Entergy pulls the plug on Little Gypsy Project
On Tuesday, October 27th, Entergy submitted a request to the Louisiana Public Service Commission to authorize Entergy to officially cancel the Little Gypsy coal conversion project. Earlier this year, Entergy officially placed the project on a three year hold due to high construction costs and lower natural gas prices. The existing Little Gypsy natural gas plant near LaPlace, Louisiana would have been converted to burn coal and petroleum coke.
Currently, many companies around the country are cancelling plans for coal plants because of both safety concerns and the potential economic impact of carbon regulations under the Obama administration.
“The present economic and environmental crisis in Louisiana emphasizes the need to look towards renewable energies and efficiency,” notes Jordan Macha, Sierra Club Conservation Organizer in Louisiana. “From the mining, to the coal ash, mercury and global warming pollution, coal is one of the dirtiest industries. The cancelation of the Little Gypsy project will hopefully demonstrate to other utilities that coal is not an option for Louisiana or the nation.”
Earlier this month, the Environmental Project Agency announced they would begin to regulate carbon dioxide emissions from large industrial sources, such as coal-fired power plants.
“We are pleased to see the return of science and the rule of law to the decision making process,” says Macha. “Americans have the know-how and the technology already, now there is the political will to achieve real pollution reductions.”
Across the nation, the Sierra Club Beyond Coal Campaign has been successful at stopping over 100 proposed coal plants, keeping well over 400 million tons of harmful global warming pollution out of the air annually, and making significant progress in the fight against global warming. As the new coal rush ends in Louisiana and across the nation, the Sierra Club is working to replace existing dirty and unreliable coal plants, which are large contributors to health harming soot, smog and mercury pollution, with cleaner energy options that create more jobs.
October 28th, 2009“The coal industry is still pushing forward with plans for dozens of new plants and pouring money into slick advertising campaigns and lobbying efforts, ” says Macha. “While the coal rush may be entering a new phase in some parts of the country, it is far from over.”
Topic: Green Growth, Green Street Tags: little gypsy coal
Readers’ Cork Board