Roderick Bremby, the Kansas official who blocked the proposed Sunflower coal plant on global warming and health grounds during the Governorship of Kathleen Sebelius, was forced out of office today by "Democratic" Governor Mark Parkinson in an election-day push designed to avoid media scrutiny.
The move is being seen by Kansans as a dirty-trick designed to please Big Coal and ram through a new plant most Kansans neither want nor need before the EPA steps in with new regulations.
The plant's power would largely be sent out of state, while the pollution would accumulate in state.
According to the Kansas City Star, who broke this news...
Bemby drew the attention of the nation in 2007 as the first state regulator to reject an air quality permit for a coal plant, declaring carbon dioxide emissions a public health risk. The Legislature later change the laws to allow the coal plant to be built.
Sunflower Electric Power Corp. is seeking a new permit and wants it approved before January, when new laws regarding greenhouse emissions will make the plant more costly to build.
http://www.kansascity.com/...
Here's more on the proposed proposed Sunflower expansion project and why the GOP legislature wants to avoid federal scrutiny.
In July, 2009 the federal Environmental Protection Agency notified the state of Kansas and Sunflower Electric, that a new air permit will be required before Sunflower can build a proposed dirty coal plant near Holcomb.
Inadequacies in the permit application identified by EPA casts doubt on the ability of Sunflower to obtain a legal permit to build the massive new dirty coal plant.
"Investors should take notice that this proposed dirty coal plant probably can't be economically built or operated," said Felix Revello of Western Kansas. "This project becomes more and more expensive for ratepayers in Colorado and Kansas," said Revello.
The Kansas Department of Health and Environment said the public has a legal right to review and comment on any new permit for the 895 MW coal-fired power plant. Those hearings have just concluded with nearly 6,000 public comments submitted for and against issuing the permit.
The review of those comments was about to begin.
Now it looks like the public process will be replaced by a power play by a governor operating on behalf of a coal power company and pro-coal Republicans in the legislature.
New Reporting here give more background
On Oct. 18, 2007, Bremby denied a permit sought by Sunflower Electric.
“I believe it would be irresponsible to ignore emerging information about the contribution of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases to climate change and the potential harm to our environment and health if we do nothing,” Bremby had said.
The Kansas Legislature, dominated by supporters of the project, tried to overturn Bremby’s decision with legislation, but each time was thwarted by vetoes by then-Gov. Kathleen Sebelius.
In 2009, Sebelius left Kansas to become secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
That elevated Lt. Gov. Parkinson into the governor’s job. Almost immediately Parkinson crafted a deal with Sunflower Electric to bless the project — in exchange for reducing it from two 700-megawatt units and getting legislators to approve renewable energy legislation.
The deal was done, and Sunflower re-entered the permit process. KDHE has announced issuance of a draft permit for the unit near Holcomb.
The last public hearing on the proposal was held last week.
http://www2.ljworld.com/...