IR power plant emissions focus of public hearing

About 50 people assembled to get their words and thoughts on record during the hearing at Delaware Technical and Community College, which offered the last chance for public comment on proposed pollution regulations for coal-fired power plants.
 

“What would electric rates be if Indian River Power Plant ceased to exist?” asked Steve Callanen of the southern Delaware chapter of the Sierra Club. Callanen’s wife, Sallie, was recently diagnosed as an asthmatic. She, along with several other people at the hearing, talked about health problems associated with pollution.
 

“I never had asthma before I came to Sussex County,” said Sallie. “Now I have to watch the weather and stay inside on high-ozone days or when there’s high humidity.”
 

The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) is proposing a cleanup plan for the three coal power plants in Delaware, including Indian River, Edgemoor in Wilmington, and one unit in Dover. The proposal would reduce nitrogen oxide, sulfur dioxide and mercury output at the plants by up to 80 percent, but the plan does not include regulations for carbon dioxide or particle pollution. Ali Mirzakhalili, air quality administrator for DNREC, said future pollution regulations would include these two pollutants.
 

Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas that leads to bad ozone days and global warming. Particle pollution is one of the most dangerous air pollutants because the finer the particles, the more they get into the respiratory system, causing asthma and cancer.
 

Mirzakhalili said if Indian River was shut down, Delaware would face rolling blackouts because the state would have to rely on purchasing power from the PJM (Pennsylvania-New Jersey-Maryland) grid. On high-use days, Delaware would not be the first to receive power, which would cause blackouts.
 

“Indian River Power Plant is absolutely critical to the Eastern Shore stabilizing power source,” said Sen. George Bunting, D-Bethany Beach. “I believe it would be highly hypocritical of me to force Indian River Power Plant to shut down and draw energy from other states, creating problems for fellow Americans in their respective states. We should take care of our own.”
 

Bunting has been involved in the process to reduce toxic emissions from Indian River for more than 20 years. He said he is proud of the work DNREC has done on the regulations and said that as new technology becomes available, energy production will only get cleaner.
 

But not everyone at the hearing was happy with the progress DNREC officials have made with the regulations. President and CEO of the Delaware Electric Co-op, Bill Andrew, said the regulations would be too hard for energy suppliers to comply with.
 

“Delaware Electric Co-op has 76,000 member-owners and our objectives are to keep the lights on and provide cost-effective power,” said Andrew. “We are interested in clean air and preserving the natural beauty of our state, but we urge the agency to reconsider the implementation scale… and develop a workable business plan.”
 

Andrew said in its current form, the regulations would significantly increase the price of electricity and erode the reliability of the system.
 

Andrew’s speech only riled up citizens in favor of the regulations, including Bill Zak, founder of Citizens for Clean Power, a Lewes-based citizens group.
 

Zak said the time to clean up Delaware is now, before it’s too late. “These facilities poison and kill their neighbors,” said Zak. “The corporate executives have resisted every effort to get them to clean up. Conectiv and NRG have had the gall to go on the record opposing the regulations. This is an enormous health care bill that these two corporations have passed on to the people of Delaware.”
 

Zak said the timetable for cleanup is reasonable, requiring steps to cleaner facilities from 2012 to 2020. He also said the state needs to investigate the fly ash pile that exists at Indian River to make sure the remaining pollutants are not filtering into the ground and the ground water.
 

The final comments from the public urged state officials to look into alternative energy sources.
 

“We need to reduce our dependence on dirty coal … look at alternate sources like solar and wind power,” said Steve Callanen. “DNREC should strive to employ the best available practices.”
 

Bunting agreed and had suggestions for citizens at the hearing for moving forward and working toward cleaner air. DNREC is in the final stages of approving the regulations, but more regulations are needed in the future. Until then, Bunting asked the citizens to come up with solutions to energy problems.
 

“We need to continue to look into alternative energy sources,” said Bunting. “We know it is in the best interest of our nation to have reserve plants if a national crisis or attack occurs. I implore Sussex residents to request of the Center for the Inland Bays to create a sustainable energy task force, so that concerned citizens can sit down and discuss future energy needs and solutions.”
 

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