LOGAN — Debate over the wisdom of Logan City purchasing an interest in a natural gas power plant in Idaho proved to be the controversy that wouldn’t die at a regular meeting of the Logan Municipal Council on April 15.

After storming out of a previous council meeting where that decision was made, Utah State University professor Patrick Belmont returned on April 15 to publicly tender his resignation as vice chair of the city’s Renewable Energy & Sustainability Advisory Board (RESAB).

“I’m not going away,” Belmont promised, vowing to return to as many meetings as possible to remind council members of the financial and health risks he insisted they are taking by continuing to try to solve Logan’s power concerns with fossil fuels.

Belmont wasn’t the only one to turn his back on the city energy advisory board, however. In a perhaps orchestrated show of unity, three prospective additions to the RESAB panel that were to be announced at the April 15 meeting by Council Chair Jeannie Simmonds withdrew their names from consideration.

“It’s disappointing to see a member of RESAB resign because they feel we aren’t listening to their opinion,” according to council member Mark Anderson. “We take the recommendations of our citizen advisory boards very seriously and make our decisions accordingly.”

During a joint presentation on March 4, Tyson Godfrey, the chair of the RESAB, and Nathanael Weidler, the chair of the Logan Light & Power Board, recommended that the city investigate a local solar project while also purchasing 15 maga-watts of power fueled by natural gas from the Power County Project in Idaho.

“We researched our options for months (after that presentation),” Anderson explained. “Unfortunately, there aren’t any viable green alternatives to base load power available to purchase in the next seven to eight years.”

Logan officials are now investigating the feasibility of developing a local 15 maga-watt solar farm within city limits. Thanks to Anderson’s influence, the members of the municipal council also reversed their earlier decision and bought into the Power County Project.

“I am confident we can still reach our goal of achieving 50 percent renewable energy by 2030,” Anderson emphasizes “and get rid of our coal production, replacing it with natural gas that is reliable 24 hours-a-day, 7 days-a-week and 60 percent cleaner.” 

Base load energy is everyday, continuous capacity, while electrical peak load is when the demand for electricity is at its highest and local utilities must provide more power than normal. Peak load can occur at any time, but most often occurs in the evening during the summer months when air conditioners are running. 

Logan Light & Power now provides energy to city residents through a combination of both local generation and open market purchases. Fossil fuels account for about 64 percent of that capacity, while renewable sources add 22 percent and market purchases cover 14 percent of city needs.

When the members of the municipal council initially considered buying an interest in the Power County plant on Jan. 7, a public protest organized by Belmont went on for more than an hour that eventually led the council members to reject that option.

Only Anderson voted in favor of the natural gas project on Jan 7. After much subsequent investigation, however, his opinion eventually prevailed.

Belmont was infuriated when the council reconsidered and reversed their previous decision on April 1.

The findings of the feasibility study of the possible local solar array are scheduled to be reviewed by municipal council members not later than Tuesday, July 15.