Wild Horse Wind Generation Project Dedication Lunch (As Written)

July 12, 2006

Thank you, Steve, for that kind introduction.

Last summer I came to Ellensburg to give my final approval to the Wild Horse wind farm project. It�s great to be back, almost a year later, to celebrate the project�s start-up with all you.

In this century, we must think of ourselves not as a state, but as a small nation -- a nation with the skilled workforce, sound infrastructure and diverse economic base to compete globally.

We need to think of ourselves as an innovative and creative state, producing the highest quality products and agriculture � that�s our niche in the world market.

Washington has a long history of investing in the infrastructure of homegrown energy to make our state more competitive. In the last century, we turned to hydropower, harnessing the strength of our mighty rivers to irrigate our farmlands, power our homes and build our cities.

Now Washington can lead the nation, and the world, to build a clean energy industry that will improve our efficiency, promote our economic competitiveness, improve the quality of our environment, combat global warming, and contribute to a reliable and secure supply of energy.

But to lead, we must invest in 21st century energy industries:

Wind power, here in Ellensburg.

Solar Power, in Moses Lake where a solar power manufacturing plant is expanding.

Bio-Diesel, in Grays Harbor where a Seattle company is constructing the largest bio-diesel plant in the country, and in Sunnyside where farmers are planting the seeds to go this fuel.

Hydrogen, in the Tri-Cities where researchers at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory are developing new technologies.

And Biomass, in Sunnyside, Snohomish and Lynden where anaerobic digesters turn the byproduct of cows into electricity.

We must also continue to focus our efforts on conservation. By making low-cost, high-return investments, the Pacific Northwest has already saved enough electricity to power eleven cities the size of Spokane.

These investments, along with our excellent hydro system, contribute to our global competitiveness. Our average electric rates are the 5th lowest in the nation; our rates for industrial users are 2nd lowest. Only Maine is less expensive. We must continue to invest in infrastructure to keep our energy rates competitive and make our businesses and agriculture successful.

Wild Horse is part of this statewide effort to make Washington more competitive globally, and it also helps families locally.

Construction of these turbines has brought hundreds of new workers to the area, and there will be about a dozen new permanent jobs here.

The company has spent over $4 million locally, and it will now be the single largest taxpayer in Kittitas County bringing new revenues for local government and your fire and school districts.

And Wild Horse was the key to protection of the larger Skookumchuck area � critical sage-steppe shrub habitat unique to this beautiful part of the state.

That combination of economic benefit and environmental stewardship is exactly the kind of project we need in our state, and exactly the kind of project that will make us globally competitive. But the benefits are also broader:

We�ll get clean energy, enough to power about 76,000 homes, and we�ll use that energy right here in Washington in the Kittitas valley and the Puget Sound region.

And it�ll come without air pollution, the use of scarce water resources, or emissions that contribute to climate change.

Finally, its affordable � the wind blows for free. In times of rising energy costs, especially for oil, we need home-grown, low-cost energy like this.

Let me thank and congratulate all of you who worked together.

First and foremost, to the men and women who actually constructed the project. I want to see this industry become the engine of opportunity for skilled labor that it should be.

To Puget Sound Energy, Steve Reynolds, Paul Wiegand and everyone at the company, for the vision to recognize the value of this project and the dedication to see it through.

To Steve (Reynolds) and the Washington State Building and Construction Trades Council and Dave Johnson in particular, for understanding the importance of building Washington�s skilled workforce and for their commitment to work together and support apprenticeship training programs through future projects.

To the community, for recognizing this opportunity and embracing it.

And, for the first time in history, I want to say � Thank God for the Ellensburg wind!

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� After lunch I�m going to go see these turbines for myself. It is with great pride in this community, this company, and these workers, that I now ask Steve to join me in cutting the ribbon on this model turbine.

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