By Holly Van Woerkom

They called it the "No Coal Express."

Twenty-one Utah residents, including two BYU students, traveled more than 200 miles Wednesday to attend a public hearing in Ely, Nev., on a proposed coal-fired power plant in that area.

The group of Utahns traveled in a biodiesel-powered charter bus to attend the hearing, sponsored by the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection to evaluate a permit application for the construction of a coal-fired power plant called Ely Energy Center.

The plant would include two 750-megawatt coal-fired pulverized units and a 250mile transmission line, and would be located in northern Nevada, approximately 30 miles north of Ely.

The hearing lasted about four hours, with all of the Utah residents expressing opposition to the coal plant, citing the potential harm to the health of Utah residents who live downwind of the coal plant.

"We were 'down winders' once from decades of nuclear weapon testing in Nevada, and now the state is considering licensing thousands of tons of pollution that will further deteriorate our already impaired air, cause serious health impacts, and will deteriorate the state's five national parks," said Time Wagner, director of the Smart Energy Campaign for the Utah Chapter of the Sierra Club. "Down winder, Chapter Two is not acceptable."

BYU students Jess Myers and Ashley Coleman, who learned about the "No Coal Express" through the Utah Valley Sierra Forum, were eager to stand up and express their opposition to the project. They were among dozen young people at the hearing of nearly 200 people.

"We wanted to represent BYU because this is going to directly affect our health and our children's health," Coleman said. "We wanted to go to the hearing to represent the future generation, and I'm sure more BYU students would have come if they knew about it."

Before the hearing, NDEP officials made it clear that the purpose of the hearing was solely to receive technical comments regarding the permit submitted by Sierra Pacific Resources.

"The hearing will not be a town meeting on whether they oppose or support the construction of the plant, and it won't be a forum to air concerns about greenhouse gas emissions and global warming," said Greg Remer, chief of the Nevada Bureau of Air Pollution Control, in a news release.

Over the course of the hearing, however, attendees expressed strong opinions for and against the construction of the plant. The presence of the Utah citizens was a significant topic of discussion.

"This is a plan for energy-hungry and water-hungry Las Vegas to get relatively inexpensive energy - inexpensive in the sense that all of the harm and damage done to human beings and the environment is not factored in," said James Westwater, chairman of the Utah Valley Sierra Forum. "That's what makes it cheap. Las Vegas is growing, growing, growing, and it wants cheap energy from burned coal."

Westwater pointed out that Nevada is an ideal place for renewable, clean sources of energy such as solar and geothermal energy, which would be a better solution for the health of Nevadans and Utahns and for the environment.

According to Sierra Pacific Resources spokesman Mark Severts, however, the Ely Energy Center will be "the cleanest coal-fired power plant in the nation."

Some supporters of the coal plant argued that Utah residents' concern about coal burning in Nevada is hypocritical. As stated by a presenter at the hearing, about 90 percent of Utah's energy comes from coal, compared to Nevada's 15 percent.

"Utah is dependent on coal and it benefits from coal, so why should they fight a neighbor from becoming more energy independent?" Severts said. "They really need to focus on their own energy."

"We are not the ones supporting coal-burning power plants in our own backyard," Westwater countered. "We don't support it here in Utah, we don't support it in Nevada, we don't support it anywhere, so please don't blame us. ... We can do better, we should do better, and we must do better, or else we will face catastrophic consequences."

The White Pine County Board of Commissioners has passed a resolution in support of the Ely Energy Center, and so has Elko County. Many residents of Ely view the Ely Energy Center as a prospective solution to their county's desperate economic situation.

In approximately six months, the Nevada Bureau of Land Management will draft an Environmental Impact Statement, which will assess potential impacts that the Ely Energy Center could have "on human, natural and cultural resources, as well as determine what measures would be necessary to mitigate or reduce any impacts." Those wishing to comment on the proposed power plant, have until Jan. 23 to submit their opinions to the NDEP.

Copyright Brigham Young University 15 Jan 2008