Larry Shirley Comes to Town

Larry Shirley runs the State Energy Office. I’ve been a fan of his speeches for awhile now, and I was dying to get him out to Pittsboro for a number of reasons.

His agency funded the mobile production unit that we created. Those who need visuals can find it at Cleantech, and he had never seen the project. Better for him to come see it than for us to face the Raleigh beltline with it in tow.

So we wanted him to see the mobile unit. We are proud of it. And I wanted to confirm him as a speaker for our upcoming Grassroots Conference on January 28th. He has a remarkable stage presence, and knows renewables inside and out.

I like Larry because he is genuine. When he checks out a car from the state motor pool, it’s generally going to be a hybrid. Last week he pulled up in a Prius. And I was delighted when he committed to addressing our impending conference.

My suggestion to backyarders, anarchists, activists and all those who are suspicious of “The Renewables Establishment,” is that instead of fleeing town, you grab a seat and hear Larry out. He’s inspired me on many occasions.

And another reason I wanted him to come to town was for a tour of the Bioplex. That name is leading the pack right now. I think it is better than the “Bananarama,” or the “Pepcot Center,” or “The Compound.” We’ll need to apologize to the big bio-tech startup in Pittsboro, “Biolex,” but I guess they can get over it.

Larry came down to the college for the photo-opportunity with the president (I think he does a lot of photo ops), and Leif and I gave him a tour of the compound.

I think it stirred his imagination. He mentioned a solar wall in Aberdeen that I was familiar with. We talked about glycerin as a heat source. I believe he was intrigued.

He brought Phil along from the State Energy Office. Fortunately he is an expert photographer, with some really nice gear.

Phil was excited about the recently passed tax credits for biodiesel, and we chaffed on that subject. He lives in “the policy layer” and gets jazzed by the “successful” passage of legislation.

I view the latest round of tax credits, which go exclusively to petroleum blenders, as merely more subsidy for petroleum, and I told him that. The price of biodiesel has not fallen a cent since the signing of the new laws, either state or federal, nor will it.

What the technocrats fail to understand is that every drop of biodiesel that is produced is spoken for. Producers have no incentive to “cut price.” Only a surplus will bring about a “free market,” and in the absence of a “free market,” the petroleum blenders will simply pocket the tax credits.

We were able to move past my rough edges on the topic, and we had a good tour of the facilities. There may be a reason I have not been hand picked for the diplomatic corps.

I think both Larry and Phil were inspired by the project. We are, after all, recycling an abandoned chemical plant. And we are, after all, seeking the involvement of most of the renewable energy players in this part of the state.

I tried to indicate to them that we are not interested in their money (they do control most of the renewable energy purse in this state), but interested in their ideas.

This project needs fecundity. I’m going to be so busy sweeping that I will lose sight of the larger whole. Rachel will be so busy turning wrenches that she may also lose sight. And Leif could be so mired down in production process that he too could be myopic.

Perhaps next week, when Larry Shirley is in the shower, an idea for the project will spring into his head, and we need his ideas for this one.

Perhaps a month from now, when Phil is at a sub-committee meeting, our project will enter his thoughts, and we need his ideas for this one.

Posted by Lyle at January 13, 2005 09:50 PM