Supporters, critics air views during hearing on carbon proposal

Supporters, critics air views during hearing on carbon proposal
Posted: July 29, 201 4 - 1 0:54 pm | Updated: July 30, 201 4 - 1 2:31 am

By WALTER C. JONES

ATLANTA — Downtown Atlanta took on a circus atmosphere Tuesday as groups on both sides of a proposed federal rule on
carbon emissions staged rallies, held press conferences and paraded activists before microphones to testify during an all- day
public hearing.
Staff from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency listened for 11 hours as dozens of witnesses took turns giving five-
minute testimonies in each of two rooms about their views of the complex proposal.
Business, farm and labor groups, senior- citizens' advocates and conservative regulators from Georgia and nearby states
described the proposed rule as too restrictive and unrealistic, arguing that current technology would be unable to meet its
requirements and that state regulation is already sufficiently reducing carbon emissions from power plants.
"Please leave us alone," Georgia Public Service Commissioner Lauren "Bubba" McDonald said. "We see the goals ourselves
and know how to achieve them."
They also warned that reducing reliance on carbon- producing coal for electricity generation would result in higher costs for
power and other fuels like natural gas, which is critical in producing fertilizers for food production.
"Now the people I represent don't understand kilowatt hours. They don't understand the technical side of what (the EPA) is
trying to do," said Mississippi state Sen. Kenneth Wayne Jones, D- Canton. "They don't understand the political side of what
we're dealing with. But they do understand when a utility bill is too high to pay."
Small- business owners, like Chris McCorkle of McCorkle Nurseries outside Augusta, said electricity is his second- largest
expense behind payroll.
"Our concern is that by adding costs to energy, it will impede our growth," he said.
But environmental activists said the rule should actually be tougher, with tighter deadlines for compliance, because carbon
emissions contribute to asthma suffering and climate change that is raising both temperatures and sea levels in Georgia.
Ashten Bailey, a staff attorney for the GreenLaw firm, compared the technological challenge of meeting the proposed
emissions limits to the space race.
"I n 1960, no human had even been in outer space, and a mere nine years later, the U.S. had landed an astronaut on the
moon," she said.
Bailey said every Georgian receiving electricity from Plant Scherer near Forsyth — the country's largest coal- burning power
plant — has a responsibility for reducing its emissions by switching to renewable sources or conservation. She quoted the
American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy's estimate that Georgians could reduce power generation 24 percent
through increased efficiency.
Steve Smith, a veterinarian who heads the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, testified that he is confident the technology
will be available when the proposed deadline demands it.
"Why, if we have the tools to address the problem, would we not apply it?" he said.
The hearing in Atlanta continues today. Additional public hearings will be held in Denver, Washington and Pittsburgh. After
taking public comments, EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy intends to consider modifications of the rule before formally
putting it into place.
Follow Walter Jones on Twitter @MorrisNews and Facebook or contact him at walter.jones@morris.com.