Urge Your Legislator to Stop the Coal Rush!
HCR 43 by Anderson (6-month moratorium on permitting)
A small number of large power companies, including giant TXU, want to build 18 new coal-fired power plants in Texas. Governor Perry issued an executive order in 2005 directing Texas’ environmental agency to rush the proposed new plants through the state permitting process.
Citizens in areas where the proposed plants would be built have been trying to stop the “fast-track” process all year. Mayors of several large cities including Dallas and Houston are also protesting because their air quality will suffer from the new emissions, and environmental groups and business community leaders have filed lawsuits to stop the plants.
It’s time for the Legislature to step in and take action on behalf of the Texans they represent. Lawmakers should stop the “fast-track” process so Texans can have a real voice in the crucial decisions about how we will power our state for generations to come.
A decision this far-reaching and with such important public health implications should not be made by just one individual.
Texas is the last place in the world that should be building new coal-fired power plants.
- Texas already leads the nation in global warming emissions—the emissions from just the proposed new coal plants would more than offset all the global warming emissions reductions California recently adopted.
- Texas air is already so polluted that more than half of Texans live in areas where the air fails to meet federal minimum health-based standards.
- Texas has more renewable energy potential than any other state in the country—Texas’ renewable energy sources could provide enough power to meet 40 percent of US demand if they were developed.
What Can Legislators Do to Stop the Coal Rush?
- Moratorium. Lawmakers could pass a resolution putting all new power plant permitting “on hold” pending a review of the health, environmental and global warming implications of proposed technologies along with a comprehensive analysis of alternative strategies and their comparative costs and benefits.
- Carbon emission cap. Lawmakers could enact legislation similar to California’s recently enacted Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 (AB32), which requires the state’s environmental agencies to adopt regulations to reduce statewide greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 emission levels by 2020.
- Comprehensive energy efficiency legislation. Lawmakers could adopt a package of energy-efficiency standards that would diminish Texas’ expected growth in electricity demand over the next several years enough to eliminate the demand for some or all of the proposed new coal-fired plants.
- Serious renewable energy targets. Lawmakers could increase significantly Texas’ “renewable portfolio standard” (RPS)—the percentage of electricity in the state that is required to come from renewable sources. Under current law, only about 10 percent of Texas’ electricity will have to come from renewable sources like wind and solar by 2015, but most Texans surveyed say they want more.
- New technology standards. Lawmakers could pass legislation requiring power plants built after a specific date to meet or beat industry “best practices” that would reduce (but not eliminate) new power plant emissions in Texas.
Which Legislators Have the Most Influence?
Every senator and representative needs to understand the issues and know their constituents support the five reforms listed above.
The legislators with the most influence over the power plant permitting process are those on the committees that oversee the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and that regulate the utility industry: the Senate Natural Resources Committee, the House Committee on Environmental Regulation, and the House Committee on Regulated Industries.
What Should I Say to My Senator and Representative?
- Tell your legislator that you are a constituent and that you don’t want 18 new coal-fired power plants rushed through the permitting process based on the Governor’s unilateral order.
- Tell your legislator you support increased use of renewable power and increased energy efficiency to meet growth in electricity demand.
- Ask your legislator if they will file or co-sponsor legislation on one of the five reforms listed above.
- Urge your legislator to support the five reforms.
- Ask your legislator what additional information they need so they can support the reforms if they seem reluctant.
- Tell your legislator about any energy-efficiency actions you have taken personally as well as letting them know if you purchase “green” power or renewable energy credits, and let them know you think energy efficiency and green power are doable and cost-effective.
