$1 billion Riesel coal plant to go online after lawsuit, damage

[TexasTowelie]

The Sandy Creek coal power plant is being fired up sporadically for testing and is set to go online full-time in April, more than a year later than planned.

During the testing phase, the $1 billion plant is selling electricity into Texas’ power grid, but its contracts with wholesalers won’t go into effect until the plant is ready to run 24 hours a day, project officials said.

The plant’s boiler was badly damaged when it overheated during testing in late 2011, but that damage has now been repaired, said Mike Vogt, project manager for LS Power, which owns the plant.

In the meantime, the testing has given Riesel residents a preview of the plant’s operations. When it’s fired up, residents can see the smokestacks putting out billows of steam.

More at http://www.wacotrib.com/news/191152751.html .

[mbperrin]

1. Ummm, they're called SMOKEstacks for a reason.

Burning coal emits smoke, among other poisons. Just about the filthiest form of energy, except for nuclear.

Quite stupid in the wind capital of the US to allow one of these belching monsters to poison the air, split the eardrums, and use up the water.

[TexasTowelie]

2. I don't know if you saw this article from about a year ago:

http://stateimpact.npr.org/texas/2012/01/24/what-happened-at-the-sandy-creek-power-plant/

The article was featured in the Texas Tribune and I'm reasonably certain that it was posted on DU. If I can locate it in a search then I will post the link to the thread.

Some friends of mine have a second home in Riesel and I have driven through the town. I wonder how they feel about that plant nearby? The property might sell for more now that it brought jobs to area. However, the tradeoff in the quality of life, environmental effects and other social effects (increased prices and wait times) don't yield many benefits to the people that were previous residents.

[mbperrin]

3. Thanks, I didn't see it. All this coal business is crappy. For the people who live near

the mines, too. I worked in Gillette, Wyoming for a year back in the 70s, and the world's largest strip coal mine is there.

(I think there's some unintended irony in the story, when it calls the mine "breathtaking", because that's exactly what all that dust in the air does - takes the breath away.)

http://wondersofwyoming.com/wyodak-coal-mine/

[TexasTowelie]

4. Oddly enough, I have relatives in Wyoming also.

My brother-in-law is a geologist and a manager of a uranium mine near Rawlins. He started there in the late 80s.