Emissions bill up in the air

How the United States will respond to calls to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from coal-fired power plants remains up in the air.

A bill that is making its way through Congress would require utilities and industries that emit carbon dioxide to reduce emissions or purchase credits allowing them to exceed maximum levels established under the new law. Colbert Fossil Plant, a Tennessee Valley Authority-owned coal-fired power plant in Barton, would be affected by the legislation.

The House of Representatives passed the legislation in June. U.S. Rep. Parker Griffith, D-Huntsville, voted against the bill, in part because it did not recognize TVA's efforts to reduce carbon dioxide emission by using nuclear energy and hydroelectric dams, including Wheeler and Wilson.

Carbon dioxide, an odorless and colorless gas, is blamed for contributing to the warming of the Earth's climate by trapping heat in the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide is produced by coal-fired power plants, automobiles, industries and other consumers of carbon-based fuels. It is also produced by humans and other animals as they breathe.

The Senate has yet to vote on the bill. Griffith said he hopes it will fail to make it out of the Senate.

"Under this bill, power companies in Alabama would be required to generate a certain percentage of the electricity they sell from a rigid definition of 'renewable' resources included in this legislation," Griffith said. "Unfortunately, nuclear power and existing hydroelectricity - two resources from which Alabama benefits greatly - are not included in this definition. This legislation would cripple Alabama utilities with high and swift taxes, forcing them to choose between going out of business or passing the cost on to Tennessee Valley consumers."

David Robertson, president of the Birmingham-based Alabama Coal Association, said the legislation would be harmful to the state's coal industry.

"For Alabama, I would really hate to see the bill pass in its current form," he said. "Maybe they can come up with something better in the Senate."

The bill is not yet on the Senate calendar.

"We don't expect it to be placed on the calendar anytime soon," said Jonathan Graffeo, a spokesman for U.S. Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Tuscaloosa.

Shelby opposes the bill, citing concerns that it would drive up the cost of electricity and be harmful to the already fragile economy.

"The mechanism for capping greenhouse gases under this legislation requires emitters to acquire federally created permits for each ton of greenhouse gas emitted," Shelby wrote in a statement about his opposition to the bill. "These permits will be costly because 85 percent of the United States' energy needs come from carbon-emitting fossil fuels. The result will be a significant tax on the American people with catastrophic impacts increasing energy costs, job loss and a decrease in economic

activity."

U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Mobile, also opposes the bill.

"The cap-and-trade legislation now pending before the Senate has a worthwhile goal, but, in my best judgment, it will not work," Sessions wrote. "It is effectively a complex tax that increases the cost of energy."

Stephen Smith, executive director of the Knoxville-based Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, contends lawmakers who predict sharp increases in utility bills if the clean air legislation becomes law are off base.

"The Congressional Budget office and EPA predict the cost of electricity for most households will increase about $2 per month," Smith said. "This is not going to break the bank, but it is going to clean the air. A lot of people are running around trying to scare people by predicting huge increases in the price of energy."

Smith said he had hoped the United States would have new clean air laws in place by the time world leaders meet in Denmark in December to set worldwide targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Smith contends that instead of sending manufacturers fleeing from the United States to countries with less-stringent clean air laws, the Clean Energy and Security Act would create new jobs for Americans who produce the equipment needed to help industries and utilities meet the new guidelines.

Griffith is among those who contend the clean air bill would cause job losses in the United States.

"We should be focused on creating new jobs and keeping the jobs we have now, but this bill would have the opposite effect and make us less competitive as a region and as a nation," Griffith said. "I support the development of renewable energy to make us more energy independent, but unfortunately this bill tries to accomplish these goals in all the wrong ways."

Smith admits that some Tennessee Valley Authority coal-fired power plants would have to be closed if the clean air bill becomes law, but doubts that Colbert Fossil would be among those closed initially. He said Colbert Fossil is not among the highest emitters of carbon dioxide among TVA's coal-burning plants. Plus, the plant is near major natural gas pipelines and could possibly be converted to a gas-fired facility or one that uses coal and natural gas.

TVA spokesman Jim Allen said the federal utility has no plans for closing any of its coal-fired power plants if the new clean air proposals become law. He said TVA officials are unsure how the legislation will affect the utility.

Colbert Fossil Plant has 217 employees.

"Since there are so many versions of legislative bills regarding carbon reduction, we do not know what our cost impact would be," Allen said. "As a federal agency, TVA will of course support whatever regulations are put in place and evaluate our generation sources accordingly. TVA is preparing for carbon legislation going forward with the TVA board's approval of our environmental policy that calls for TVA's generation to be 50 percent near-zero or zero-carbon emitting by 2020."

Allen said TVA will meet its self-imposed goals for reducing carbon dioxide emissions by increasing the amount of electricity produced at nuclear-powered plants, improving the efficiency of its hydro-electric plants and purchasing more electricity made from renewable sources such as wind and solar.

Dennis Sherer can be reached at 740-5746 or dennis.sherer@TimesDaily.com.