Austin Energy is going public with its generation plan proposal. Starting on Tuesday at 6 pm utility administrators will present their vision of Austin’s energy future during an open town hall meeting at AE headquarters at Town Lake Center (721 Barton Springs Road). Previously, the utility’s General Manager Roger Duncan and senior staff briefed City Council and the Mayor’s office and various city advisory groups on their proposal to supply electricity to AE’s 400,000 customers until 2020.
The current version of Austin Energy’s “Recommendation for the Resource and Climate Protection Plan” would add more wind and solar power than originally planned and increase energy efficiency measures. However, the utility also recommends a continued dependence on coal-power with no end in sight. PowerSmack.org is urging policy makers to take into consideration the rapidly rising direct costs of coal power along with the significant hidden environmental, public health and economic costs associated with the world’s dirtiest fuel.
“The question is: How long can we afford to stay in coal power”, says Mike Sloan, founder of PowerSmack.org. He points out that the costs for energy production from Austin Energy’s own coal-fired power plant have risen significantly just in the last year: “Maintenance costs at the Fayette Power Project are up 12.5 percent. Fuel costs for coal are up 73 percent. And now we are in the process of installing emissions reduction equipment, which costs us hundreds of millions of dollars, but the coal plant will remain by far the city’s dirtiest power source.“
Matt Johnson from the consumer rights organization Public Citizen says: “Austinites do not have to abide by continued reliance on coal-fired power. It is import for Austin Energy’s decision makers to hear from citizens who want a truly green utility. This town hall meeting is one of the last opportunities for the public to comment and ask questions on Austin Energy’s generation plan. Don’t pass it up.”
Want to learn more and make your voice heard? Participate in Austin Energy’s town hall meeting at Town Lake Center (721 Barton Springs Road) from 6 pm to 8:30 pm on Tuesday, September 1. If you can’t make it, visit the second meeting at City Hall on September 23 from 6 pm to 8:30 pm.
