Deepwater Wind - the Block Island Wind Farm in Rhode Island
Like most of you, I can’t believe summer is almost over. In the midst of all the family time and new adventures of the past few weeks, we also made lots of progress in our work to move the US beyond coal to clean energy. In case you missed any of the big news while you were spending time at the beach or by the campfire, here’s a round-up of some of the highlights - there were so many, I’ve put together a list to break it down for you.
-The biggest wind power deal ever! Last week, the Iowa Utilities Board announced its approval of MidAmerican Energy’s Wind XI project. Wind XI will add 2,000 MW--enough to power 520,000 homes-- of new wind energy installations in Iowa, putting the company on track to be 85 percent clean energy powered in the state by 2020. As my colleague Bruce Nilles put it, “This is an amazing example of how the unstoppable transition toward a 100 percent clean energy economy is moving faster than many expected.”
-The first U.S. offshore wind farm is complete! Deepwater Wind finished construction of its Block Island Wind Farm off the coast of Rhode Island, which will soon power 17,000 homes. Advocates fought for many years to clear the way for this groundbreaking clean energy project.
-Two dirty coal units will retire in Montana! In a victory for public health and our climate, earlier this summer the Montana Environmental Information Center and Sierra Club reached a historic agreement with Puget Sound Energy and Talen Energy to retire the oldest and most financially risky coal-burning units at the Colstrip coal plant in Colstrip, Montana. The units were built in the 1970s and lacked state-of-the-art pollution controls.
-Oakland officially says ‘No’ to coal exports! Thanks to the tireless work of a diverse coalition, the Oakland City Council approved an ordinance that would ban coal from being handled, stored, and exported through the City of Oakland. A developer had proposed a new coal export project that would have threatened the health and well-being of local residents, and would have worsened the climate crisis by creating a new pathway for Western US coal to reach Asian markets. Thousands of residents rallied and spoke out against a proposed coal export plan in the city, citing health and climate concerns.
-New York commits to clean energy! In early August, New York’s Public Service Commission (PSC) voted to approve the state’s Clean Energy Standard, making an enforceable commitment to Governor Cuomo’s goal of sourcing 50 percent of the state’s power from renewable energy by 2030. This was the culmination of years of campaigning by grassroots leaders.
-Judge orders dirty Illinois coal plant to clean up its act! A coalition of health and environmental groups won a significant victory in their legal fight to clean up the E.D. Edwards coal plant near Peoria, IL. A judge ruled that the plant operator violated its operating permit thousands of times over seven years, emitting an excessive amount of soot pollution, a known health hazard.
-Ohio coal plants will be retired instead of bailed out! After a years-long battle featuring amazing, tireless activism by thousands of committed Ohioans, FirstEnergy finally announced it would retire five coal generating units no later than 2020. The majority of these units have been front and center in an ongoing two-year fight before the Ohio Public Utilities Commission, where FirstEnergy has been trying to secure subsidies from its customers that could be used to keep these aging and ailing coal units open.
-Southwest U.S. national parks will see less haze pollution! In early June the Environmental Protection Agency announced it will finalize strong safeguards to protect national parks and communities across the Southwest from air pollution generated by coal burning at two of Rocky Mountain Power’s Hunter and Huntington power plants in central Utah. This comes after a long campaign by clean air advocates, outdoor industry leaders, winter sports athletes, and local residents who came together to stand up for their local economy, their livelihoods, public health, and the places they loved, which were all threatened by coal pollution.
-No more coal exports in Alaska! After some serious pressure from activists and an international market with no interest in coal, Usibelli halted its coal exports from Alaska indefinitely.
-Ancient, dirty North Dakota coal plant retires! Another victory for clean air and water: Great River Energy announced that it will retire its nearly 50-year old Stanton Station coal-fired power plant in early 2017.
After such a fantastic summer for clean energy grassroots activism, clean air and water, and action on climate, I can hardly wait to see what victories we achieve in the rest of 2016. And make no mistake about it - we still have lots of work to do. The US is still mining and burning a lot of coal, communities are still suffering from coal-related air and water pollution, our climate is on the brink, and coal communities are working hard to diversify their economies. It’s essential that we keep accelerating this momentum, and grassroots people power is the engine of our success. Join us.