Energy bill offers bright future

Agriculture and energy policy are inextricably linked, which is why the current federal debate about climate change matters so much in rural Missouri. Last week, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the American Clean Energy and Security Act. Rep. Ike Skeleton voted for the bill, knowing that it provides a significant opportunity for Missouri farmers to increase their income while safeguarding their livelihoods and the nation’s food and energy supplies. 

Show Me Energy Cooperative in Centerview has developed an engineer fiber biomass fuel pellet from sustainable agricultural residues and sells them to utility companies, who use it to replace a percentage of their coal. Not only does this reduce pollution from the power plant, but it provides the farmers in the area co-ops with a value-added market for agricultural residues and the future growing of native grasses as energy crops. If the energy act is signed into law, not only it will provide further incentive for utilities to use more clean, renewable resources, it will in turn allow us to include more farmers in our co-op, buy more biomass, deploy other co-ops like ours and employ more people. This is to say nothing of the other rural economic opportunities that will come from the passage of the bill, such as cleaner water and future renewable technologies that lessen our dependence on non-renewable fuel. 

The House passed the energy act because it rewards good practices and provides the tools to ensure that American farmers can benefit from solutions to our energy crisis. Thank you to Skelton for voting to put us on the right path for clean energy and rural economic development. 

Steve Flick

President of the Board, Show Me Energy Co-op

Centerview