March 5, 2008, Open House

Welcome to the MidlandCARES Open House. We are here with the growing numbers of Midland citizens who are concerned about the sources of our future energy. We are also raising awareness about the immediate issue of the proposed coal-fired power plants. Midland is joining the rising opposition that is occurring across the state of Michigan and throughout the nation.

In the last months, increased media attention has shown that America is moving towards a new energy future, and using coal plants will not yield the desired economic solution for our city, our state, nor our nation.

In last Sunday’s paper, Mid-Michigan Energy purchased a full -page ad. We welcome their offer to “Continue the Conversation”…. However, some important factors have been left off the page.

The costs of coal are steadily rising.

This includes the cost of the fuel, transportation, and construction. Already, last December, Mid-Michigan Energy revised the cost of construction for the proposed Midland plant upward from $1.3 billion to $1.9 billion – a 31% increase in only eight months. This is just the beginning. They want the plants to be built before we know the true costs that will likely be borne by the customers. [The Sanzillo Economic Analysis] For this reason, three of the nation’s largest banks have turned their backs on new coal. If Citi Bank, Morgan Stanley, and J.P. Morgan Chase are turning away from investing in new coal plants, why aren’t we? [“Wall Street Shows Skepticism Over Coal, Wall Street Journal, February 4, 2008,Jeffrey Ball]

Consider the alternative of 5,200 megawatts of wind generation (45 percent of the nation’s total) that was installed in 2007. National growth included $9 billion in investment. This profitable business is growing. [“Winds of Opportunity and Energy Blow in Lansing”, by Peter Luke, Booth Newspapers]

The Mid-Michigan ad failed to address the cost of the coming regulations of CO2, which is the leading cause of global climate change. Congress is considering seven carbon-regulation bills, which will raise the per-ton price of coal. As the world demand increases, the cost of coal is already rising at a rate of about 10% per year.

According to a study on the proposed Traverse city coal plant, in order to stay profitable, the price of electricity will have to rise to 17-18 cents per kwh- twice the current cost. [Sanzillo Economic Analysis]

Michigan is losing jobs without a renewable energy mandate. According to the Blue/Green Alliance, investing in clean energy could create nearly 35,000 new manufacturing jobs in over 2,000 Michigan companies: wind leads the way with 25,000 potential new jobs manufacturing components for turbines [Blue/Green Alliance]

In the long run, rewarding utilities for their efficiency and for using renewable energy will be cheaper and cleaner than any energy from coal-fired plants. The growing investment in renewable energy will draw the right kind of jobs that are needed for Michigan in the 21st Century, and lots of them[Granholm: State Losing Jobs without renewable energy mandate- www.legislature.mi.gov].

Another “silent cost” of the proposed coal plant that too often seems to goes unmentioned, is the cost of resulting healthcare, needed by those who suffer from the dangerous effects of burning coal. There is no technology that prevents the release of invisible, ultrafine particulates – which are as small as bacteria. These are deadly particles, which affect the lungs, the heart and even our brains. And they are not removed by any filter.

Within hours of inhaling ultrafines, they show up in our bloodstreams, livers and central nervous system [“Translocation of Inhaled Ultrafine Particles to the Brain,” Inhalation Toxicology, 16 June, 2004]. They affect the thin layer that surrounds our blood vessels and maintains blood pressure, causing our blood vessels to constrict. [Dr. Mark Hampton, University of Rochester, New York]. This results in an increased number of heart attacks and strokes [“Air Pollution and Cardiovascular Dieseases” Journal of the American Heart Association, 2004]

Asthma is a leading result of coal plant pollution, especially for children. For adults with asthma, breathing particulates has been linked to all sorts of other problems – increases in bad cholesterol, increased inflammation and infection, and heart rate variability [www.spc.sc.edu/news/asthma.htm].

The bottom line is this – coal plants, old or new, are bad for our health. Every year, pollution from U.S. coal plants causes 24,000 deaths, 21,000 hospitalizations, and 38,000 heart attacks. [“Clear the Air”, Sierra Club]

The Mid-Michigan Energy ad also misses an opportunity to inform us about mercury, which has been associated with heart attacks, Parkinson’s, Multiple Sclerosis, Alzheimer’s and autism [Big Coal, by Jeff Goodell] as well as a long list of other known toxins that will be released by the plant. These toxins will be released into the air, the water, the soil, our landfill and our food chain. Every coal plant produces these.

We are told that the proposed plant will burn a “cleaner” type of coal. Not only will we have to import our fuel, this Wyoming coal has a lower heat value. This will require the burning of much greater quantities than eastern coal to get the same amount of heat. As a result much more CO2 and other toxins will be released. [Big Coal,by Jeff Goodell]

A coal plant in Midland will produce CO2, and lots of it. CO2 is the primary cause of global climate change. The scientific community has come to an overwhelming consensus on this issue -- climate change is real, humans are causing it, and the number one cause is the burning of fossil fuels. “New” coal plants are putting hundreds of millions of tons of CO2 into the air, and if this continues, we will lose the only chance we have to avoid the worst impacts of global climate change. [Big Coal, by Jeff Goodell]. Based on climate concerns, NASA climatologist, James Hansen stated that “it would be a tremendous waste of money to put money into coal-fired power plants at this time” [Cedar Rapids Gazette, January 9, 2008 “NASA Climatologist: Coal plant would be “waste of money”]

Whether you choose to believe NASA climatologists and the rest of the credible scientific community or not, one thing is certain – carbon legislation is on the way. All three presidential candidates are proposing carbon regulations. When this happens, building new coal plants will likely become economically unfeasible. This is the reason for the coal rush that is taking place across America and here in Michigan.

Even when the Governor’s 21st Century Energy Plan from 2007 projected a need for only one base load power plant in Michigan by 2015 – and it is worth noting that number is now in question. Seven large coal plants are in different stages of development around Michigan. Coal giants like Dynegy and LS Power know that the window to push these projects through is closing rapidly. That’s why over 150 of these plants have been proposed across the country. They want to build them now before we know the costs so that they may be passed on to the customers after we are locked in.

Houston-based Dynegy is leading the charge with more of these dirty coal proposals than any other company, including the Midland plant. That is why Dynegy is also facing more public opposition than any other single company. In the last month, they have received over 5,000 phone calls from people in over 20 states, including over 500 from Michigan. We hope they are listening. Sixty-three (63) of these recent proposals have been abandoned or defeated. [Sierra Club Press Release] Americans are turning their backs on coal and looking toward the new energy future.

The notion that we have to choose between dirty, dangerous coal, and shivering in a cold, dark cave is false one. We have alternatives to coal that are cleaner, safer, and better for our long-term economy. And they are ready now. We can meet our energy needs through energy efficiency and renewable energy like wind, solar, geothermal, and clean biofuels. (In the words of Governor Granholm, we grow wind right here in Michigan, and lots of it.) America is moving forward to a new energy future, and we risk being left behind.

Investing in a new coal plant, is similar to investing in a “balloon mortgage.” The costs are certain to rise in every aspect, from construction costs, to “fuel” costs, to health costs, and the effects of global climate change. The consequences are, at best, unpleasant.

This is a risk that is unacceptable to the people of Midland, the surrounding areas, our state and our country. We should not be rushing the construction of an out-dated source of energy and a 50-year commitment to a coal plant. Not when safer, cleaner, and more economical choices are available to us now.

Last year, Westar of Kansas, decided to build new wind turbines instead of a coal-fired plant. Just two days ago, Associated Electric Cooperative in Kansas City “postponed indefinitely” their plans for a coal plant. They are heeding the same caution that caused the three major Wall Street banks to turn against new coal plant investments and are instead pursuing wind, energy efficiency, and cleaner-burning natural gas. [“Coal Plant Postponed”, March 3, 2008, The Kansas City Pitch, Carolyn Szczepanski]

Investing nearly two billion dollars on old technology that will be with us for the next 50 years while the rest of America moves toward the future is a huge opportunity cost. Why are our local leaders, many state officials, and these outside energy companies choosing to add to the problems of global warming and compromising our health and long-term economy? Why are our local leaders considering tying the future of our region to a dying technology while the rest of America builds a Clean Energy Future Now.

63 of these coal proposals have already been defeated or abandoned. These communities and corporations have instead moved their investments to sources of energy that are not dangerous to our health or the environment, They are investing in sources of energy that are cleaner, safer, better for our economy, and available now. MidlandCARES urges Mid-Michigan Energy, Dynegy, and LS Power to consider a similar choice: Clean Air and Renewable Energy Sources.

www.MidlandCARES.org