Shareholders and Customers to Protest WEC Annual Meeting

Mequon, WI – A group of WEC Energy Group shareholders, customers, and climate advocates will gather prior to the holding company’s annual meeting to demonstrate and make statements about their concerns over the financial liabilities of burning coal and other fossil fuels. The WEC Energy Group annual shareholders’ meeting is Thursday, May 2, from 10:00-11:00 am in the R. John Buuck Field House at the Concordia University-Mequon campus. Those going to the annual meeting have been instructed to park at nearby Marcus North Shore Cinema and take a shuttle provided by WEC. Participants in this public demonstration event will gather on the sidewalk in front of the northwest corner of the parking lot at 8:30 am and then demonstrate along the shuttle route.

What:  Statements from WEC shareholders & other participants; signage demonstration

When: Thursday, May 2, 2019
8:30 - 8:45 am | Shareholders & concerned customers will be available for interviews
8:45 - 9:45 am | Demonstration with signage along shuttle route from parking lot to WEC annual meeting

Where: Sidewalk in front of northwest corner of the parking area for the WEC Annual Meeting, Marcus North Shore Cinema, 11700 N. Port Washington Road, Mequon, WI 53092

Who: WEC Energy Group shareholders, members of the Clean Power Coalition of Southeast Wisconsin, members of 350-Milwaukee, other affected residents, concerned customers, clean energy and climate advocates.

Background: WEC has had several major controversies related to their coal plants in recent years. Families who live near We Energies’ coal-fired Oak Creek power plant have been complaining to the company for years about negative health effects they are suffering as a result of exposure to coal dust and coal ash emitted from the plant and the trains that deliver the coal. On March 5, 2018, winds blew dust from a coal storage pile at the Oak Creek plant into neighborhoods north of the plant. Test results confirmed the black dust found covering homes, cars, and yards in several Oak Creek neighborhoods was coal dust. Residents reported additional dustings after We Energies claimed to have taken additional steps to contain the dust. In the past several years, similar incidents have occurred in other neighborhoods, especially to the south of the plant. Coal contains toxic metals including lead, mercury, and arsenic. The health effects of inhalable particulate matter such as coal dust include aggravation of asthma, respiratory symptoms, an increase in hospital emissions, and increased mortality from cardiovascular and respiratory diseases and lung cancer.

In December, a second major issue arose when We Energies requested a mercury variance up to three times the state standard in their updated water discharge permit for their Elm Road-Oak Creek coal facility. In February, the Wisconsin DNR held a hearing to gather public comments on the proposed permit. Over 150 people attended the hearing and expressed opposition against several provisions of the draft permit, including the mercury variance. The permit as written would also allow We Energies to continue a dirty, outdated process for treating coal ash until 2023, the latest possible date under federal EPA rules. 100 percent of the spoken comments at the hearing were in opposition to the permit as written.

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The Clean Power Coalition-Southeast Wisconsin will educate the public about the dangers of burning coal on the health of those who live and work in the vicinity of We Energies’ South Oak Creek and Elm Road Power Plants. How we choose to generate electricity has consequences that reach far beyond the return on shareholder investment, affecting everything from public health to a stable climate. When air, water, and soil are polluted, health and life are put at risk. The Clean Power Coalition will promote public debate about the appropriate source of energy for Southeastern Wisconsin. At the same time, the coalition urges We Energies to: 1.) immediately contain the coal dust and other health hazards emanating from the Oak Creek plants, 2.) phase out its use of coal, and 3.) promote rather than obstruct the adoption of renewable energy throughout its service territory.

Clean Power Coalition convening member organizations: Eco Justice Center / Greening Greater Racine / Moms Clean Air Force / NAACP State of Wisconsin Environmental Committee / Our Wisconsin Revolution / Racine Dominicans / Racine Green Party / Sierra Club, Beyond Coal Campaign / Sierra Club, John Muir Chapter / Sierra Club, Southeast Gateway Group / UW Whitewater Students Allied for a Green Earth (SAGE) / Wisconsin Interfaith Power and Light / 350 Milwaukee. Supporting member organizations: Black Leaders Organizing Communities (BLOC) / Citizens Acting for Rail Safety / Gaia Coalition / Kenosha Green Congregations / NextGen America / Racine Coalition for Peace and Justice / Racine Interfaith Coalition / Interfaith Earth Network / School Sisters of Notre Dame / Sierra Club - Great Waters Group / Sierra Club - Fox Valley Group / Water Protectors of Milwaukee / Wisconsin Green Muslims / Wisconsin Conservation Voters.