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Question of the day

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* The Question: Your opinion about what Illinois should do with coal-fired power plants?

posted by Rich Miller
Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 3:00 pm

Comments

We are holding the whole world hostage over a couple hundred jobs that might be lost 25 years from now.

Comment by Ok Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 3:02 pm
Echoing OK’s comment. The discussion shouldn’t be what we should do with the coal plants. We should be discussing how to - as quickly as possible - replace their energy output with renewables and provide for those who worked in the plants.

Illinois should be burning no coal at the earliest date possible, not 2035.

Comment by Shibboleth Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 3:06 pm
Shut them down in 2035.

Comment by Perrid Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 3:07 pm
Stop kicking the can. Not the cheapest source in the generation stack anymore. Carbon capture failed miserably in Georgia. Senators holding this up are shooting themselves in the foot. Environmentalists agreeing to 2035 closure? Won’t find a better deal

Comment by Shut them Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 3:07 pm
What OK said. Or maybe (hopefully) sooner.

Comment by very old soil Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 3:08 pm
Regardless of anyone’s feeling about coal in general, these plants must be permitted to stay open long enough to pay off the debts to which they are obligated. At least stay open until 2045.

Comment by Southern Belle Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 3:11 pm
Close them. Make retraining for new jobs for the people affected. Why is this so difficult?

Comment by DMC Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 3:12 pm
If supply is available convert to natural gas as an interim step, possibly biogas which is becoming growing industry. Come up with a realistic transition plan to protect workers and re-employ them as clean energy alternatives are developed. Try to figure out some sort of relief for these munis that were conned.

Comment by Excitable Boy Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 3:18 pm
keep them open-Senate should find energy solutions for the entire state and all priorities - find the balance between jobs/reliability/sustainability. The coal plants may become obsolete economically before 2035 if the renewables become more cost-competitive. anyways.

Comment by Donnie Elgin Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 3:19 pm
While the idea of a moratorium on keeping nuclear plants open sounds like a thing-the closure dates were selected due to the need to order fuel for the plants next 2 year cycle. The refuel outages are scheduled in the fall for these sites and the need to click the button on fuel orders is very near.

Comment by RM Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 3:20 pm
Shut them down as soon as possible. They are public nuisances. Their owners made bad bets — they don’t get to keep the plants open indefinitely until they break even.

Comment by Keyrock Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 3:21 pm
The most recent CWLP generator was built (for $500m) in 2005 in spite of knowing of coals downturn, as a means of stopping the plant from being decommissioned in the future. All the more reason to shut it down. CWLP pays a fixed contract price to the Viper coal mine (out of state owned) at a rate that is 3x the cost of midwest basin coal. shutting down the CWLP plant tomorrow will save your electricity bill about 20% from day one, and it will help the environment.

Comment by Merica Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 3:22 pm
Shut them down in a quick and orderly fashion.

Comment by Collinsville Kevin Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 3:35 pm
There is no need to rush closing them… unless you have a rush to replace them with wind and solar. Keep building clean energy farms and the problem will take care of itself.

Comment by Ducky LaMoore Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 3:37 pm
Illinois should do nothing to help the existing coal plants. Put money behind good policies for clean energy, especially storage with renewables, and the coal plants close within 5 years because they are uneconomic. This whole fight is about the national environmental organizations wanting a big headline from a midwestern state; Pritzker wanting the same; Legislative leaders having to listen to diverse caucuses. Pritzker has two options: fund the Dems better than labor does (the Rauner route) and get to claim 100% victory; or take a 95% win and move on. For a smart guy, he’s not playing this game very well.

Comment by Glass half full Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 3:37 pm
Phase them out and retrain workers. We have record CO2 and global temperatures, manifesting in heatwaves, droughts, forest fires, storms, ice melt, etc. We have to start acting. We can get the money as a country to invest in retraining workers. Refusal to do so is a matter of desire, not ability.

Comment by Grandson of Man Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 3:41 pm
===and the coal plants close within 5 years ===

And you say the governor isn’t playing the game well? Take that to labor and see where it gets you. lol

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 3:43 pm
Let me see what my CWLP bill is projected to be and then I’ll let you know.

Comment by AD Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 3:49 pm
I’m fine with the 2035 closure date, though the sooner the better. Regardless of what happens in Springfield this session, it doesn’t seem likely the ancient Dresden plant will even last until 2035. The challenge is to incubate the next opportunities by investing in infrastructure, higher education and new technologies. And on a local government level, not to put too many of your ergs into one basket.

Comment by Earnest Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 3:49 pm
I’m baffled by JB expending so much political capital to kill off coal and gas. Why??? It must be all about policy, because politically it’s a loser. Environmental fanaticism will gain him no additional votes in Chicagoland but will cost him dearly downstate. Meanwhile, he still has done nothing whatsoever about all his campaign promises on healthcare, a state public option, etc. That was a big reason dem primary voters took a chance on him, and his broken promises on that will become a political vulnerability.

Comment by Anne's new advisor Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 3:56 pm
Maybe instead of Subsidizing very old and dangerous high cost to operate nuclear power plants and force the shutdown of new clean efficient coal plants we could simple institute a 3% Royalty on Coal like we have on fracked gas. Collect a few dimes for the GRF and end the corporate handouts.

Sounds like someone wants to maneuver a bunch of municipalities to the Bond market. A huge theft of wealth from Cities to Exelon. Nine years in on a 30 year debt service plan for $4 billion, how much is still outstanding? $3 billion?

Close the past their expected life nukes which export power and require a subsidy. Let the Prairie State plant run.

Comment by Al Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 4:00 pm
Let them convert to natural gas. Give them a credit on their state tax bills on their conversion expenses. Give them fast track priority on permits so the gas lines can be run without being held up by years and years of delays.

Comment by DuPage Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 4:08 pm
Shut them down by 2025. Retrain the workers by 2025.

Comment by Enviro Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 4:13 pm
It’s neat that not everyone who participates here seems to understand the problem that CO2 pollution poses and pretends like that isn’t a think that should be addressed.

We don’t have time to screw around. They should be shut down as soon as possible.

Comment by Candy Dogood Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 4:26 pm
They need to be closed. This issue should have been addressed years ago. As for Dresden, it’s been properly maintained and both units are ready for a license renewal. If they are closed, what are going to replace the loss capacity? More coal fired plants? As for renewables,as of yet, they are not a reliable source of energy.

Comment by South of I 80 Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 4:30 pm
Shut them down by 2035. The state is 6th in the nation for CO2 emissions. Stopping kicking the can down the road. Glad the “skinny” version of the bill isn’t going forward. Enough is enough. Get this done!

Comment by Polihack Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 4:31 pm
Leave them alone.

Hannity and Levin and Dennis Prager and formerly Rush told me fossil fuels are fine. God won’t let our planet melt.

Comment by don the legend Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 4:31 pm
Let them age out.

Comment by Blake Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 4:34 pm
Shut them down in a planned orderly fashion while simultaneously bringing renewable energy sources online. Those who want to keep them for “balance” are deluding themselves. Eventually, there will be balancing our ability to live in this environment with the use of dirty fuels.

Comment by Manchester Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 4:59 pm
I look forward to more renewables.
But I also know that Central and Southern Illinois does not have enough nuclear to be a bridge to green energy.
Especially if that means converting to electric vehicles and home heating and hot water heaters.
Maybe natural gas is cleaner in some ways than coal (let’s leave out fracking and whether methane leaks are adequately accounted for)…
But if the options are between keeping the two cleanest coal plants in the State while you wait for Illinois to get there or being 100% dependent on natural gas to get you there, I personally am terrified to rely only on gas.
February should have taught us that in Illinois when some towns spent a year’s worth of gas expenditures in a week.
And, of course, if you believe we are a long way off from having enough renewables, that also means running those electric vehicles off of out-of-state, dirtier coal plants.

Comment by Springfield Ratepayer Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 5:09 pm
To quote Chuck D from Public Enemy. Shut ‘em down, shut ‘em, shut ‘em down

Comment by BluegrassBoy Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 5:11 pm
But how will I charge my subsidized Tesla ?

Comment by Canary in the coal mine Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 5:21 pm
Let them phaseout through their normal projected existence. You need base power.

Comment by One of Three Puppets Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 6:11 pm
It appears that a legislature-forced early closure of the Marissa coal-fired plant is inevitable in the next few years. For some Democrats and environmentalists this will be a cause for joy. For some consumers in small communities like ours that draw power from this plant, it may eventually cause higher electric costs. So be it. There will still be millions, if not tens of millions, of bond costs to pay off for a plant forced to close by state government. So will the state appropriate funds to pay that debt? Unlikely. Or will the General Assembly pass a bill to abrogate the debt, leaving the company and the stockholders holding the bag (of worthless bonds)? I doubt it. What a mess.

Comment by Motambe Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 6:21 pm
===because politically it’s a loser. Environmental fanaticism will gain him no additional votes in Chicagoland but will cost him dearly downstate===

This seems to be the wrong analysis on all counts. There are few votes downstate for him to lose, and cutting CO2 is a big winner with most Dems and Chicago in particular.

Comment by Jibba Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 9:02 pm
Sad that this has become so emotional and opinionated that facts have been replaced by sound-bytes, and true costs glossed over.
Maybe just as well to take a breath
Seems like all sides are saying aok, as long as someone else pays?

Comment by Joe Tuesday, Jun 15, 21 @ 11:58 pm
Cut all of the financial portions of the deals in 1/2 and stop the soaking of the rate payers for the emotional demands of some. Give the plants hard date closures of 20 years or so and move on. Look no further than Houston or California last year and see what over restrictive policies did to consumers.

Comment by NorthsideNoMore Wednesday, Jun 16, 21 @ 7:42 am
“Coal ash, the waste from burning coal, has contaminated groundwater in Illinois around both active and closed coal plants with arsenic, boron, sulfate, and other chemicals. A 2018 report by Environmental Integrity Project and other environmental groups found widespread pollution in groundwater around 22 of the state’s 24 coal ash plants.”

Comment by Enviro Wednesday, Jun 16, 21 @ 7:44 am