skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Last Chance to Comment on Retiring Coal-Fired Power Plant

play audio
Play

Monday, October 5, 2015   

BOISE, Idaho – Today is the last day to put in your two cents worth with the Public Utility Commission on when Idaho Power should retire its coal-fired power plants.

The public comment period ends tonight on Idaho Power's latest 20-year plan, which it updates with the PUC every other year.

In it, Idaho Power says it is going to retire two coal-fired plants it co-owns with Sierra Pacific Power Company in Valmy, Nevada in 2025.

Zack Waterman, director of the Idaho Sierra Club, applauds the move to retire dirty power plants, but he says he'd like to see unit one shut down earlier, in 2019.

"According to Idaho Power's own analysis, shutting down Unit One of the coal plant would save ratepayers $75 million," he states.

Idaho Power says those savings would come from lower maintenance, capital and financing costs. However, the company would prefer to wait on the shutdown until 2025, the end of Unit Two's 40-year lifespan, in part because of uncertainty related to the federal Clean Power Plan.

That's also when the Boardman to Hemingway Transmission Line Project is scheduled to come into service, bringing in replacement power from wind farms in the Pacific Northwest.

Waterman wants people to tell the PUC to pressure Idaho Power to shut down North Valmy Unit One early, because it means burning less coal and releasing less carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

"We want folks to weigh in at the Public Utility Commission and tell our state regulators we want to save money by advancing coal retirements even earlier and that it's a huge opportunity for us to spend our energy dollars here in state while significantly reducing our carbon emissions," he states.

People can submit their comments to the Public Utility Commission online. The link and the case number are on the Idaho Sierra Club's website. The PUC will then vote on whether to accept Idaho Power's plans.



get more stories like this via email

more stories
A report from the Tennessee HealthCare Campaign recommended the federal government needs to strengthen 340B drug pricing and other federal negotiation mechanisms to make needed medicines more readily available and less expensive for hospitals to purchase and administer. (Spotmatikphoto/AdobeStock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A recent report examined how some rural Tennessee hospitals have managed to stay afloat despite financial challenges. The report includes interviews …


Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…


Nearly 13 million Americans receive health coverage through unique plans under both Medicare and Medicaid. They are known as Dual-Eligible Special Needs Plans. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …

Social Issues

play sound

A mix of policy updates and staffing boosts has helped to put wage theft enforcement on the radar in Minnesota, and officials leading the efforts are …

More than six in 10 Americans favor keeping the abortion pill mifepristone available in the U.S. as a prescription drug, while over a third are opposed, according to a Gallup poll. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

New research shows more than six in 10 abortions in the U.S. last year were medically induced, and U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto - D-NV - is …

Social Issues

play sound

Colorado is working to boost the state's agricultural communities by getting more fresh, nutritious foods into school cafeterias - and a new online …

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021