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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 11, 1978)
I Portland reps explain gripes with PNUCC, BPA By ANN TRENEMAN Of the Emerald Deficiencies in the Pacific Northwest Utilities Conference Committee (PNUCC) drafted legislation and an explanation of Portland's lawsuit against the Bonneville Power Authority (BPA) were presented at a meet ing Tuesday in the Lane County Commissioner Conference Room. Cary Jackson, aid to Francis Ivancie, Portland city commis sioner, and Angus Duncan, from the Portland mayor's office, out lined their views of current North west energy problems and possi ble solutions at the meeting spon sored by the Lane County Com missioners. The City of Portland filed the lawsuit several months ago against BPA because of an "ina bility to negotiate on key issues in the PNUCC legislation," Jackson said. “The City of Portland is a ‘have-not’ in the existing legisla tion." Jackson listed the key issues as energy allocation: energy policy-making authority given to a group with the Northwest utility in dustry rather than to a publicly ac countable group, and conserva tion measures, which he said the biii has stripped away and effec tively neutered.” The purpose of the lawsuit is to "supply an equitable solution for Pacific Northwest citizens,” Jack son added. A Shrill sound device drives rodents wild, sends fleas flying, kills cockroaches HIPASS, Calif. (AP) — A sound so shrill it drives rodents wild, kills cockroaches and sends fleas fly ing is whistling up a fortune for Bob Brown, a polio-crippled guitar player who retired in 1965 on a $235 monthly Social Security check. In his garage one day six years ago, Brown was putting together an electric guitar when he tangled some wires. He recalled Tuesday that he saw rats scattering. He crossed the wires and the rodents ran again. Brown, 51, built what he called a rat repellent box and since then, 18,000 have been produced in Los Angeies and Tijuana, Mexico. A chicken farmer north of San Diego, about 50 miles west of Hipass, bought the first one when “about 10,000 mice were bother ing the chickens every night. It cleared his place in four or five days,” Brown said. The government of Venezuela recently ordered 300 to kill cock roaches in food stores in Caracas, and 1,000 were sent to Spanish granaries in Barcelona. Brown plans to fly to Brooklyn, N.Y. next Tuesday to talk to U.S. Housing and Urban Development Department officiate about placing I 9,000 units in low-rental apart ments. Brown, a native of Fairmont, Minn., said the frequency is “over a million cycles a second.” He said this means domestic and rural customers would re ceive first chance at hydroelectric power. Since 1973, Portland has been denied BPA power and relies on private utilities for power. Private rates, according to Jackson, are three times as high as public utility rates. Reasons behind the extra cost are the necessity for private utilities to generate their own power, resulting in the $480 mill ion Trojan Nuclear Rant. Duncan stressed the suit is against BPA, questioning the leg ality of power-marketing proce dures, and is not against public utilities such as the Eugene Water and Electric Board (EWEB). The suit, if successful, would cancel contracts Eugene and Springfield have with BPA. Jackson spoke against the practice of “net-billing,” which he feels gives customers a double preference with the BPA. EWEB has such a “net-billing” arrangement with the BPA, buying thermal power from Trojan and selling it to BPA, which then cre dits EWEB's account for the purchase. Jackson said, this system gives the public utilities access to long term power and also gives them a better chance to support BPA. BPA is not authorized to buy thermal power directly and must depend on this method, which Jackson said may violate BPA codes. Another complaint included in the lawsuit is that BPA failed to comply with the 1969 National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). An example given is the con tract with Alumax, a heavy indus trial power user, which BPA signed after 1969. The ‘ net billing” agreements were also pledged after the NEPA became law. State Sen. Ed Fadeley, (D-Eugene), pointed out it was “just as likely the PNUCC bill will get passed because of pressure from the suit.” Jackson responded there was “no alternative but to proceed with the lawsuit,” and said this was a risk that had to be taken. Jerry Rust, Lane County com missioner said his support of the goals for "across the board dis tribution of power, including both Portland and Eugene people,” and said he favored the City of Portland's stand on conservation. * . a* **** «^ V a^A v^ -.vi 1 &** \C* *> ^ *F _ DRUG S.TORES 1950 FRANKLIN BlVD. & 185 t. 18th Merchandise subject to stock on hand and available reorders HYPO: *11 SciiM"'1' 1.25 NEUTROGENA BAR SOAP 6? LAYERED SANDALS
