Amy Dominguez, Amy.Dominguez@sierraclub.org
PHOENIX, AZ -- Today, Sierra Club filed a suit in Maricopa County Superior Court challenging the Arizona Corporation Commission’s (ACC) decision to approve Salt River Project’s revised proposal to expand the gas-fired Coolidge Generating Station in Pinal County, Arizona. The expansion project would lock in decades of new gas use and air pollution, impacting the public health of Arizonans, and disproportionately affecting the historic Black neighborhood of Randolph.
The suit comes after the ACC’s rushed 4-1 decision to approve the revised Coolidge plant expansion in June, which reversed the Commission’s previous decision in 2022 to deny a siting permit for SRP’s proposed expansion. The Commission’s approval allows the revised project to move forward despite many unanswered questions about the need for the project and the project’s environmental impacts. Following the June decision, Sierra Club filed a request for rehearing that was not acted upon by the Commission.
In the lawsuit, Sierra Club contends that the ACC’s approval of the project was unlawful and unreasonable because the ACC’s determination was not supported by substantial evidence about the need for the revised project or the impacts of the project, the Commission did not conduct an evidentiary hearing on the revised project, and the Commission’s decision making procedure at its June meeting violated due process. The suit asks the Superior Court to invalidate the ACC’s June decision. Previously, in January 2023, the Superior Court affirmed the Commission’s original decision to deny the permit for the project.
In June, when the ACC voted to approve the project, it referenced an agreement that SRP reached with some residents from the Randolph community. However, at the time of the vote, that agreement had not been provided to the ACC or to other parties, making it impossible to fully evaluate its terms.
“As a resident of Randolph and new father I feel that the construction of the Coolidge Expansion Project not only threatens the health and safety of the present community but also that of our own children,” said Nicholas Bauer. “The shadow of an inefficient power station is something I do not want to raise my family near and the new construction of fossil fueled methods of power generation must come to an end.”
“SRP has deep pockets, but you can’t put a price tag on the health of Randolph residents because our well-being shouldn’t be up for negotiation,” said life-long Randolph resident Jeff Jordan. “The bottom line is that this project will still disproportionately expose Randolph residents to increased levels of air pollution, impacting public health for the foreseeable future.”
“In its most recent decision, the ACC voted to approve a project without details or specifics – trusting SRP’s claims and allowing it to get away without following the rules,” said Sandy Bahr, Director of the Sierra Club’s Grand Canyon Chapter. “It’s up to the Superior Court to ensure proper protocol isn’t ignored when utilities like Salt River Project propose a project that carries significant community and environmental harm and when the Arizona Corporation Commission ignores its responsibilities to ensure that people are heard.”
###
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.