Willits Economic Localization/Energy/Research Questions

From CFI

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List of Questions

OUR CURRENT ENERGY USE

Chart of current energy use.

http://www.greentransitions.org/WillitsEnergyUsage.mht

It is assumed that Willits uses far too much energy per capita and our ultimate goal should be to reduce our energy use, replacing fossil fuels with renewable energy sources, starting now.



A) TRANSPORTATION

  • How many gallons of transportation fuels are used each month over the year in Willits area (95490 zip code; 13,302 people from 2000 U.S. Census)? What is public fuel use versus private fuel use?ENERGY 1
  • What motorized transportation options, other than individual cars and trucks, exist in Willits already (Dial-a-Ride, bus line, etc.)? ENERGY 21


POSSIBLE RESPONSES TO REDUCE OUR TRANSPORTATION ENERGY USE:

  • Is it feasible to have a shared vehicle fleet in Willits and how might that work? ENERGY 22
  • Is there anyone interested in helping Claudia Reed to develop a shared vehicle fleet in Willits? ENERGY 23
  • What sort of alternate modes and patterns of transportation could we develop within Willits and to outlying areas? ENERGY 24



B) ELECTRICITY

  • What is the total electrical consumption, by class of user (residential, commercial, industrial, agricultural, municipal etc), in kilowatt-hours or megawatt-hours, for each month of the most recent year that data is available for? ENERGY 2
  • How much or what percentage of this electrical consumption is used for lighting, heating, manufacturing processes, etc by its different classes of users? ENERGY 3



C) HEATING

Natural Gas:

  • What was the total natural gas use, by class of user, in thousands of cubic feet or therms, for each month of the most recent year that data is available for? ENERGY 4
  • What percentage of natural gas use, by class of user, is for non-heating needs? ENERGY 5


Propane:

  • What was the total propane use, by class of user, in cubic gallons for each month of the most recent year that data is available for? ENERGY 6
  • What percentage of propane use, by class of user, is for non-heating needs?ENERGY 7


Heating Oil:

  • What is the heating oil use in gallons for each month of the most recent year that data is available for? ENERGY 8
  • Does locally sold heating oil have biodiesel added to it by the distributor, as has become commonplace in the northeast (where home heating oil is widely used)? ENERGY 25


Firewood:

  • What is total firewood use in cords per year? ENERGY 9



D) RENEWABLE ENERGY (solar electric, solar thermal, hyrdoelectric, wind turbine)

  • What is the total amount of renewable energy being produced in Willits each year, by source and use, expressed as kilowatt-hours, megawatt-hours, or BTUs? ENERGY 10
  • What share of Willit's renewable energy production is off of the PG&E grid? ENERGY 11



POSSIBLE RESPONSES TO INCREASE OUR RENEWABLE ENERGY USE:

  • What forms of renewable energy would probably make the most sense for Willits? ENERGY 12
  • What forms of renewable energy might not make sense for Willits? ENERGY 13
  • What kinds of renewable energy production facilities might be developed in Willits to create jobs, keep our programs costs down, and help ensure product and service availability? ENERGY 14
  • What funding sources (grants, zero or low interest loans, etc) exist now that could be used to develop renewable energy production facilities in Willits? ENERGY 15
  • Would the city or county be likely to propose a bond to the voters that would fund renewable energy installations for existing homes and businesses? ENERGY 29


Solar:

  • What would be the payback times for the city of Willits to fund solar installations for homes? ENERGY 16


Biomass:

  • What would it take to get people to join a biodiesel fuel coop in Willits? ENERGY 20
  • What crops would be best here for producing biodiesel and how many BTU's per acre might they provide? ENERGY 28



E) ENERGY DISTRIBUTION

  • What is distributed generation (DG) of electricity? ENERGY 17
  • What would it take for the city of Willits to form a distributed energy coop? ENERGY 18
  • Could Willits create a municipal utility by buying the electrical grid from PG&E? ENERGY 19



F) ENERGY CONSERVATION

  • How can Willits reduce its energy consumption and by how much? ENERGY 26
  • Is it possible (or desireable) for the city or county to pass a law penalizing wasteful energy users? ENERGY 27
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