The state Public Utilities Commission today has important decisions to make about aging Front Range coal-fired power plants, decisions that could have ripple effects across the country.
At issue are questions about the best way of fueling these power-generating units — equipping them with better pollution controls, retrofitting old coal units so they can run on natural gas, or replacing them with more efficient natural gas units.
We hope the commission, while mindful of the cost to ratepayers, leans heavily toward new, natural gas-powered units. That includes the Cherokee 4 unit in Adams County that spews pollutants across the Denver metro area.
The PUC has been ordered by the legislature to work with Xcel Energy to come up with plans to substantially cut pollution from power generating plants. The state’s Clean Air- Clean Jobs Act, passed this year with bipartisan support, requires by 2017 a decrease of up to 80 percent in nitrogen oxides expelled by aging, coal- fired plants on the Front Range.
Opponents have worried about the cost of the switch, and it’s an important point, but Colorado also can’t afford to get behind the regulatory curve by broadly perpetuating use of coal, even with enhanced pollution controls. Already, Colorado is out of compliance with some federal pollution regulations, and more rules are on the horizon.
Colorado is not alone in migrating away from coal. Utilities across the country are increasingly turning to natural gas in response to environmental regulations, and forecasts of low natural gas prices and abundant supplies. Colorado’s effort is notable not only because of the comprehensive way it looks at solving pollution problems, but for the opposition it has generated, particularly from coal interests.
The plan also has raised legitimate concerns about cost. The different plans being considered by the PUC would raise customer bills by anywhere from 1.5 percent to 2.4 percent. In these difficult financial times, that is significant, and it’s always possible the final cost will be higher.
However, doing nothing is not an option. Besides the state law, there are U.S. Environmental Protection Agency deadlines that Colorado must meet in clamping down on pollution. If Colorado doesn’t get the job done, the EPA will intervene and tell the state what to do.
In a couple of instances, where coal-fired units are not that old, it makes sense to retrofit with improved pollution controls. But spending hundreds of millions to put additional pollution scrubbers on coal- fired power-generating units that are close to the end of their useful lives doesn’t make sense.
The PUC today is considering several complicated options to address the matter. As it pushes forward on a plan to cut pollution, the commission should protect consumers by ensuring reasonable rates; keep in mind coming federal regulations; and protect the environment.
