South Dakota
Press Release
Big Stone II topic of talk in Denver, can we count on coal?
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February 5, 2007
Denver, CO—Mary Jo Stueve, State Program Coordinator with Clean Water Action South Dakota, will be one of the speakers at the Denver City Center Marriott, Monday, February 12th for an educational seminar to look at the many unanswered questions regarding so-called "clean coal." Hosted by Ratepayers United of Colorado (RUC) and others in the environmental community, Nancy LaPlaca, RUC Board Chair, is also setting up meetings for the morning of the 13th with a variety of groups to discuss more in detail the impacts on consumers of energy decision-making by utilities. RUC represents over four thousand residential ratepayers of Xcel Energy, as well as business and individual ratepayers.
Stueve will draw from her experience (Pro Se) before the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission and from her organizing work with Clean Water Action for the focus of her talk. Coal - Is it time to pass the baton? "The facts in the Big Stone II site permitting case proved to me that it is time, time to transition to clean renewable energy that offers the Midwest unimaginable, unparalleled, economic opportunity, in addition to health and environmental benefits and protection," she said. "A chance like this might not come again any time soon. We have the resources and technology. We have an innovative work force ready to go. We have a beautiful lake and river valley to protect. Going with clean renewable energy can provide a higher return both immediately and in the long run for jobs, safety, health and economic revitalization." According to Stueve, other states are scrambling to get into the clean energy market and most do not have wind comparable to South Dakota, North Dakota and Minnesota.
While Big Stone II Co-owners argue that the proposed 600-630 MW coal plant proved to be their least (best) cost for new generation, something favored by ratepayers, U.S. industry analysts are coming forward and questioning whether coal can deliver and at what cost.
Gary L. Hunt, president of Global Energy Advisor and Hans Daniels, senior manager at Global Energy Coal Advisory Service warned of "A Wakeup Call for Coal" in the December issue of Public Utilities Report (PUR). It appears that coal might not bring energy independence after all. According to Hunt and Daniels, steam coal imports are up almost 20 percent per year while domestic coal production is up 1 per-cent per year. These experts conclude that "[b]efore embarking on an effort to increase demand by 1.3 billion annual tons, [expected annual use for Big Stone II is 2.9-3.3 million tons of additional coal per year1] it is prudent to evaluate individual segments of the [U.S.] supply chain-coal basins; reserve blocks' structural, cultural, and environmental constraints; transportation corridors; and other "choke" points-that may prevent servicing the additional 100 million to 140 million tons of coal demand that might possibly materialize in the next five years, let alone another billion tons of demand by 2025. "[W]e also need to know what the price at the burner-tip will be" they said.
Closer to home we too should be asking, can we count on coal and at what cost, said Stueve. It is common knowledge that coal fired burning has long been associated with environmental and health dangers. Not many are aware of the spiraling costs and supply risk of choosing to go with more coal, she said. For example, last spring Big Stone Plant Unit 1 had to reduce its generation output to 45% of normal output when coal deliveries could not be met, costing retail customers an estimated three (3) million dollars per month.2
Clean Water Action has a long history of supporting citizen efforts to protect water resources, promoting sound solid waste management, pushing for agriculture policies that strengthen rural communities, and working for a transition to clean renewable energy. The South Dakota Public Utilities Commission issued the permit for construction for Big Stone II last summer although that decision is under appeal by several environmental groups. Even if the SD PUC decision gets upheld, Minnesota Public Radio recently reported that the power companies building the Big Stone II plant say the project cannot go forward if Minnesota rejects the transmission lines.
Stueve graduated with high distinction, Phi Kappa Phi, from UMM (1999) and went on to receive her Masters in Public Affairs from the Humphrey Institute (2003) and Master of Arts in International Policy Studies (2004) from the Monterey Institute of International Studies, California. She has been with Clean Water Action since 2005 and has children, grandchildren and many family members living in the Big Stone County area. Stueve's testimony, exhibits and additional filings in opposition to Big Stone II can be found online.Notes:
- www.state.sd.us/puc/commission/10yearplan/ottertail2006.pdf
- Stueve Exhibit 1D
Contact:
Mary Jo Stueve, State Program Coordinator
South Dakota Clean Water Action
(W) 605-978-9196
(H) 605-332-3667
(C) 612-619-1648
mjstueve@cleanwater.org
