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Smoke on the Water
Nationwide, coal-fired power plants appear to be on the way out. But in southwest Arkansas—next to some of the finest fish and wildlife habitat anywhere—one may be on the way in.
Audubon Jan./Feb. 2008
America needs more energy but not more coal energy. There are all manner of alternatives, not the least of which is not wasting energy—a strategy we have never tried. “We should look at available gas,” says Addison. “There are gas plants that are mothballed or used for different functions. We should look at other power plants that for one reason or another are not online, or operating below capacity. We should look at renewable energy and energy conservation. There is no reason to build another coal plant anywhere. And each one we build we’ll regret 30 years from now.”
The tenure of most corporate executives and elected officials is less than a decade, so few care what happens 30 years hence. But if state and federal regulators allow AEP to build its proposed coal plant, there will be people doing even more regretting than hunt-club members. They will be the children whose lives local politicians and their constituents say they’re seeking to improve.
Ted Williams’s opinion column has been a leading independent voice of environmental journalism for 20 years.
WHAT YOU CAN DO
In late November, as Audubon was going to press, the Arkansas Public Service Commission approved SWEPCO’s plans. Audubon Arkansas and other groups will continue to fight the plant. If you would like to help, send checks, endorsed to the Little River Bottoms Defense Fund, to Audubon Arkansas, 201 East Markham Street, Suite 450, Little Rock, AR 72201.
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