Pro-coal lobby wants permit speed on unnecessary coal plants

by: Eric B.

Mon Oct 05, 2009 at 13:16:27 PM EDT

Crains Detroit Business:

Ever wonder what it takes to achieve bipartisanship in this state?

Why, yes. Yes, I have.

Here's the answer: Coal.

Oh, the energy source that made sure the sun never set on the British Empire. The energy source whose use is helping to warm the planet and place at peril every assumption upon which Western Civilization. Please, do tell about said bipartisanship. I'm all ears.

On Tuesday, trade union officials will unite with the Michigan Chamber of Commerce, and some Republican state legislators will unite with Democratic counterparts in a rally on the steps of the state Capitol to urge regulators to speed up the stalled permit process for two proposed new coal-fired power plants.

How very interesting.  I wonder which Democratic legislators will be there. I wonder what two coal-fired power plants they will be advocating on behalf. There are several of them.

Organizers say they hope a crowd of 2,000 will help get the message across to Gov. Jennifer Granholm that there is broad-based support to speed up the permit process and to urge the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality to approve permits for Consumers Energy Co.'s proposed 930-megawatt coal-fired plant near Bay City and a coal-fired plant proposed by Wolverine Power Cooperative near Rogers City.

Huh ... how interesting. Didn't we have a discussion about these two particular coal-fired power plants about a month or so ago?

Doug Roberts Jr., director of environmental and energy policy at the state chamber, said the state needs to follow through on the intent of broad energy legislation passed last year that put the state on a path to greater use of renewable energy and energy efficiency, as well as set up a new regulatory process for utilities to build new plants.

Wasn't there something in that broad energy legislation calling for a needs analysis before the utilities started building new power plants? Weren't we just discussing this about a month or so ago?

As part of a drive toward energy efficiency and alternative energy, the law mandated, in part, that 10 percent of electricity come from renewable sources by 2015. The law also required utilities to apply to the PSC for a certificate of necessity to build a plant or enter into a long-term power purchase agreement.

Oh, a needs analysis was part of that broad energy legislation passed last year -- and to great fanfare, I might add. I wonder, is this the part that is being held up?

... . The DEQ was still free on its own, though, to do the evaluations, and did so, releasing a finding in September that Consumers' proposed power plant may not be needed until 2022 — five years later than the utility planned for the plant to be operating.

The PSC analysis said that “long-term capacity need is unjustified without the explicit retirement of existing coal capacity in its base-load generation fleet.”

Oh.