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Sierra Club Lawsuits

Sierra Club and Utility Agree to Landmark Global Warming Plan

Case Updates:

March 2, 2007

In a groundbreaking agreement that can serve as a model for environmental groups and utilities working together, the Sierra Club, Kansas City Power & Light (KCP&L), and the Concerned Citizens of Platte County (CCPC) have agreed on a set of initiatives to offset carbon dioxide (CO2) and reduce other emissions for the Kansas City-based utility. Under the agreement announced today, KCP&L agrees to pursue offsets for all of the global warming emissions associated with its new plant through significant investments in energy efficiency and renewable energy, and cut pollution from its existing plants in order to improve air quality in the Greater Kansas City metro area. The agreement proposes other investments in clean energy, significant decreases in emissions and resolves four appeals pending between the Sierra Club, CCPC, and KCP&L. Full implementation of the terms of the agreement will necessitate approval from the appropriate authorities, as some of the initiatives in this agreement require either enabling legislative policy or regulatory approval.

The most significant element of the agreement is the unprecedented commitment by KCP&L to pursue the offset of carbon emissions from its proposed Iatan 2 generating station, located near Weston, Missouri. The estimated 6,000,000 tons of annual carbon dioxide emissions are targeted to be offset by adding 400 megawatts (MW) of wind power; 300 MW of energy efficiency; and a yet to be determined combination of wind, efficiency, or the closing, altering, re-powering or efficiency improvements at any of its generating units. These proposed offsets will be partially implemented by 2010 and fully implemented by 2012. The parties are also agreeing to work together on a series of regulatory and legislative initiatives to achieve an overall reduction in KCP&L’s carbon dioxide emissions of 20 percent by 2020.

Read the full Sierra Club Press Release here.

March 3, 2006

Although coal-fired power plants are a leading cause of global warming, mercury pollution, and other toxic air pollution, the nation's utility industry continues to push for new coal-fired power plants throughout the nation. Take Iatan II, a newly proposed 850 megawatt plant located in Missouri only 30 miles northwest Kansas City. Located midway between Wyoming's coal deposits and major power markets in the west and south, Iatan II may be only the first of five new coal-fired power plants planned for the area. When considered together, these plants would severely undermine the region's efforts to develop and implement smart energy solutions by discouraging alternative energy sources in the region like wind farms. The plants would also threaten local communities with mercury pollution, which is especially troubling in a state where every single lake and stream is already under a mercury advisory. The plant is also expected to release eight million tons of carbon dioxide, a known contributor to global warming, without any possibility of reducing the emissions in the future. In March, Sierra Club took legal steps to protect local communities in Missouri and Kansas from Iatan II in an administrative challenge. Sierra Club is protesting the plant's permit on a number of legal issues, including the Kansas City Power & Light's claim that the new plant doesn't need modern pollution control equipment because the company is already reducing pollution at the neighboring Iatan I plant. Stay tuned for further developments.

Details and Documents:

Visit the Sierra Club's Stopping the Coal Rush website here!