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Clean Wisconsin Pressroom

STATEMENT By Executive Director, Mark Redsten
Ocotober 19, 2007

Signs of the times: coal-fired power plants fall out of favor due to global warming liability

(Madison/WI) The top regulator for Kansas Department of Health and the Environment yesterday denied the permit for a coal plant proposed for western Kansas citing concerns about global warming.

Noting that the Cassville, WI, coal-fired power plant proposed by Alliant energy is significantly less efficient in terms of global warming emissions than that proposed by Sunflower Electric Power Corp., Clean Wisconsin Executive Director made the following statement:

"The coal-fired power plant proposed by Sunflower Electric Power Corp. is just the latest in a string of power plants rejected due to concerns regarding global warming pollution. The U.S. Department of Energy last week released its report on pending coal plants: at least 16 coal-fired power plant proposals nationwide have been scrapped in recent months and more than three dozen have been delayed as utilities face increasing pressure due to concerns over global warming.

If we look closer to home, here in Wisconsin the coal-fired power plant that Alliant Energy is proposing is actually less efficient than Sunflower Electric's rejected proposal. Alliant has chosen to use a technology that would emit higher rates of global warming pollution than any other technology available to them. In fact, the new coal plant would emit more global warming pollution per unit of energy than their existing facility which was built nearly 50 years ago.

As Wisconsin plans for its energy future, it needs to consider — as other states are — that the outdated technology proposed by Alliant represents a serious liability not only in terms of global warming pollution, but also to Wisconsin's public health and environment."

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Clean Wisconsin, an environmental advocacy organization, protects Wisconsin's clean water and air and advocates for clean energy by being an effective voice in the state legislature and by holding elected officials and corporations accountable. Founded in 1970 as Wisconsin's Environmental Decade, Clean Wisconsin exposes corporate polluters, makes sure existing environmental laws are enforced, and educates citizens and businesses. On behalf of its 10,000 members and its coalition partners, Clean Wisconsin protects the special places that make Wisconsin such a wonderful place to live, work and play. Phone: 608-251-7020, Fax: 608-251-1655, Email: info@cleanwisconsin.org, Website: www.cleanwisconsin.org.