Sierra Club appeals CU power plant permit

The appeal comes just in time to meet the Jan. 7 appeal deadline with the Air Conservation Commission of Missouri, which Dec. 8 ruled that a permit granted by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources in 2004 for the CU project was valid.

The organization is appealing the approval because it says DNR did not require CU to use modern pollution controls.

“We are opposed to this dirty coal plant because there are clean, 21st century energy alternatives that don’t jeopardize our health, our environment and our pocketbooks,” said Ozark Chapter Director Carla Klein in a news release.

The commission upholds its decision, stating in the approval report that the proposed plant meets clean air regulations.

CU agreed on a proposal Dec. 13 that offers two options for future energy generation in Springfield – constructing the coal-fired CU Southwest 2 plant at a cost of about $350 million, plus financing, or partnering with Nebraska-based Tenaska Energy Inc. to build a coal-fired facility in Oklahoma.

CU leaders hope to send the issue to voters on June 6.