Coops Urge EPA to Expand Uses of Coal Ash Considered Safe
Posted on Feb 25, 2014 in Environmental, Legislative & Politics, Rates, Regulation & Policy | Comments Off on Coops Urge EPA to Expand Uses of Coal Ash Considered Safe
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has already recognized the benefits of certain uses of coal ash, and electric coops are now asking the EPA to conclude that it is safe for other uses. John Novak, Executive Director for Environmental Issues for the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, has stated that the EPA “can do more to promote other beneficial uses of...
Kentucky PSC Approves Environmental Upgrades
Posted on Feb 21, 2014 in Environmental, Rates, Regulation & Policy, Reliability | Comments Off on Kentucky PSC Approves Environmental Upgrades
The Kentucky Public Service Commission (PSC) approved a $15 million project to reduce emissions at a coal-fired generation plant owned by East Kentucky Power Cooperative (EKPC). EKPC will recover the costs of the project via an environmental surcharge paid by the customers of EKPC’s distribution cooperative members. The Kentucky PSC found that the upgrades will provide EKPC with...
Iowa Nuclear Plant to Face Heightened NRC Scrutiny
Posted on Feb 20, 2014 in Regulation & Policy, Reliability | Comments Off on Iowa Nuclear Plant to Face Heightened NRC Scrutiny
The Duane Arnold Energy Center near Palo, Iowa, will undergo increased inspections and heightened Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) scrutiny after backup equipment problems were discovered at the plant in 2013. While public safety was never threatened, the problems prompted additional NRC oversight. The Des Moines Register has the full story.
GRE to Add Solar
Posted on Feb 20, 2014 in Project Development, Regulation & Policy, Renewable Energy, Technology | Comments Off on GRE to Add Solar
Great River Energy (GRE) plans to build several solar energy installations by mid-2015 to generate a total output of 650 kW that will help GRE better understand the potential for solar development and its impact on current and future project initiatives. GRE continues to expand its renewable energy portfolio and is ahead of the curve on compliance with Minnesota’s Renewable Energy...
Oregon Coop Continues Fight Against State’s Renewable Mandates
Posted on Feb 18, 2014 in Innovation/Efficiency, Legislative & Politics, Regulation & Policy, Renewable Energy | Comments Off on Oregon Coop Continues Fight Against State’s Renewable Mandates
Oregon law currently requires that large utilities get 25 percent of their energy from new renewable sources by 2025, and increased demand for electricity from data centers in the eastern part of the state is pushing smaller utilities toward large-utility status for the purposes of the mandate. A lobbyist for Umatilla Electric Cooperative (Umatilla) has been collecting signatures for...
New White Paper Calls for Focus on Grid Stability
Posted on Feb 13, 2014 in Energy Savings Programs, Environmental, Grid & Infrastructure, Innovation/Efficiency, Legislative & Politics, Regulation & Policy, Reliability, Renewable Energy | Comments Off on New White Paper Calls for Focus on Grid Stability
Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska recently issued a white paper warning that grid stability is complicated by coal plant retirements, environmental regulations and requirements for integrating renewable energy resources. Senator Murkowski’s paper, which has been praised by some in the industry, calls for policymakers to place grid reliability and affordability at the front of their...
EPA Continues Work on Carbon Rule
Posted on Feb 11, 2014 in Climate Change, Environmental, Regulation & Policy | Comments Off on EPA Continues Work on Carbon Rule
The Environmental Protection Agency is continuing its efforts to issue a draft carbon rule by June 1, 2014. The new rule, which will be issued under the Clean Air Act and based on a 2007 Supreme Court decision, will regulate carbon emissions from existing power facilities. Click here for the full story. See the Sutherland Coop Team’s October 29, 2013, post for more on the...
West Virginia Water Contamination Brings Company Safety Practices into Focus
Posted on Feb 6, 2014 in Environmental, Legislative & Politics, Litigation, Regulation & Policy, Reliability | Comments Off on West Virginia Water Contamination Brings Company Safety Practices into Focus
At least twenty putative class actions asserting claims of negligence, gross negligence and strict liability for ultra-hazardous activity have been filed naming Freedom Industries Inc., the company that owns the site responsible for leaking 7,500 gallons of coal-cleaning chemical into West Virginia’s Elk River. The region’s U.S. Attorney has also pledged to take action if federal...
Coops Intervene in State’s Challenge of FERC Incentives
Posted on Feb 3, 2014 in Grid & Infrastructure, Litigation, Regulation & Policy | Comments Off on Coops Intervene in State’s Challenge of FERC Incentives
On January 24, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, against a challenge by the North Carolina Utilities Commission (NCUC), upheld incentives granted by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for certain transmission projects undertaken by Virginia Electric and Power Company. Two generation and transmission cooperatives, Old Dominion Electric Cooperative...
Colorado Legislature Rejects Delay of Coop Renewables Mandate
Posted on Feb 3, 2014 in Environmental, Legislative & Politics, Rates, Regulation & Policy, Renewable Energy | Comments Off on Colorado Legislature Rejects Delay of Coop Renewables Mandate
The Colorado legislature passed a bill in 2013 mandating that, by 2020, twenty percent of power generated by rural electric cooperatives come from renewable sources. Representative Kathleen Conti proposed a subsequent bill that would delay the mandate’s implementation until 2025, but Colorado’s House Transportation and Energy Committee voted 8-5 against Conti’s bill in January. Those...
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