The Bristol Herald Courier has come out against Dominion’s proposal to build a new dirty power plant in Wise County (VA). The paper’s editorial staff asks why residents of Southwest Virginia should risk their health just so that Northern Virginians can get more power.
The state’s dominant power company once again is trying to sell regulators and the public on the idea that yet another fossil-fueled generator is necessary all because Northern Virginia continues to grow.
While we completely agree with the Herald Courier’s position, we’d ask the question somewhat differently. Why should any Virginian, or any American for that matter, risk their health for the sake of more coal-fired electricity when there are cleaner and safer methods of producing the energy we all need?
You can look at “health” here from the perspective of coal’s contribution to global warming and the long-term health implications on humans from the effects of climate change. Or you can consider the overwhelmingly evidence against coal-fired generation in its impact on respiratory diseases.
The truth is we have to stop and say: Aren’t there better ways to promote economic growth and quality of life simultaneously?