There's movement to close all coal-powered plants, but environmentalist groups like Sierra Club are also mobilizing resources to halt plans for gas-powered energy plants. CenterPoint Energy, among one of the companies whose coal power plants are being shut down, said their focus will primarily be on reducing emissions for the benefit of their customers and the environment. The company is also taking on board the costly removal of coal dust from the pits of their closing factories, complying with a 2015 federal rule. While the company wants to move to gas-powered plants, opposing parties sustain that the state, Indiana, already has gas-powered plants operating and, thus, they would not be necessary. Company representatives say the gas pipeline is needed to supply a fragile energy renewable network, but advocates argue that with new storage technology and increased renewable energy production the gas pipeline is not needed as a bridge, not to mention the negative environmental effects of methane as well as negative effects on our health.
Kari Lydersen, "As Indiana coal plants close, advocates say gas power should not replace them", contributed by Briana Leone, The Energy Rights Project, Platform for Experimental Collaborative Ethnography, last modified 3 August 2021, accessed 26 April 2024. https://energyrights.info/content/indiana-coal-plants-close-advocates-say-gas-power-should-not-replace-them
Critical Commentary
There's movement to close all coal-powered plants, but environmentalist groups like Sierra Club are also mobilizing resources to halt plans for gas-powered energy plants. CenterPoint Energy, among one of the companies whose coal power plants are being shut down, said their focus will primarily be on reducing emissions for the benefit of their customers and the environment. The company is also taking on board the costly removal of coal dust from the pits of their closing factories, complying with a 2015 federal rule. While the company wants to move to gas-powered plants, opposing parties sustain that the state, Indiana, already has gas-powered plants operating and, thus, they would not be necessary. Company representatives say the gas pipeline is needed to supply a fragile energy renewable network, but advocates argue that with new storage technology and increased renewable energy production the gas pipeline is not needed as a bridge, not to mention the negative environmental effects of methane as well as negative effects on our health.