Our electric utility, Seattle City Light, will bring a proposed contract to the Council's Energy and Environmental Policy Committee on September 13 to purchase up to 100 megawatts of the State Line Wind Project and its planned expansion. That wind, harnessed at the Columbia Gorge, will generate enough energy to serve about 20,000 homes.

This is a great opportunity for our utility. Renewable resources have been very good to the City of Seattle. Dams on the Skagit and Pend Oreille Rivers provide more than half our energy at very low prices. Purchasing this wind power will further diversify our power portfolio and bring another efficient renewable resource to our region.

Wind is the fastest growing source of electrical generation in the world. Part of the reason is that its price is dropping steadily. New technologies and bigger machines have relentlessly driven prices downward. In 1980, wind power cost $380 a megawatt-hour. In 1990, it was $80. Today, the price is close to $40. But, because wind is intermittent, it must be "shaped" or backed up by other sources of electricity to deliver enough kilowatt-hours exactly when needed. The cost of that shaping, including transmission from east of the mountains, can add another $12-$30 dollars. However, with the increasing costs of gas, wind power is now about the same price as conventional natural gas plants and far, far less polluting.

Reduced greenhouse gas emissions and affordable prices are certainly benefits that wind power brings to us in Seattle and, importantly, rural citizens and our neighbors east of the Cascades share the economic opportunity. Ranchers and farmers who own the land on which wind farms are built enjoy long-term, stable income. And, as long as the wind keeps blowing, the fuel is free.

The Northwest is prime territory for wind power generation. According to the Wind Energy Association, nearly 880 megawatts of wind power are under development in our state, and another 500 megawatts are planned for Oregon and Montana. You may know that wind power was quite popular during the 1970's, particularly in California and in the southwest. Tehachapi Pass near Palm Springs, California, and Altamont Pass outside of San Francisco are the sites of large, visible wind farms. But as the mid-seventies energy crisis waned, so did our countryıs interest in wind. Wind technology development shifted from the United States to Europe.

Thirty years later, the wind farm at State Line is being built with machines manufactured in Denmark. Today, there is a growing interest in development in the Great Plains states. Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Texas are already hosts to large wind projects. State Line is wind energy on a grand scale. It will provide the power we need at the price we want and with the environmental values we must deliver to future generations.nd out more about our conservation programs, visit our Web site at cityofseattle.net/light/help/share/. You can also call our conservation helpline at 206-684-3800.

Heidi Wills is Chair of the Seattle City Council's Energy and Environmental Policy Committee.