ERCOT board resignations: who to replace them with

The Trib told us yesterday that five ERCOT board members quit, including Chairwoman Sally Talberg, and an applicator for a sixth board spot withdrew their application.

It also included this information about what type of people need to be on the board:

In order for ERCOT to maintain its certification as an independent organization, the board, which should consist of 16 members, must include five who are completely unaffiliated with “any market segment.”

Well, how do we fill that?

Ideally, we'd have one unaffiliated member representing an environmental organization. I'd "accept" someone from Sierra, but would prefer someone from a harder-headed group like Center for Biological Diversity.

A second would represent a consumer advocacy group. Somebody from Texas Public Citizen would fit the bill. Former director Tom "Smitty" Smith, who discussed ERCOT's board here, comes to mind.

A third would be from a university or research center with specific expertise in climate change. Inside Texas, though too milquetoast for me on climate change, Katherine Hayhoe is a prof at Tech ... and an evangelical Christian of some sort.

None of this will actually happen, of course.

But, it should.