EPA
releases Desert Rock public comments: No time line yet
on final air permit for proposed power plant
By Lisa Meerts The Daily Times
Article Launched: 05/04/2007
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
has compiled and released about 1,000 comments on the
draft air permit for the proposed Desert Rock Power
Plant, which would be located in Burnham on the Navajo
Nation.
The majority of statements came from area residents,
agencies and businesses, including the New Mexico Environment
Department, BHP Billiton, Dooda Desert Rock, the Southern
Ute and Ute Mountain Ute tribes and project owner Sithe
Global. Many municipalities in Colorado sent letters,
among them La Plata County and Cortez. Even the mayor
of Aspen added her input.
Colleen McKaughan, associate director
for the Air Quality Division of Region 9 EPA, said she
had no idea how long it would take the agency to respond
to all the comments. Until it accomplishes that task,
it cannot move forward and issue a final air permit.
"We are still reviewing and replying
to the comments. I cannot tell when it will be done,"
she said.
The air permit sets limits for emissions
covered under the federal Clean Air Act, such as sulfur
dioxide, nitrogen oxide and particulate matter. The
draft permit contains some of the strictest controls
set for a coal-fired power plant in the U.S.
The proposed 1,500-megawatt Desert Rock
Power Plant would be the third coal-fired power plant
in San Juan County. It would cost $3 billion to build,
permanently employ 400 people and employ as many as
1,000 during the four-year construction phase. The Diné
Power Authority, a Navajo Nation enterprise, and Houston-based
Sithe Global have partnered on the project, which could
begin construction as early as next year.
Area residents expressed concern about
pollution in their comments and asked the EPA to reconsider
how it performed air modeling. They urged the EPA to
memorialize a voluntary agreement from Sithe Global
to invest in regional clean-up projects in a formal
document. Some pushed the EPA to consider Integrated
Gasification Combined Cycle technology.
Frank Maisano, a spokesman for Sithe
Global, called a plethora of similar comments opposing
the plant an administrative form of spam, or multiple
e-mailing, and said they neglect to consider the benefits
of the plant. It will set an example for other coal-fired
power plants by being clean, he said, and it will allow
the Navajo Nation to turn its coal into a real economic
opportunity.
Lisa Meerts: lmeerts@daily-times.com
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