PA 567 - Northwest Energy Policy and the Columbia River

Course Description

Reviews the history, politics, and institutions related to current energy policy and administration with particular attention to the Pacific Northwest and development of hydroelectric power. National energy policy history is reviewed including political, financial, and environmental problems. Explores the roles of interest groups; state, local, national, and international governments; and regional governing institutions. It explores the changing distribution of social costs and benefits as both a cause and result of policy change. Passage of the 1980 Northwest Power Act, the Northwest Power Planning Council created in the act, and the implementation of the act will be studied, as will current issues like energy conservation, regional power planning, deregulation and the status of institutions involved in energy policy, and Columbia basin fish and wildlife conservation.