Posted by: Justine Rothbart | 19th May, 2009

Another Coal Burning Plant in Virginia?

This is an e-mail from Wise Energy for Virginia…

From winning better efficiency measures in Richmond to stopping mountaintop removal projects across Appalachia — every time we’ve spoken up and reached out to decision makers, we’ve made a difference in Virginia’s clean energy future.

Now, we need you to reach out to your fellow Virginians — to stop a massive new coal-fired power plant proposed in Surry County.

Click here to take action.

The Old Dominion Electric Cooperative (ODEC) has proposed a new 1500-megawatt coal burning power plant to be built in Surry County.

Their proposal is directly opposed to what polls show most Virginians want. By a wide margin, Virginians support an energy plan that invests in efficiency and clean energy, and that works to reduce pollution and the threat of global warming.
The locals are already actively fighting the proposal, which you can read about in the news here and here.

The ODEC proposal is far from a done deal. In order for the plant to be built, nine different electric cooperatives from different regions of Virginia must agree to share the cost of construction.

We believe that the majority of the Virginians who live in the service districts of these cooperatives don’t want to see $6 billion of their money spent on a project that isn’t needed, that will raise their electric bills, and that will increase air pollution across our state.

The problem is, many of these customers don’t know this proposal is on the table.

That’s why we need you to sign up for our online phone bank — to help us reach tens of thousands of electric cooperative customers and encourage them to tell their electric cooperative board members to vote “NO” on the Surry County coal plant proposal.

To take part, all you need is a regular (or cell) phone line, and an internet connection.

And if you live in Richmond, or Charlottesville you can even use our phones to take part in the phone bank.

We have a website with a script that will guide you through your calls, and provide you with the names and phone numbers for you to call at your convenience.

Click here to sign up for our phone bank — and stop the latest coal plant in Virginia.

Thank you for doing everything you can to help us get the word out about the proposed Surry County coal plant — and more importantly, for your continued help in stopping it.

Kathy Selvage
Wise Energy for Virginia

P.S. Great news! The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has suspended its previously-granted permit for the proposed Ison Rock Ridge mountaintop removal coal mining project! Click here to learn more: http://wiseenergyforvirginia.org/2009/05/under-pressure-army-corps-suspends-fill-permit-for-virginia-mountaintop-removal-coal-mine/

Responses

Hey Justine…put yourself in their shoes. You know that affordable electricity is an essential part of protecting consumers and American businesses.

During the America’s Power Factuality Tour, our team traveled all over the country to document the places, people and technologies involved in producing cleaner electricity from domestic coal.

Our travels brought us to Council Bluffs, Iowa, home of the Walter Scott Energy Center – one of the most efficient coal-based plants in America. This facility generates more than 1,600 megawatts of affordable electricity, which has a positive long-term economic impact on the region—one that includes a Google data facility.

Take a look at the plant in action and meet the
people who keep it running: http://sn.im/factuality.

Monica,

You’re completely right, affordable energy is going to need to be the cornerstone of any future American economy.

But what we are saying, and what energy experts agree, is that by far the cheapest, quickest, and cleanest way to produce more energy is through efficiency. Even with added “clean” technology, coal fired power plants can not compete with renewable energy.

Working for an organization run by coal, I’m sure you have heard countless stories and seen devastation created by coal mining. The phone banking with Wise Energy allows us to talk to people who would actually be affected by the construction of this new power plant, because we feel that everyone has the right to know what’s going on in their area.

As you read many people are still unaware that this plant proposal even exists, all we are doing is trying to reach out to these people and raise awareness about an issue that will most certainly affect their communities, families and homes.

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