Coal plan draws fire Activist seeks borough help May 8, 2007 By Russell Stigall/Frontiersman MAT-SU - The whole of the Mat-Su Valley will benefit, suffer or both from Matanuska Electric Association's proposed coal-fired and gas-fired electric generators. However, the co-op may not ask all Valley residents where, or even if, they want the generators. Local watchdog Bill Erickson spoke at the May 1 meeting of the Mat-Su Borough Assembly about this lack of representation. Like many Valley residents, Erickson is not an MEA member. “I'm speaking for those folks that aren't allowed a voice,” Erickson said. Erickson spoke in reference to MEA's selection process for the site the co-op will choose to build its generators. To get public input on possible sites, MEA has scheduled meetings for May 19 and May 24. Erickson said that only the person on the MEA account, the name on the electric bill, will be able to vote on the site ballot. Even a 24-year-old living at home would be denied a vote if his or her name is not on the bill. “I would suspect that hardly any of my senior citizen friends have a voice,” Erickson said. Though he and others will not be allowed to vote on the site selection, Erickson said they will still have to contend with the potential environmental fallout and quality-of-life side effects from the power plants. “It's everybody's grass, everybody's air, everybody's water,” Erickson said. “This is going to affect the Valley for the rest of our life, if it goes through.” Erickson was speaking about the mercury, sulfur and carbon dioxide emissions typical of a coal-fired generator. Mark Masteller, director of Alaska Center for Appropriate Technology, said MEA's proposed coal plant is yesterday's technology. “Similar to Bill Gates deciding to build typewriters,” Masteller said. Assembly member Bill Allen asked Erickson what role the borough would have in the coal-plant site selection. “You are our collective voice. You work for us and with us. You are our tool,” Erickson said. “You can give everybody their rightful voice. “Let's get together and resolve this thing, solve it together. I don't want to buy coal for the next 40 years,” Erickson said. To help give representation to all of the Valley's residents, Erickson has planned a renewable energy parade to be held near MEA's Palmer headquarters, at 163 Industrial Way. The parade is scheduled for Monday at 3 p.m., just before the monthly meeting of the MEA board of directors. “Help MEA go green,” Erickson said. Tim Leach, member of MEA Ratepayers Alliance, a group that opposes MEA's coal plan, is also not a member of MEA. He and Erickson asked the assembly to make a statement supporting the efforts of Mat-Su residents who are not able to cast a vote on MEA ballots. Michael Janecek, a Meadow Lakes resident and former MEA board member, said his family gets one vote, even though both he and his wife are listed as MEA members. “The bill comes to Michael Janecek and Gayle Janecek, but we only get one ballot,” Janecek said. The requirements for membership are in MEA's bylaws, which can be found at www.mea.coop. Assembly member Allen said the borough should be informed of the co-op's plans as they move forward. “Something of this magnitude, we need to go down this road together,” Allen said. Kluberton said the borough may be required to regulate MEA's coal plant proposal, which has the potential for land pollution and water pollution from the plant's smokestack fallout. “It's definitely in the borough's powers to weigh in on that,” Kluberton said. For more information about the renewable energy parade, contact Bill Erickson at 232-3153. Contact Russell Stigall at 352-2267 or russell.stigall@ frontiersman.com |