In 11 years, the company’s dam licenses will begin to expire. According to Consumers Energy, the dams produce less than one percent of the energy required by its customers as a whole. In an effort to continue reducing its greenhouse-warming carbon emissions, Consumers Energy announced in 2021 that it would stop using coal to generate electricity by 2025 and instead use natural gas and renewable energy sources. The utility said that under that plan, by 2040, it would get 90% of its energy from clean sources, including 8,000 megawatts of solar power.
Consumers Energy’s Vice President of Generation Operations, Norm Kapala, stated in a press release, “But we also know that the current model for financing our hydroelectric power operations requires customers to pay more than nine times for the cost of energy compared to other sources of generation.” The utility, which gives flammable gas and power to clients in Michigan’s Lower Promontory, said it held a progression of public gatherings keep going year on the eventual fate of its dams. This summer, more meetings are expected.
This is a good abstract, Grace. In the future you want to include the APA citation… and then the second paragraph is your response to article (opinion) and why its related to env. science. So your topic is a huge source of clean energy… way bigger than wind or solar. Do you think that there is a future for hydroelectric dams in the US based on what you’ve learned so far?
I think that while hydroelectric dams pose a major advantage to the environment as opposed to normal dams, the economic impact is extremely lofty. These companies need to lower the price from nine times the cost compared to other forms of energy. Given dams pose a very large source of clean energy in today’s world, do you think it’s worth the investment to lower the consumer costs?