Breathe Easy « Weethump

Breathe Easy

July 31, 2007 by Red Beard

Last week, our champion, Harry Reid did a great thing to help ensure that Eastern Nevada not only remains wild, but that the air quality stays clean, and that Nevada will help the US move forward with clean energy by refusing to support several coal fire power plants in White Pine County. What does this mean exactly? It means that the next time you’re out hiking in Great Basin National Park or getting ready to ski off the Schell Creek ridge line you will be able to breathe freely, see for miles under the cerulean skies, and not worry about the snow turning black from the dust in the air.

High Schells Wilderness in White Pine Co, NV

This was a huge concern for folks throughout White Pine Co, Nevada, and the West and we need to support Reid’s stance on this issue because not everyone is as thrilled about his stance as we are. Please take a moment to thank the Senator for his efforts by sending in a letter to the editor to your local paper thanking him for his efforts and encouraging him to continue to protect our public lands. You can find your local paper by clicking here. The whole article is below.

Reid tells four companies no coal power in Nevada

Thu Jul 26, 2007 9:58PM EDTBy Bernie WoodallLOS ANGELES (Reuters) – U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada sent a letter this week to four companies telling them not to build planned coal-burning power plants in his state.Reid’s letter, dated Monday, was addressed to the corporate leaders of the Sierra Pacific Resources, private equity LS Power Group, Dynegy Inc. and Sithe Global Power LLC. A copy of the letter was obtained by Reuters on Thursday.“I am writing to each of you regarding your company’s proposal to build new coal-fired power plants in eastern Nevada and to express my strong opposition to those plants,” Reid wrote.The Democratic senator said he will use his influential post in Congress to keep coal plants out of Nevada.“Because I believe that developing renewable energy in Nevada is far preferable to coal for the sake of our economy, public health and the environment, I will use every means at my disposal to prevent the construction of new coal-fired power plants in Nevada that do not capture and permanently store greenhouse gas emissions,” Reid wrote.Reid said he’d rather have the state focus on renewable power and energy efficiency. He also opposes nuclear power for Nevada and the Yucca Mountain site in the state for storage of nuclear waste.Reid said “the state’s demand for energy can be met largely through new renewable energy, energy efficiency and demand-side management.”That’s just unrealistic in a fast-growing state where power use is on the rise, particularly in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, said Frank Maisano of energy company advocate Bracewell & Giuliani LLP.“Given the massive growth in the region, (Reid’s letter) is probably not reflective of reality to say we are not going to build any new coal plants,” said Maisano, acting as spokesman for Sithe Global, which is owned by the Blackstone Group’s Blackstone Capital Partners (80 percent) and Reservoir Capital Group (20 percent.“Senator Reid is also opposed to nuclear power, so I don’t know how they are going to meet Nevada’s growing power needs,” Maisano said.About 70 percent of the power generated in Nevada is from natural gas-fired plants and 13 percent by coal-fired plants, according to the federal Energy Information Administration. There are no nuclear power plants in Nevada.Coal-fired plants account for 50 percent of U.S. electricity generation, nuclear power for 20 percent, and natural gas-fired plants for 18 percent.

South Egan Wilderness, White Pine Co, NV

Posted in News | 4 Comments

4 Responses

on July 31, 2007 at 2:52 pm | Reply Wolfy

Nice! Sure would make beating that headwind every day a little easier knowing it was charging my ipod!

-M
on August 2, 2007 at 3:40 pm | Reply balmofgilead

Courageous stand, he needs to be supported. This is precisely the kind of leadership on national energy policy that is lacking in other states. The energy bill in Congress now would be better if other states had a Senator Reid.
on August 5, 2007 at 4:16 pm | Reply Red Beard

From Sunday’s Las Vegas Review-Journal,

Aug. 05, 2007
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

GEOFF SCHUMACHER: Join Reid in battling coal polluters …

GEOFF SCHUMACHER
MORE COLUMNS
Nevada is not exactly a hotbed of environmentalism. We have some tree huggers up north in the shadow of the Sierra Nevada, and there’s a handful of dedicated eco-warriors in Las Vegas, but it would be a gross exaggeration to claim the existence of a genuine environmental movement in the Silver State.

A couple of years ago, I traveled to Elko to do some research. Somehow, I managed to find an environmental activist living up there. He described a very lonely and frustrating vigil to protect some of Nevada’s most beautiful country.

Nevada’s history is mostly about spoiling the environment, from large-scale mining operations to nuclear testing. Our laser-focus on economic growth views the state’s natural attributes as resources to be exploited, not protected or treasured.

And so, when political leaders dare to propose ways to protect Nevada’s environment — however modestly — they are certain to be met with arched eyebrows, if not torches and pitchforks.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., has seen both. Over the years, his environmental initiatives have earned him the nickname “Sierra Harry” in rural Nevada. This, despite the fact that Reid’s voting record receives only above-average grades from national environmental watchdogs.

Reid actually has had some success in preserving parts of Nevada. First and foremost, he has been the key player in fending off the federal government’s efforts to dump high-level nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain. He also was involved in the creation of Great Basin National Park, stronger protections for Red Rock Canyon, the Spring Mountain Range and Sloan Canyon, and the establishment of many wilderness areas.

Of course, at the same time, Reid has defended the interests of mining conglomerates, which are the state’s biggest polluters.

While fighting Yucca Mountain always will be Reid’s greatest challenge, he recently picked a new environmental fight that promises to have profound implications for the state.

Last month, Reid told The Associated Press that he plans to fight three coal-fired power plants proposed for eastern Nevada. “I’m going to do everything I can to stop it,” Reid said. “All these power moguls want to do is steal our air and water.”

Two of the plants would be built near Ely, while the third would be constructed near Mesquite.

Reid and others have long envisioned Nevada, with its sunny climate and wide open spaces, as an ideal setting for alternative energy development, including solar, wind and geothermal power. While some renewable energy projects are being developed, Nevada hasn’t yet caught on as a host for green projects.

Instead, Nevada faces the prospect of three new coal-fired power plants within its borders. These plants are egregious polluters and primary contributors to the buildup of greenhouse gases that cause global warming. They spew large amounts of airborne mercury, which contaminates lakes and rivers, with the potential to cause brain damage, blindness and other developmental problems in infants. The plants also would use billions of gallons of water, a precious resource in the desert.

Reid’s opposition is certain to draw critics, including rural political and business leaders who see the power plants primarily as sources of economic development. Altogether, the three projects involve an investment of several billion dollars.

In addition, with Southern Nevada’s rapid growth, there is an inherent need for more electricity. If these plants are not built, Las Vegans face the possibility of higher bills.

But Reid is taking the right stance. He has adopted the long view, which has at least three related goals: 1) attacking the climate crisis in a significant way to try to avert global disaster; 2) accelerating the slow-moving transition to renewable energies; and 3) protecting Nevada’s environment, including the pristine skies over Great Basin National Park. (Reid also is getting support in neighboring Utah, where much of the air pollution from the plants would spread.)

Rather than building new coal-fired plants, the nation should be working toward retiring existing plants and replacing them with cleaner alternatives. We know this can’t happen overnight. But we also must realize that it is — as former Vice President Al Gore persuasively argues — immoral to ignore the climate crisis in favor of short-term economic gain.

Frankly, if anyone but the shockingly wrongheaded Bush-Cheney administration ran the executive branch right now, it’s difficult to imagine the government endorsing the expansion of outdated coal-fired power in 2007.

Reid is likely to be deluged with criticism and political pressure for vowing to thwart these power plants. But he doesn’t have to go it alone. All of you dutifully using fluorescent light and driving hybrid cars as earnest gestures to combat climate change should take your commitment a step further and register your opposition to these dirty plants. Send Reid an encouraging note. Show support for the local and statewide advocacy groups that have condemned the projects. (They are easily found through an Internet search.)

Because of its early Democratic presidential caucus, Nevada is in the national spotlight right now. Let’s show the nation that Nevadans care about the well-being of their state.

Geoff Schumacher (gschumacher@reviewjournal.com) is Stephens Media’s director of community publications. He is the author of “Sun, Sin & Suburbia: An Essential History of Modern Las Vegas” and, coming in February, “Howard Hughes: Power, Paranoia & Palace Intrigue.” His column appears Sunday.
on September 20, 2007 at 1:30 pm | Reply The Truth about Coal in Nevada « Weethump

[...] we mentioned in our previous post, the location of two of the proposed power plants would be north of Ely, Nevada by the Schell Creek [...]