Rep. Henry Waxman (in photo), D-Calif., recently expressed concerns that a government agency helping to finance Sunflower Electric Power Corp.’s proposed Holcomb coal-fire plants had not adequately accounted for the costs of future carbon regulation.
In response, Kansas Senate President Steve Morris, R-Hugoton, and House Speaker Melvin Neufeld invited Waxman to tour the existing Holcomb plant.
Waxman declined in a follow-up letter last week, citing scheduling difficulties, but he restated his principal concern, asking “whether RUS (Rural Utilities Service) analyzed the financial risks associated with climate change when it agreed to allow Sunflower and its partners to take on $3.6 billion of new debt to build coal-fired power plant units with large greenhouse gas emissions. I am concerned that if this financially risky project faces costs that were overlooked in the initial financial assessment, American taxpayers and Kansas ratepayers will be left to make up the difference.â€
He added, “I’m sure you would agree with me that safeguarding taxpayer dollars is one of the most important responsibilities of elected officials.â€
32 Comments
So what would be different? Rate payers are already making up differences.
“He added, “I’m sure you would agree with me that safeguarding taxpayer dollars is one of the most important responsibilities of elected officials.”
—————-
Well that and your committee’s important investigation of the Rocket.
We need a congressional investigation into how the Defense Dept could think it proper to award a $40 billion contract to a French company which has no experience building tankers. I wonder if Sen. John McCain - again - had a role in denying this contract to Boeing? He single-handedly denied the contract the first time.
Waxman leave podunk KS along. We don’t need CA blackouts, high unreal taxes and social programs. In fact the rich people are leaving because of the Billions in CA debt they will have to pay for. We need the Sunflower plants without any carbon tax or emissions tax.
I’m sure out Governor Kathleen Sebelius has something to do with this intrusion into Kansas business. It’s not that I disagree with what he states, but it seems ironic that when Governor Sebelius seems to have her sights set on a cabinet post etc she now is pandering to the Washington Special interests instead of just the Kansas Special interests.
And exactly what did Waxman say about higher electric rates if wind and solar are mandated?
Uh, no Henry. In Kansas, safeguarding the campaign donations and business contributions into the coffers of the Kansas republican party and powerful legislators is THE most important job of elected officials.
Ratepayers and taxpayers be damned.
I love how conservative rural republicans are in favor of ethics.
Until they are not…
And on the subject of natural resources…
The Kansas Farm Bureau KNOWS what it wants in water policy.
Do you?
http://www.hdnews.net/Story/Schlageck030208
While thirsty sheeple sleep, the wolves are sucking the wells dry.
Yesterday there was a thread about economic development. One of the primary goals of E.D. should be to bring NEW money into a community and keep it circulating there.
Seems like the outdoors, which REQUIRES a clean environment, is the new booming businesses out west. Bringing in NEW money from… nonresident sportsmen and women. And outdoor shops are cropping up in towns near what used to be lakes.
Interesting comments from this local entrepreneur about what the lakes used to be and what they are now. And the out of state hunters? Heheheheheh.
I love how Kansas wants the money from out of staters like these big time outfitters and hunters.
But the opininons of out of state congresscritters not so much.
Cant have it both ways, now can we? These water sucking coal fired plants will drain what little is left of the aquifer and harm the environment that makes all this out of state (new money) business activity possible.
WE love us some economic development… until we dont.
http://www.hdnews.net/
“Daddy wont you take me back to Muhlenburg County, down by the Green River where Paradise lay. I’m sorry my son, but your too late in asking. Mr. Peabody’s coal train has hauled it away.”
Besides, if eighty percent of the power generated in Holcomb is going out of state, NOT building it shouldnt cause blackouts or brownouts in Kansas.
Unless..
They are artificially created, like they were in California when Enron was at the helm.
And doesnt selling the power out of state make it interstate commerce and put it under the scrutiny of the feds?
Hey Ksfarmgrrl: If its not too personal, are you in Kansas anymore? Something you said recently sounded like you might be in Texas again.
Yeah Wink, I’m here. I was in Texas for about a month visiting friends and enjoying the good life, but I’m back here now.
Sigh.
Ksfarmgrrl: Interesting. I know of a life-long Wichita businessman who recently packed it up and moved to Texas, perhaps to the San Antonio or Austin vicinity, I don’t remember which. And I’m not talking about the fellow who built Wild West World.
Republicans thinking about the short term? Gee, there’s a shock. Republicans think energy costs will be the same now as they will be 10 years from now, kinda like how George Bush is shocked that gas prices might go up to four dollars a gallon.
As basically a life long Kansan, I’m very concerned about the future of our great state. It seems like it is being attacked by large industries, ethanol and electrical power plants, with no interest in protecting the Kansas environment.
I’m a moderate Republican and never thought of myself as a tree hugger. But common sense tells me these industries are NOT sustainable without vastly deteriorating the livability of Kansas.
And our State Legislature seems confused about where and when to take a stand.
Apparently we need a state-wide KANSAS FRIENDS OF OUR ENVIRONMENT organization to stand up for the future of Kansas before its too late.
Wink, I agree we need such an organization, but the success of such would be limited. Too many in eastern Kansas are just FINE with letting western Kansas be the dumping ground for the rest of the state, and the nation. NIMBY, ya know?
They just dont get that what happens out here affects eastern Kansas too.
You are one of the few who gets it Wink. And I for one appreciate it.
The triange from Houston to San Antonio to Dallas includes the Austin-Temple-Killeen area too, and is the new Golden Triange of the southwest. More money and prosperity there than folks in Kansas can ever imagine.
Of course, they have the problems of dense population too. I looked at farm ground inside that triangle when I was down there.
MINIMUM of $15,000 per acre for RAW land. Crappy land for farming veggies too. Brazos River bottom land with nice black dirt was waaaaay more, in the $30,000 per acre range.
But, what’s the point of having 500 acres here that wont support me when I could make a living on five acres there?
AND the land is guaranteed to have enough water and appreciate in value every year. Here? Not so much…
It’s ALL about population.
Future carbon taxes aren’t the only problem for coal — transport costs are rising.
An example,
‘Fuel Charge Increased January 1′ [2008]
http://www.austinenergy.com/About%20Us/Newsroom/Press%20Releases/2008/fuelChargeHigher.htm
“The increase in the fuel charge was necessary for two reasons.
…
The second factor: Increased rail transportation costs for Austin Energy’s share of coal delivered to the Fayette Power Project. Austin Energy has benefited from a highly favorable coal transportation contract that expires this spring.
The cost of the new contract is expected to be significantly higher. Transportation represents about 70% of the delivered cost of coal.”
The first factor is some coal and nuclear plants will be offline for “several months”, for maintenance — more expensive nat-gas will have to be bought.
Lots of info on the issue,
‘Carbon Risk, Coal, and Higher Electricity Prices
Why coal-generated electricity will cost more than utilities claim’
http://www.ucsusa.org/clean_energy/fossil_fuels/carbon_risk.html
Ksfgrrl and Cosmos:
Remember, whatever you pay for good land, ten years from now it will be worth more. And will have been productive land.
Regarding the urban/rural split or JoCo vs Wichita split … I always questioned this. I was raised in Pratt but lived in JoCo for 30 some years.
I recall lots of people in the K.C. area who were raised out in the small towns of western Kansas. I recall a KC police commissioner who told me he was from Kingman. The founder of TWA was originally from Norwich and later Pratt. Lots of small town Kansans went to K-State and/or K.U. and on to K.C. Lots of Wichita people live in Johnson County.
Cosmos: What part of Wyoming does the coal come from? It seems logical to build the power plants there do cancel out the transportation costs. Especially since the power to be produced in western Kansas is NOT FOR KANSAS but for Denver and Texas as I understand it.
Of course, people who can work is a big part of the equation. Unfortunately, politicians can’t get it straight … a 1/2 billion dollar downtown arena is an impediment, not an attraction, for college educated young people today. Arenas should be built for university sports teams to draw on university populations. Its idiocy to build an arena for no purpose other than “build it and they will come.”
Waxman????? Who can even take that idiot seriously.
As if the bankrupt state of California doesn’t have enough problems now listening to that jerk.
We do not want to ever model our state on California or anything they do.
He can butt out.
And if we don’t do something logically like creating fossil fuel (oil and/or coal) power plants, we will be the victims of rolling blackouts like in California has been for more than 20 years now. And if we depend on wind power only, we will end up like Texas (becoming heavy into wind power) last week when a weather front came in and produced NO WINDS and shut their power system down.
“And if we don’t do something logically like creating fossil fuel (oil and/or coal) power plants, we will be the victims of rolling blackouts like in California has been for more than 20 years now.”
Bullsh*t. Kansas hardly has the power needs that are going to result in rolling blackouts. Between Jeffries and Wolf Creek, the power generation needs of eastern Kansas where 80 plus percent of the population is easily met, and in fact excess power is sold to other states. The Holcomb plants are being built to sell power to Colorado. The power plants are a bad idea, period.
“And if we depend on wind power only, we will end up like Texas (becoming heavy into wind power) last week when a weather front came in and produced NO WINDS and shut their power system down.”
Nobody’s proposing depending on “wind power” only. An outrageous straw man. Plus, the power system was not shut down in Texas.
http://www.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idUSN2749522920080228?feedType=RSS&feedName=domesticNews&rpc=22&sp=true
So what if most, if not all of the power, will be heading to Colorado. Is that not money in the pockets of the people of Kansas? Will they be employing people from Colorado or Kansas to build and operate this plant? Do you not think the cost of electricity might go up if we don’t build these plants? Could our local suppliers of electricity not decide on sending the juice to Colorado for the extra dollars they might be wanting to pay vs the prices we pay here?
Looks what’s happened with the foolish idea of using corn to create gasoline. Cost of food has gone up greatly, especially corn related foods as well as feed for livestock and fowl because of the big bucks for a subsidized program. No one mentions the fact that more water and power is needed to make a gallon of ethanol that a gallon of gasoline.
Then there are the bio-hazards from the creation of ethanol. The transportation of it is very dangerous too. Most fire departments are unable to fight a fire caused by a tanker full of the stuff crashes. Water and normal foam will not work on it.
CFL’s are another joke. For years EcoNuts scream about mercury in the ecosystem, yet it is now in the lights they want us to put in our fixtures. In fact these same EcoNuts want us to put them into our homes. Loads of poisonous mercury gas in our houses to save on the false global warming scam.
One of these CFL’s breaks in your house and you have a small HazMat situation that will be endangering your life, the life of your children and unborn babies. Clean up by vac’n up the mess will spread it. What decision do you make when you drop and break one on your carpet? Cut the section out of the carpet or let your little rug rat crawl and play on that carpet?
nunya123 posted March 2, 2008 at 5:50 pm
“Do you not think the cost of electricity might go up if we don’t build these plants?”
Actually, rates go up if they do build the plants. Where do you think the $3.6 BILLION comes from?
It’s cheaper to eliminate the need to build new plants, by cutting demand with higher end-use energy eficiency.
Not to mention more rate increases in the future, from carbon taxes on coal.
And are you unable to change a light bulb without breaking it?
The ultimate energy efficiency is not here though. It won’t be here for a very long time. What people are trying to do is play on the guilt of Americans for being productive, for having a great country that has done so much for as many people in our country and around the world as we have. Instead others want us to apologize for being a great country and to cut back on energy usage which helped us to grow into what we are now so we too can be a lesser country like them.
And yes Cosmo, I can change bulbs quite well. But I would guess anyone named “Cosmo” would be all worldly would never drop one while changing bulbs, like us normal folk have done in the past and will do in the future. But when you go to dispose of it, do you toss it into your trash can (inside or outside) and what happens when you toss something larger or heavier on it and it breaks? Or do you try to find some facility to deal with it? There are some states around the country where you have to take these bulbs to special locations to dispose of due to the HazMat issues.
Look at all the mercury that will now be introduced into the ecosystem. Is it a lesser issue than the so called global warming issue? Can you tell me why mercury suddenly a lesser evil than it was a year or two ago when people were complaining about it getting into the land and sea food chain? Are these people now saying our food chain is not as important as AlGore’s Global Warming religion?
nunya123,
Maybe you can explain why corporations like Wal-Mart are becoming more energy efficient. (Hint: it saves them money).
I save the CFL’s container, and when it burns out, put it back in and tape it closed. Then store the boxed CFL in a larger box, in a safe place. In maybe another 5 years, I’ll have enough to bother recycling.
Most of the mercury vapor is absorbed into the phosphor, glass, etc by the time it burns out.
Using a CFL instead of a tungsten bulb reduces the mercury emitted by a typical coal plant by about twice the amount inside the CFL.
The mercury emitted by the coal plant is literally ‘blowing in the wind’.
The mercury inside the CFL is contained, and easily recycled.
The biggest factor behind the California blackouts a few years back was manipulation by companies like Enron and Duke Power. After the “deregulation” brought about by Republican governor Pete Wilson the state’s utilities such as PG&E were required to sell off their generating capacity. They then bought power from those plants which now had out-of-state owners. These owners found that if they could create a shortage by shutting down plants they could charge as much as they wanted.
Enron took it a step further by transmitting power OUT of California and then back INTO California. That way they could charge even higher rates under the Byzantine rules that Pete Wilson had crafted. Since the collapse of Enron the California energy situation has been much more stable.
He added, “I’m sure you would agree with me that safeguarding taxpayer dollars is one of the most important responsibilities of elected officials.”
*****
woo hoo! good one, Rep. Waxman.
Apparently he never heard of Wolf Creek . . .
“Cost over-runs? Just charge it to Wichita.”
‘Efficiency, anyone?
Power plants’ costs doubled since 2000′
http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2008/2/29/1648/20431/
“So what if most, if not all of the power, will be heading to Colorado. Is that not money in the pockets of the people of Kansas? Will they be employing people from Colorado or Kansas to build and operate this plant? Do you not think the cost of electricity might go up if we don’t build these plants? Could our local suppliers of electricity not decide on sending the juice to Colorado for the extra dollars they might be wanting to pay vs the prices we pay here?”
A lot of rhetorical questions there. Econimies are based on resources, not just money. The most important resource for the Western Kansas economy is water, because the primary economic activity there is agriculture and that will not change. The employment at the plants is a tiny drop compared to the overall picture there. Most of the jobs will be temporary construction jobs. Using large amounts of water on a coal plant to sell power to Colorado, which is already taking water from Kansas, is economic stupidity.
“Looks what’s happened with the foolish idea of using corn to create gasoline. Cost of food has gone up greatly, especially corn related foods as well as feed for livestock and fowl because of the big bucks for a subsidized program. No one mentions the fact that more water and power is needed to make a gallon of ethanol that a gallon of gasoline.
“Then there are the bio-hazards from the creation of ethanol. The transportation of it is very dangerous too. Most fire departments are unable to fight a fire caused by a tanker full of the stuff crashes. Water and normal foam will not work on it.”
I don’t disagree that ethanol, particularly corn ethanol, is a boondoggle. Particularly because it has some farmers growing a high water needs plant in areas better suited to other crops (there is a reason why wheat has been a bigger crop in all but northeastern Kansas). However, it is hardly ethanol verses coal plants.
“CFL’s are another joke. For years EcoNuts scream about mercury in the ecosystem, yet it is now in the lights they want us to put in our fixtures. In fact these same EcoNuts want us to put them into our homes. Loads of poisonous mercury gas in our houses to save on the false global warming scam.”
On top of everything else that cosmos pointed out, I would point out that CFL bulbs are much sturdier that incandescent bulbs, therefore the breaks are much less likely.
Should be:
“On top of everything else that cosmos pointed out, I would point out that CFL bulbs are much sturdier that incandescent bulbs, therefore the breaks are much less likely to break.
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[...] Waxman to Kansas: Look out for ratepayers Rep. Henry Waxman (in photo), D-Calif., recently expressed concerns that a government agency helping to finance Sunflower Electric Power Corp.â??s proposed Holcomb coal-fire plants had not adequately accounted for the costs of future carbon regulation. In response, Kansas Senate President Steve Morr… [...]
[...] Original post by WE Blog [...]
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