Ian Katz
June 6, 2007
The state Public Service Commission on Tuesday unanimously rejected Florida
Power & Light Co.'s request to build a $5.7 billion coal-fired power plant on
the western edge of Lake Okeechobee that opponents said would emit toxic
mercury and harm the Everglades.
By voting 4-0 against the Glades County plant, the commission "made the
right decision for the environment, the right decision for the Everglades and
the right decision for Florida," Gov. Charlie Crist said in a statement.
But FPL President Armando Olivera said the decision could result in higher
electricity rates for customers.
"It also increases the likelihood of electricity disruptions in the event
that hurricanes in the Gulf of Mexico disrupt the natural gas supply to
Florida, as was the case with Katrina and Wilma in 2005," he said in a
statement.
FPL, the state's largest utility, said the plant would help meet future
electricity demands and allow FPL to diversify its fuel sources. It said about
half its fuel comes from natural gas, which is becoming more expensive.
FPL can ask the PSC to reconsider its ruling or appeal to the state Supreme
Court but said it had not decided whether it would do either.
The commission "ruled that FPL's proposal is not the most cost-effective
alternative," PSC Chairwoman Lisa Polak Edgar said in a statement.
The commission recognizes the need for greater fuel diversity and more
power generation, she said, but determined that the "potential benefits did
not mitigate the additional costs and risks of the project."
On May 25, the commission staff issued a primary recommendation agreeing
with the need for the plant.
The plant had been expected to create about 1,600 construction jobs a year
for almost five years, then 180 full-time jobs after it began to operate.
Environmentalists warned that the plant, which was to consist of two
980-megawatt generating units on almost 5,000 acres near Moore Haven, would
have contributed to global warming and posed a danger to the Everglades. They
said it would have dumped into the South Florida environment carbon dioxide
and mercury, a contributor to birth defects and neurological disorders.
FPL countered that the amount of mercury would have been negligible.
On Tuesday, environmentalists applauded the commission's ruling.
"This decision will reassure taxpayers that the billions we are spending to
restore the Everglades will not be undermined by allowing a huge new source of
pollution in this treasured wilderness," said Holly Binns, field director for
Environment Florida.
Stephen Smith, executive director for the Southern Alliance for Clean
Energy, said the group hopes that "FPL will finally get the message that
Floridians don't want any new coal-fired power plants in their state. It is
time that FPL get serious about investing in energy efficiency and clean
energy, which will not threaten the future health and safety of their
customers."
The South Florida Sun-Sentinel is a Tribune Publishing newspaper.
