Guinn appoints energy panel

Monday, Nov. 19, 2001 | 9:26 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- Gov. Kenny Guinn has appointed a nine-member energy task force to focus on wind, solar and other alternative power plans.

The task force has been given a $250,000 fund for such things as energy conservation, weatherization and energy efficiency. The money may also be used to match federal funds for pilot programs in solar and wind energy, said state Consumer Advocate Tim Hay, who is a member of the group.

Hay said the first meeting is tentatively set for Dec. 4, probably in Reno. The group will select a chairman then.

The governor named to the group Mark Russell, vice president and general counsel for MGM MIRAGE to represent gaming interests, and Tim Carlson, president of Carlson and Associates, to represent the wind energy industry. Carlson's firm is a partner in a venture to develop and construct a 260 megawatt wind-generating farm at the Nevada Test Site.

Russ Fields, president of the Nevada Mining Association, was appointed by Senate Majority Leader Bill Raggio, R-Reno, to represent that industry. Raggio also named Sam Routson, chief executive of Winnemucca Farms Inc., to serve as the biomass representative. The company has been investigating potential biomass and wind applications on its site.

Jane Long, dean of the Mackay School of Mines at the University of Nevada, Reno, was chosen by Assembly Speaker Richard Perkins, D-Henderson, to serve as the geothermal representative. Perkins also appointed Steve Schur of the Sierra Club in Las Vegas as the environmental representative.

Rose McKinney James, president of the public relations firm of Brown and Associates in Las Vegas, was named to the panel by Senate Minority Leader Dina Titus, D-Las Vegas. James is recognized as a solar energy advocate and was the first president of the Corporation for Sustainable Technology and Renewable Resources.

Robert Balzar, director of energy efficiency and conservation of Sierra Pacific Co. and Nevada Power Co., was selected by Assembly Minority Leader Lynn Hettrick, R-Minden, as the public utilities representative.

"Taking advantage of Nevada's substantial renewable resource wealth will diversify our energy mix, which will reduce our reliance on imported energy and thus enhance our energy security," Guinn said.