Commentary EPA’s Clean Power Plan scrutinized I
Chris Meyers General Manager, Oklahoma Association of Electric Cooperatives
n 2008, recently retired Congressman John Dingell (D-Mich), one of the original authors
of the Clean Air Act, pre- dicted a “glorious mess” if the issue of climate were dealt with under the ex- isting Clean Air Act. He argued climate needed its
own customized legislation, approved by Con- gress. He was absolutely correct, as this “glorious mess” of regulating carbon dioxide emissions un- der the Clean Air Act is well under way. Last
June, the Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) proposed a set of rules under sec- tion 111(d) of the Clean Air Act, commonly re- ferred to as “The Clean Power Plan.” The proposed rules are intended to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from electric power generation sources by 30 percent from 2005 levels, by the year 2030. Oklahoma’s electric power providers would be required to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 35 percent. The EPA has announced it will issue fi nal rules this summer. The Clean Power Plan faces many challenges going forward. The immediate challenges are centered on questions of law. The U.S. Supreme
Court is hearing oral arguments over whether the EPA has authority to move forward under the Clean Air Act to proceed with the rule. Among those making arguments against EPA’s authority are 17 state attorneys general, including Oklahoma’s Scott Pruitt.
Beyond the immediate question of legality, there are serious concerns about the plan’s im- pact on cost and reliability. By dramatically changing the electric generation resource mix over a relatively short time, assets will be strand- ed. Large investment in plants, pipeline infra- structure and transmission infrastructure will be required—all of which gets passed on to the con- sumer. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), National Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC), Southwest Power Pool (SPP) and state public utility com- missioners across the country are looking at grid reliability issues.
From the beginning, cooperatives have op-
posed the Clean Power Plan—primarily for af- fordability and reliability reasons. More than 1.2 million cooperative members have sent a mes- sage to EPA requesting that they scrap this un- workable plan and start over with something we can afford. It has become a “glorious mess.”
Oklahoma Association of Electric Cooperatives Chris Meyers, General Manager Jimmy Taylor, President
Kendall Beck, Vice-President Gary McCune, Secretary Scott Copeland, Treasurer
Staff
Sid Sperry, Director of PR & Communications
sksperry@oaec.coop
Anna Politano, Editor
editor@ok-living.coop
Daniel Yates, Advertising Manager
dyates@ok-living.coop
Kirbi Mills, Offi ce Manager
kmills@oaec.coop
Hillary Barrow, Offi ce Manager Assistant
hbarrow@oaec.coop
Hayley Leatherwood, Multimedia Specialist
hleatherwood@ok-living.coop
Alexis Mellons, Advertising Intern
adintern@ok-living.coop
Taryn Sanderson, Editorial Intern
intern@oaec.coop
Editorial, Advertising and General Offi ces P.O. Box 54309, Oklahoma City, OK 73154 Phone (405) 478-1455
Oklahoma Living online:
www.ok-living.coop Subscriptions
$3.12 per year for rural electric cooperative members.
$6.00 per year for non-members. Cooperative Members: Report change of
address to your local rural electric cooperative. Non-Cooperative Members: Send address
changes to Oklahoma Living, P.O. Box 54309, Oklahoma City, OK 73154-1309.
Success achieved with teamwork I
Jimmy Taylor President, Oklahoma Association of Electric Cooperatives
4
coached my son’s youth basketball team for nine years. During that time period we played in seven different states and participated in five national tourna- ments. One year we had the privilege of being na- tional champions and on
another we were national runner-up. We were usually not the biggest, fastest, most athletic team in the gym. In fact, based on our size and appearance, we often were the team that others wanted to play. Our team was made up of players who realized
that everyone needed to contribute for us to win. As a result, by thinking ‘team fi rst,’ the players ended up making each other better. They worked as a team and therefore the sum was greater than the parts.
Much can be accomplished with good team- work. Our statewide organization, the Oklahoma Association of Electric Cooperatives (OAEC), is an excellent example of teamwork and cooperation. The 30 cooperatives that make up OAEC work together on such things as legislative and regula- tory issues, communications, advertising, safety and loss control, training and education, among many other programs. By working together we have a much louder voice and realize cost savings that would not be possible if each of us tried to do these things on our own. Good teamwork is essential to success in any endeavor. It doesn’t seem possible that it has been a full year since I began writing these editorials. This will be my last one as my term as president is about to end. I have really enjoyed communicat- ing with co-op member-owners in this manner. It has been an honor and a privilege to serve as your OAEC president.
Oklahoma Living (ISSN 1064-8968),
USPS 407-040, is published monthly for consumer-members of Oklahoma’s rural electric cooperatives by the Oklahoma Association of Electric Cooperatives, 2325 E. I-44 Service Road, P.O. Box 54309, Oklahoma City, OK 73154-1309.
Circulation this issue: 321,804
Periodical postage paid at Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The Oklahoma Association of Electric
Cooperatives is a statewide service organization for the following electric cooperatives: Alfalfa, Arkansas Valley, Caddo, Canadian Valley,
Central Rural, Choctaw, Cimarron, Cookson Hills, Cotton, East Central Oklahoma, Harmon, Indian, KAMO Power, Kay, Kiamichi, Kiwash, Lake Region, Northeast Oklahoma, Northfork, Northwestern, Oklahoma, Ozarks,
People’s, Red River Valley, Rural, Southeastern, Southwest Rural, Tri-County, Verdigris Valley, and Western Farmers Electric Cooperative.
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