A Big Concern

In April then Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius vetoed the state legislature’s fourth attempt to clear the way for Sunflower Electric to build two huge coal-fired power plants in the western part of the state.

Sunflower Electric's plan hinges on selling the coal plants' power to out-of-state utilities. The largest of those utilities is Colorado-based Tri-State Generation and Transmission.

Sunflower Electric CEO Earl Watkins recently repeated his argument that without cheap coal power, electric prices will rise for Coloradoans.

Now the new governor, Mark Parkinson, has made an agreement with Sunflower. They have agreed on one coal fired power plant and a wind farm. 85% of the power from this plant will go to Colorado but all of the pollution it produces will come to Kansas. What is our advantage for building this plant?

Under Sunflower’s plan, Kansas would end up with all the pollution and future CO2 liability from the coal fired plant, but very little of the power.

I urge my Kansas readers to contact their senators and state representatives and urge them to vote against this legislation. Such a plant...even one of them is only to the detriment of Kansas. Governor Sebelius was smart enough to know that and veto the entire plan. Some people up in Topeka have a reason for wanting this plant but it certainly is not to benefit Kansas.