Herald-Tribune out of sync with Democratic Party on clean coal

The Sarasota Herald-Tribune needs to check its press releases from the Democratic National Committee on clean coal technology. They are out of sync with the Democratic talking points.

In their editorial today, Rising price of clean coal they say, "It doesn't make sense to rely on "new" methods [clean coal] that are as detrimental as the old."

But wait, just this week Wednesday President Bush's Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman sent America's clean coal program back to square one when he tossed out the FutureGen low emissions coal gasification plant that the Bush administration has supported for the past five years.

What's this a Republican President killing a clean coal project? But wait it gets better.

According to Environment News Service, "The announcement raised howls of protest from the Illinois congressional delegation. Half the delegation declared in a letter to President George W. Bush Wednesday that they "have lost confidence in Secretary Bodman."

"We are writing today to urge you to keep FutureGen on track, so that this project can begin construction and become a reality," wrote the Illinois elected officials, including Senators Dick Durbin and Barack Obama, both Democrats, and Democratic Representatives Jerry Costello, Danny Davis, Rahm Emanuel, Phil Hare, and Jan Schakowsky, and Republicans Tim Johnson, Ray LaHood, and Peter Roskam.

This is a Mastercard moment, priceless. The liberal Herald-Tribune out of sync with Barack Obama, Dick Durbin, and Rahm Emanuel.

But seriously, Governor Charlie (coal killer) Crist has already signed into law the death blow to building any coal fired plant in Florida with his Executive Order 07-126, titled “Leadership by Example: Immediate Actions to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Florida State Government”; Executive Order 07-127, “Immediate Actions to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions within Florida”; and Executive Order 07-128, “Florida Governor’s Action Team on Energy and Climate Change.”

Since signing these Executive Orders, the FPSC reached a decision to not approve two, 980-MW, coal-fired plants proposed by Florida Power and Light in Glades County. In July, a group of community-owned, power entities (Florida Municipal Power Agency (FMPA), JEA, Reedy Creek Improvement District, and the City of Tallahassee) suspended permitting activities for the Taylor Energy Center, an 800-MW, coal-fired power plant proposed to be built in Taylor County, Florida.

In August [2007], the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) denied the site certification for Seminole Electric Cooperatives planned addition of a 750 MW, coal-fired unit at existing Seminole Generating Station in Florida.

In October Tampa Electric, the principal subsidiary of TECO Energy, announced that it will cancel plans to construct a coal plant in Florida. In July, the utility filed an application with the Florida Public Service Commission (FPSC) to demonstrate the need to construct the proposed 632-MW Polk Unit 6, a coal-fired power plant.

With the cancellation by Tampa Electric, roughly 4,150 MW of coal-fired generation planned to be operational in Florida before 2014 - i.e., over the next six years - will need to be replaced.

So Florida now has a 4,150 MW deficit in electrical power. And what is the Sarasota Herald-Tribune's solution, "In the quest for energy independence and a solution to global warming, conservation and the pursuit of alternative sources are the most promising avenues."

Read about human caused global warming here.

Conservation and alternative sources will never make up the 4,150 MW deficit we now have or future demands.

Alternative sources are wind, solar and bio-mass. Bio-mass means burning stuff - more CO2. Wind and solar are unreliable - when the wind stops blowing and clouds appear or night falls - no energy.

The solution - nuclear power. Let's see if the Herald-Tribune and Dr. Meg Lowman discuss this in an op-ed or editorial.

We are waiting.