy reform letters “” purportedly from groups representing women and people of color “” to Congress. Coal front group American Coalition for Clean Coal Energy was eventually revealed to be Bonner’s client in the anti-clean energy campaign. Now, more forged letters have been uncovered.

Today, Markey revealed five new letters, and dozens more may be out there. According to a statement from Markey’s office, the faked letters came from “elderly services and senior centers” and were sent to Democratic Reps. Tom Periello (VA), Kathy Dahlkemper (PA), and Christopher Carney (PA):

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Many people expressed interest in the hybrid concentrated solar and natural gas plants discussed here:  Game changer 3: New natural gas supplies “” great for low-cost climate action, bad for coal.  So I asked guest blogger, Craig A. Severance, to do some research, and the result is below (first published here).  Severance is co-author of “The Economics of Nuclear and Coal Power” (Praeger 1976) and a former Assistant to the Chairman and to Commerce Counsel, Iowa State Commerce Commission.  He recently did one of the most detailed cost analyses publically available on new nukes (see “Exclusive analysis: The staggering cost of new nuclear power“).

By far the largest source of safe, clean energy that will never run out  (i.e. renewable energy) available in the United States is the sunlight falling on the unused deserts of the Southwest.  This attractive source of energy produces no nuclear waste, no carbon dioxide or mercury emissions, and none is imported from foreign countries.

According to the U.S. Department of Energy enough sunlght falls in just the unused, nonsensitive areas of our SW deserts to generate over twice the total kWh’s now consumed in the entire U.S..

SW Solar Now. In June, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar opened up 24 of  the SW’s sunniest areas on Bureau of Land Management lands in six  states to begin leasing for installation of up to 100,000 MW of solar power plants. (See here for article on the Interior Department announcement).  The first plants could be operating within 3 to 4 years in these ideal locations, which were chosen for maximum clear sunny days and minimal impact on the environment or other land uses.

Sun Doesn’t Shine All the Time. Although the SW sunshine resource is enormous and largely untapped, critics of solar energy routinely note the sun does not shine all the time.  The implication is that power is needed all the time, and since the sun is not always available, solar opponents say it would be foolish to invest in generating electricity from the sun.

Grid Can Use Solar. Utilizing solar electricity when the sun does shine is not really a major problem for the electric grid, until the percentage of power generated by solar reaches high percentages.  This is because roughly 50% of the electrical capacity on the grid consists of load-following power plants (chiefly natural gas and hydroelectric), which can quickly reduce power output when a renewable resource such as solar or wind is available, and increase output when needed.  The ability of the grid to absorb a high percentage of  power from renewables has been documented by the U.S. Department of Energy and was discussed in my article “The Wind does NOT Blow Only 1/3 of the Time” here.

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As we’ve seen, the USDA has found economic benefits of climate bill for farmers ‘easily trump’ the costs. And that’s no surprise since unrestricted GHG emissions will be catastrophic to U.S. farmers (see Our hellish future: Definitive NOAA-led report on U.S. climate impacts warns of scorching 9 to 11°F warming over most of inland U.S. by 2090 with Kansas above 90°F some 120 days a year “” and that isn’t the worst case, it’s business as usual!).  In this Wonk Room post, however, Brad Johnson explains that many leading Senators from farm states still don’t get it.

U.S. Senators are attacking the Waxman-Markey American Clean Energy and Security Act as threatening farmers even though America is suffering from the ravages of a climate out of control “” heat waves, floods, storms, droughts, and seasonal shifts. Scientific studies show global warming has already hurt American agriculture, and that the damages will grow catastrophic if action is not taken. In a new video, the Center for American Progress Action Fund argues that passage of a strong climate bill is imperative, and senators should stop filibustering our farmers’ future. Watch it:

The rising tide of climate change “” the catastrophic droughts in Texas and California, the heat waves in Louisiana and Nebraska, the storms across the High Plains and the Midwest, the floods in North Dakota and Minnesota “” require action. Yet many senators are arguing that a limit on carbon pollution would be too costly for farmers:

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By Alex Hallatt From the Cartoonist Group.

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