Loading...Coal-fired power plants: Energy needs demand solution
By George Israel
Published in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on July 16, 2008
In a July 14 column, Jay Bookman questions how a Fulton County judge could possibly attempt to regulate carbon dioxide emissions when state and federal authorities are still trying to figure out whether and how to do so ("Georgia judge makes a clean choice for Planet Earth," @issue, July 14).
We couldn't agree more.
Neither the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency nor the Georgia Environmental Protection Division has ever ruled that CO2 is currently regulated under the federal Clean Air Act. Nor has Congress. Nor has the U.S. Supreme Court, or any other court anywhere in the country.
But Fulton Superior Court Judge Thelma Wyatt Cummings Moore has decided that she knows better.
On June 30, she sided with radical environmental activists who oppose the construction of a coal-fired power plant in rural Early County -- denying, for now, the 100 or so high-paying jobs and the $2 billion-plus investment the plant would bring to that corner of southwest Georgia, one of the poorest counties in the state.
Georgia regulators had already approved a stringent environmental permit for the facility after a lengthy review. They ensured it would be the cleanest coal-burning plant ever built in Georgia, with some of the lowest emissions in the nation.
For Moore, that wasn't enough. She invalidated the permit and told state regulators to limit the plant's CO2 output.
But CO2 is completely different from other emissions that can be controlled by add-on technology. Although researchers are exploring options for capturing CO2 from power plants and storing it permanently underground, these options are not commercially available today. That's why Congress is considering a carbon tax or a cap-and-trade system to offset the impact of CO2 instead.
Moore's unprecedented decision illustrates exactly why the complex technical issues surrounding global climate change are better undertaken by policymakers -- whom she has just pre-empted.
The plant's developers intend to appeal her ruling later this month. The Georgia Chamber of Commerce, along with many of our state's leading businesses, will be lending them our full support.
Here's why: If Moore's decision is allowed to stand, it will severely hamper our state's ability to meet the growing demand for reliable and affordable power. And it will impose an incredible regulatory burden on businesses in all sectors of our economy that will choke development across Georgia.
Coal provides the lion's share of the thousands of megawatts that Georgians depend on every day. It offers an affordable, domestic solution to our energy needs while alternatives such as wind and solar power are brought online. It's also more environmentally friendly than ever, thanks to the development of new and cleaner technologies.
But no coal-fired plants have been built in Georgia in more than 20 years -- even though our state's population has since jumped 60 percent and demand for energy has soared. And with our population expected to continue climbing over the next 20 years, conservation efforts -- while important -- can only accomplish so much.
If Georgians want to avoid the rolling blackouts and skyrocketing energy costs that have plagued California and other Western states in recent years, we must lay the groundwork for additional capacity now.
Beyond crippling our energy supply, Moore's ruling would also subject thousands of new commercial and public-sector projects to cumbersome, costly Clean Air permitting requirements that could tie up development for months or years.
We're not just talking about power plants or large industrial facilities that produce their own power. Any sizable new building that relies on natural gas for heat would be susceptible to regulatory delay -- from office buildings and shopping malls to churches, schools and hospitals.
Even replacing the heating system at an existing building could trigger a visit from the Clean Air police.
Through judicial fiat, Moore has single-handedly subjected Georgia to a set of laws that no other U.S. jurisdiction is required to follow, putting us at a serious competitive disadvantage with every state in the nation.
Responsible stewardship of the environment is a vital part of our state's long-term energy strategy -- but the level of judicial activism and government intrusion on display here is unacceptable.
We trust the Georgia Court of Appeals will set things right.
George Israel, former mayor of Macon, is president and CEO of the Georgia Chamber of Commerce.
