CHALLENGES AHEAD

Tom Trout Commercial Executive with Palmetto Electric Co-op spoke at the Bluffton Rotary Club's Wednesday morning breakfast. His powerpoint presentation explained some of the energy challenges that will be effective in the near future. The first and most important is the cost of fuel skyrocketing around the world. This matters because the income of 22% of co-op households is $25,000 and less. Tom says to watch power bills doubling over the years. There are solutions for residents of South Carolina; energy efficiency (i.e. turning off the light switch), renewal energy (solar, wind, hydro electric, biomass), conventional power (nuclear, coal, natural gas).

Palmetto Electric urges all co-op members to start a dialog with their elected officials. Ask tough questions about energy. Here are a few questions that can be asked:

What are you doing to fully fund the research required to make emissions free electric plants an affordable reality?

Balancing electricity needs and environmental goals will be difficult.

How much is all this going to increase my electric bill and what will you do to make it affordable?

Experts say that our nation's growing electricity needs will soon go well beyond what renewables, conservation and efficiency can provide.

What is your plan to make sure we have the electricity we need in the future?