LINCOLN- Last Friday, Senator Bruce Bostelman told the Nebraska Legislature's Executive Board that the economic impact of a nationwide shift to renewable energy must be studied prior to implementation to assess the long-term costs of replacing coal, natural gas, and other energy plants with wind and solar. To pursue this study, Sen. Bostelman introduced LB566, which would appropriate around $30,000 towards an independent consultant to examine the trends and project potential unforeseen that may come as a result of switching to cleaner energies in Nebraska.

The study would also look at the economic benefits of maintaining coal, natural gas, and nuclear energy while making the switch to cleaner energy sources that "threaten the ability of power suppliers in the state to maintain existing baseload generation." "As energy policy around the nation is shifting to a more diverse set of generation sources," said Bostelman, "it is prudent for the Natural Resources Committee to examine the potential effects of those policies."

In response to this bill, which some see as a way to justify continuing the use of non-renewable energy sources, like coal and natural gas, a trio of Omaha high school students, who are members of Students for Sustainability, told senators that the scope of the study was far too narrow and that the result was "pre-determined" based on the language of the bill. Mia Perales, an attendee at Omaha South High School, said the study appeared poised to ignore previous reports that indicated that the cost of generating electricity from renewable energy has dropped by 80% in the last decade.

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