Brewster Bevis: Karenna Gore out of touch with Florida’s energy future

Floridians have heard a great deal about the potential expansion of renewable energy, and for good reason.

Per the Energy Information Administration, renewable energy like solar and wind rank among the fastest-growing energy sources. It’s a promising development – one we should all applaud.

Still, one pressing concern remains: Renewables alone can’t meet the state’s escalating energy needs.

The University of Florida estimates that the state’s population will increase from nearly 20 million in 2014 to about 29 million in 2040 – which the Florida Reliability Coordinating Council projects will increase electricity demand by more than 10 gigawatts by 2035.

Remember: One gigawatt powers about 750,000 homes and renewables currently account for just a sliver of Florida’s electricity generation portfolio.

That means one of two things will occur as our population surges.

Some will have more difficulty getting the energy they need to turn on the lights, cool their homes and refrigerators and power their smartphones. Others will have the misfortune of paying a lot more for the energy they do get. No one wants to fall into either category.

But unless we urge policymakers to greenlight the construction of more critically-needed pipeline expansion, they will.

A recent report from Consumer Energy Alliance shows this reality all too well. Per the report, Florida and other states in the U.S. Southeast could sustain a 29.2 percent electricity shortfall if the U.S. rejects more pipeline expansion proposals and baseload generation options go offline prematurely.

That’s why it’s important we think twice before nodding our heads to what out-of-state, anti-energy activists like Karenna Gore say about how we develop and acquire our energy.

Gore doesn’t live in Florida. She won’t be affected when demand exceeds supply, and she won’t pick up the tab when your electric bill crushes your budget. Florida is just another stop on her misguided tour, coordinated by national anti-energy groups.

Skip her show and others like it.

Florida’s families and businesses need realistic options to affordably meet their energy needs. That means balancing renewable energy growth with nuclear and fossil fuel generation and expanding pipeline infrastructure.

Think about it. Florida, heavily reliant on natural gas, is one of the top energy-consuming states, using more energy than it produces. It also has no refineries and produces small amounts of oil and gas. In addition to natural gas, most of the petroleum it uses – for gas and other daily products – comes elsewhere, delivered by pipeline, tanker or barge.

Expanding our state’s energy infrastructure isn’t something new or radical; it’s how we’ve successfully grown our commercial and industrial sectors – and supported our families, small businesses and must-see attractions – for generations.

Only now we do it better than ever.

Statistics show that transporting energy via pipeline is not only 4.5 times safer than moving the same volume across the same distance by other means, but 99.999 percent of what’s moved, through 2 million-plus miles of pipeline, safely reaches its destination. Fewer pipelines also mean more air emissions and a greater chance of an accident or spill. Thanks to pipeline upgrades and increases in the use of cleaner-burning natural gas, carbon emissions from electricity generation are at their lowest points in years.

Let’s keep this going – not by listening to keep-it-in-the-ground extremists like Gore but by advocating for pipeline expansion that, in conjunction with renewable energy growth, will bring in more supplies and increased energy diversity, security and reliability to Florida, safely and securely.

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Brewster Bevis is senior vice president of State and Federal Affairs at the Associated Industries of Florida.