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Coal Industry Rushes to Build Power Plants
September 6, 2006
The coal and electric power industry are dividing
ranks on the issue of global warming. While one branch is preparing
to reduce carbon emissions, the other is building coal-fired power
plants as quickly as it can.
The President and CEO of the American Public Power
Association Alan Richardson told a group of utility operators in
Minnesota last week to get ready for carbon regulations. He said
there is no longer any question that human activities are changing
the climate. He said, "[There is] an emerging public consensus and a
building political directive that inaction is not a viable
strategy."
On a national level, two leading presidential
candidates -- John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.)
have each proposed regulations for limiting emissions of greenhouse
gases on a national scale.
Some utilities are moving toward carbon reductions.
Exelon Corporation in Chicago, which generates and distributes
electricity to more than 5 million customers in Illinois and
Pennsylvania, has called for mandatory caps on emissions of carbon
dioxide. Exelon Vice President for Government and Environmental
Betsy Moler said, "The scientific evidence is real." Other companies
calling for caps on carbon emissions include BP, Shell, General
Electric, Wal-Mart, Duke Energy, Sempra Energy in San Diego, and PNM
Energy in Albuquerque.
The other branch of the coal and coal-fired power
generating industries are moving toward expanding as quickly as they
can. The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) published an article last month
highlighted the plans of TXU in Dallas to build five very large
coal-fired power plants in Texas. According to WSJ, companies like
TXU want to take advantage of the pro-fossil inclinations of the
Bush & Cheney administration to get the plants in the ground
quickly.
The coal-power industry currently has 16 plants under
construction in Texas. Texas governor Rick Perry says cuts in
greenhouse gases would harm the economy, which is a statement that
is remarkably similar to what the Chinese leaders say about their
coal power plants. |
