Tim Rasmussen, Bismarck

Rolling blackouts in North Dakota? Welcome to the new world of “green energy.” But be careful what you ask for.

Wind doesn’t work when it’s too cold or too hot.

Wind doesn’t work when the wind doesn’t blow or even when it blows too hard.

Solar doesn’t work when the panels are covered with snow and they lose efficiency at extreme heat.

These are intermittent energy sources and too much reliance on these finicky systems is already causing problems. We need a balance of energy generation sources, and – yes – there’s a place for wind and solar but production credits given to renewable energy have skewed the market. The result is the decline of the 24-7 reliability of coal-powered electric generation which operates regardless of weather conditions. The loss of the Coal Creek Station and more than 1,100 megawatts of reliable energy is truly an American tragedy and a result of short-sighted energy policy that is picking the wrong pony to run in the race. I hope these recent challenges bring back some good old fashioned common sense in the nation’s energy policy before it’s too late.