….. MON VALLEY CLEAN AIR COALITION (MVCAC) …..
Longview II shown in front of Longview I ...
To Our Residents and Friends
On November 7, 2019, from 6 to 9 pm, the Mon Valley Clean Air Coalition is hosting a public meeting in the Monongalia Arts Center at 107 High Street in Morgantown. The purpose of this meeting is to provide a public forum to discuss the proposed Longview II gas-fired power plant and the tax breaks proposed for a PILOT Agreement (Payment In Lieu Of Taxes).
We believe that it is important for the public to be heard on any such huge projects that will affect our county for decades. In addition to financial considerations, there are air quality and public health to consider. And, it is now obvious that greenhouse gases are affecting our way of life here on earth. We are aware of other issues that deserve a hearing.
We will publicize the event and encourage members of the public to come to learn more about the proposed plant and to express their views. You will also be invited to speak, if you so wish. We hope to have a good turnout and encourage well-informed discussion.
Sincerely, Duane Nichols
Mon Valley Clean Air Coalition
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Subject: Longview Motion to Toll PSC Proceedings, October 30, 2019
Just an FYI, Longview yesterday filed a motion to “toll” the proceedings. Apparently, they have filed a joint application for their Siting Certificate (for the two power plants) and a Certificate of Need (for the associated transmission lines), and those have different timetables specified in different sections of state code. The Motion would allow Longview to delay certain deadlines to make a scheduling order more convenient.
I don’t see this as a major development, but it is a reminder that the Siting Certificate for the power plant(s) and the Certificate of Need operate under different sections of code.
Note that this change in statute was adopted by the Legislature within the last couple years as a way to expedite development of power plants. But it also means that a timetable may be much more accelerated than was the case with Longview I in 2004-05.
Case # 19-0890. The motion is at:
http://www.psc.state.wv.us/scripts/WebDocket/ViewDocument.cfm?CaseActivityID=528918&NotType=%27WebDocket%27
Jim Kotcon, Sierra Club of West Virginia, October 30, 2019
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See also: Longview Power applies for siting certificate for combined gas, solar facility in Monongalia County, WV | WV News | September 13, 2019
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Proposed PILOT Agreement is Gross Giveaway to Longview Power II, Reprinted on FrackCheckWV, October 3, 2019
Wanted — More Places to Pollute the Atmosphere —
Morgantown Already has Three Polluting Electric Power Plants
To the Editor, Morgantown Dominion Post, October 2, 2019
The plan to expand the Longview Power Plant with a gas-fired plant (Dominion Post — September 13) is disturbing. The company wants the Monongalia County Commission to approve a huge tax break, a PILOT (Payment In Lieu Of Taxes) instead of assessed property taxes.
Another fossil fuel plant means even more air and water pollution, resulting in higher health expenses. While natural gas claims to burn cleanly, fracking is not a clean process. Fracking pads leak methane, a powerful greenhouse gas, and generate millions of gallons of toxic waste water. There is no such thing as clean fossil fuels.
Longview is an electric wholesale plant, so all the energy generated there goes into the national grid and is not necessarily consumed here. Nor will it make our rates any cheaper. That Longview filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2013, two years after it went online, does not instill confidence for future performance.
According to the Rocky Mountain Institute, “continued investments in gas-fired power plants will present stranded cost risk for customers, shareholders, and society, while locking in 100 million tons of CO2 emissions each year. RMI research shows that ‘clean energy portfolios’ comprised of wind, solar, and energy storage technologies are now cost-competitive with new natural gas power plants, while providing the same grid reliability services.
Children around the world are begging us to protect their future. Why should we invest in fossil energy sources that are guaranteed to rob them of it? We should not give tax breaks and incentives to fossil fuel industries. The Mon County Commission has an opportunity to say YES to the children by saying YES to solar energy but NO to another fossil fuel plant.
Betsy Lawson, Morgantown