Both opponents and proponents of building two new coal-fired power plants in western Kansas now have an opportunity to show they are sincere about formulating a broad, positive energy strategy for the state of Kansas.
Legislative efforts to force construction of the plants became highly politicized on both sides. Hundreds of thousands of dollars were spent in private lobbying efforts to try to influence both legislators and the governor. Three bills clearing the way for the new plants were passed by the Legislature and subsequently vetoed by the governor. Efforts to override the first two vetoes failed, and House Speaker Melvin Neufeld announced last week that scheduling conflicts and other factors led him to decide not to pursue an effort to override the third veto at the Legislature's ceremonial adjournment on May 29.
Although some Kansans breathed a sigh of relief at that decision, the outcome obviously is disappointing for Neufeld and other legislators and constituents who favor construction of the plants. However, the highly charged political atmosphere in which this battle was being fought doesn't lend itself to thoughtful decision-making or, often, sound policy.
Perhaps this issue will be settled by the courts or it may come back to the Legislature next year. Either way, the state still has a duty to look at how it will meet its long-term energy needs in an environmentally responsible way. Whether it's coal, nuclear power, wind generators or solar energy, policy makers need to take a deep breath and try to make the best decisions for the state's future.
Deliberations on energy policy must include the latest scientific research available. State discussions also must take into account potential federal regulations concerning the environment as well as potential federal assistance with such things as transmission lines that would make wind-generated power more feasible.
These are not easy issues, but they are not going to go away. Rising prices and questions about the environmental impact of many traditional energy sources make it imperative that every state in the nation take a creative look at how to meet America's residential and commercial energy demands.
This year's fight over the coal-fired plants in western Kansas was primarily a political battle. Now it's time for everyone to put the politics aside and take a practical, scientific approach to the state's energy future.
Comments
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DougCounty (anonymous) says…
Seems that's what the governor is doing--check out:http://www.ksclimatechange.us/ewebeditpro/items/O1F17426.PDF Looks like everyone's got a place at the table to begin the discussion on developing a comprehensive energy plan for the state, a process that should have taken place before the legislature tried to start ramrodding special interest legislation through the session. Hopefully the discussions will be productive and the state can turn over a new, nonpartisan leaf on the whole issue.
cato_the_elder (anonymous) says…
If Governor Sebelius were to run for re-election today, she could not win unless the only votes counted were from Douglas County.
tdarnell (anonymous) says…
It's a perfect political cover to develop a plan instead of taking action. Our govenment and has been doing energy plans and setting energy policies since 1972. What has it gotten us. I would certainly like a full explanation from the governor about her resistance to the coal fired plants in western Kansas. Her CO2 argument doesn't seem to be forthright or Sunflower is not being forthright. Here's what they say about their new technology. http://www.biofuelreview.com/content/... Lawrence community would be well served by LJW doing a thorough in depth analysis to provide us your position on what is really going on politically in this state.
belexus73 (anonymous) says…
As far as the bioreactor technology that Sunflower proposed goes, my hat is off to the closed loop energy system they were going to attempt. However, Sunflower did not have enough confidence in it to put it in the air permit application because it is still experimental and they could not predict how effective it would be. As far as some comtemplating that the governor could not get re-elected, polls are showing strong support in the 60s and nudging 70 on her. So I am puzzled by an assertion she could not get re-elected.
a_flock_of_jayhawks (anonymous) says…
"The Lawrence community would be well served by LJW doing a thorough in depth analysis to provide us your position on what is really going on politically in this state."They don't need to do it. I'll provide it right here.Federal CO2 regulation is coming, and it might include surcharges on the amount of CO2. This will make electrical generation methods that also generate CO2 more expensive than they are now. Sunflower wants to build a coal-fired plant in western Kansas with two other groups where the total investment will be shared and the capacity will also be shared. They attempted to get one more coal-fired plant (actually, two) approved before the process becomes more complex and costly. They know that if they don't get it soon, they probably won't be able to make it happen or it may not be feasible. The Governor and Secretary believe that they are doing their duty for all Kansans by rejecting the additional CO2 emissions and, instead, pursuing policies that aim to reduce CO2 emissions as well as some of the other noxious compounds that are introduced into the atmosphere as a result. The additional pollution from this plant impacts western and eastern Kansas as well as points beyond and puts additional strain on the Ogallala aquifer, which would impact several states. The Governor and Secretary also believe that it would be irresponsible to approve the plant as it was proposed at this time given the regulatory uncertainty at the federal level. Since there is a Republican majority in the Kansas legislature, the Republican leaders believed that they could do pretty much what they want to do as this is their MO on several past initiatives (a recent example: Kansas public school funding). That being the case, they did not negotiate in earnest. But, to their suprise, they were not able to succeed.
acoupstick (anonymous) says…
"They attempted to get one more coal-fired plant (actually, two) approved before the process becomes more complex and costly."Don't forget they also wanted exemption from future environmental regulation."they did not negotiate in earnest"Exactly.
dirkleisure (anonymous) says…
Don't forget, they also wanted to be removed from the oversight of the Kansas Corporation Commission.
gr (anonymous) says…
Don't forget, if we had as much CO2 as Mars has, we'll be as hot as Mars. The martians all died out because they failed to regulate their CO2 and now the planet is suffering from extremely hot conditions.
JerryStubbs (anonymous) says…
I'm not sure all the Martians died out, some of them might be sequestered underground.