Removing Snake River Dams Would Devastate Idaho Farming

Wind power is subject to the fates. If wind doesn’t blow, there’s no power. Last week, I shared a link from an environmental writer in Washington State. Todd Myers is with the Washington Policy Center. He had written about a period of ten days when the wind simply didn’t blow across the Northwest. Rendering wind power useless.

As some of you may know, one member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Idaho is willing to listen to the environmental lobby

He contrasted this with hydropower, which is always available. Some activists want to remove the projects and dams from the Snake River. He warns it’s an idea bordering on foolhardy.

He joined us on Newsradio 1310, KLIX and explained his argument. You can listen to the discussion at the bottom of the page.

Myers also delved into complaints about hydro projects harming salmon runs. As it turns out, he’s also working on the very same issue. It may not be quite as big a threat to fish populations as it has been portrayed by some environmentalists and some in news media.

Without hydropower, we could have days on end where we live in brownout conditions. While the wind is rarely calm in this corner of the country, it’s not out of the question to have several days where we’re wind free. Wind and solar simply can’t fill the void when it comes to energy needs. Or not at the moment.

As some of you may know, one member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Idaho is willing to listen to the environmental lobby and would even consider removing dams from the system, however. He spends a considerable time in Washington, D.C., which has a much more readily available supply of electricity.

The loss of energy would also devastate Idaho agriculture.