The Tennessee Valley Authority today released a draft plan for how the federal utility proposes to generate electricity for its customers over the next 20 years, a day after the board of directors voted to phase out coal at its Bull Run plant in Tennessee and at its Paradise plant in western Kentucky.
The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) Board of Directors voted today to retire the remaining coal unit at the Paradise power plant in Muhlenberg County, Kentucky, and the Bull Run coal plant in Anderson County, Tennessee. The vote was a clear repudiation of President Trump’s inappropriate and unusual tactic to block the TVA staff’s recommendation to phase out the units over the next several years.
The Sierra Club asked the public to write climate valentines to the EPA for delivery and today it will deliver hundreds to former coal lobbyist and acting EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler for the sole hearing on his effort to roll back life-saving climate standards for dirty power plants.
Today, Diné (Navajo) community organizations Tó Nizhóni Ání and Black Mesa Water Coalition, along with Sierra Club, filed a notice of intent (NOI) to sue Peabody Western Coal Company, a subsidiary of Peabody Energy, for failing to disclose the upcoming closure of its Kayenta coal mine in its permit renewal application. The 44,000-acre Kayenta coal mine is on track to end operations when the Navajo Generating Station (NGS) -- the mine’s only customer -- closes on December 22, 2019.
Today, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) granted the final air permit for Tampa Electric Company’s (TECO) proposal to lock the Tampa Bay area into decades of dependence on climate-disrupting fossil fuels
Today, the Senate of Virginia voted to pass Senate Bill 1355 by a vote of 38-2, taking an important step towards permanently dealing with the legacy of toxic coal ash in Virginia’s Chesapeake Bay watershed.
A standing-room-only crowd of Duke Energy customers packed the N.C. Utilities Commission chambers tonight to demand a long-term energy plan from the utility that prioritizes safe, clean renewables over dirty, dangerous fossil fuels. Tonight was the only in-person opportunity for the public to weigh in on the plans,
Baltimore, MD-- Baltimore City Councilmember Kristerfer Burnett (District 8), in partnership with the Sierra Club, introduced a resolution today calling for the Maryland General Assembly to pass, and Governor Hogan to sign, legislation establishing a clear and enforceable commitment to move Maryland beyond coal-fired power and create a Coal Community Transition Fund to support impacted communities and workers. The fund would support investments in job retraining and assistance for those affected, as well as increased investments in clean energy sources that will provide good-paying, local jobs.
Today, Georgia Power, the state’s largest utility, filed a new draft long-term energy plan with the state Public Service Commission that calls for the retirement of two of its polluting coal plants and the addition of 1 gigawatt in renewable resources.
Today, the Virginia State Corporation Commission took a stand to protect Virginians by rejecting Phase 1 of Dominion Energy’s “grid modernization” plan, as the corporation failed to present the benefits or need for the proposed expensive and unnecessary measures.
Today, Sierra Club secured Cleco’s commitment to phase out coal use and reduce the operation of 1,200 MW of uneconomic coal-burning generation and to acquire 200 MW of renewable energy--with a goal of achieving 30% renewables, fleet-wide--as part of a multi-party settlement approving Cleco’s $1 billion purchase of NRG’s Louisiana wholesale generation business.
Coal bailout architect and FERC Commissioner Bernard McNamee has submitted a letter to Senate Democrats informing them of an ethics official’s advice to him on recusing himself from participating in commission decisions that are pertinent to his past coal bailout work for Energy Secretary Rick Perry.