Resolutions

A few weeks ago we acquainted you with the coal fight going on in Wise County, Virginia. Folks there are fighting a 585 megawatt coal plant tooth and nail, just like folks are here in South Carolina.

As the saying goes, “the truth will out.” Now the Bristol Herald Courier, a local newspaper in the region, is on to it. Initially assured by utility company propaganda about jobs and economic benefits, the paper supported the plant. But a little research was enough to convince it that what the Wise Energy for Virginia folks were saying all along was the real truth: coal is bad for health, bad for the environment, bad for economic development. Now they oppose the plants construction. Read about it here.

Now the same might be happening in South Carolina. On January 1st, a time for new year’s resolutions, the Myrtle Beach Sun News, formerly a supporter of Santee Cooper’s proposed coal plant, printed this:

We … are considering whether to continue our early support of the Santee Cooper coal-fired power plants proposed for the banks of the Pee Dee River in Florence County. Support for atmospheric carbon reduction makes no sense unless you're willing to act locally on the problem - especially when other alternatives may ensure local ratepayers a power supply adequate to their lifestyles.

Just like Dominion Power's proposed coal-burner up in Wise County, Virginia, the Pee Dee coal plant is not a boon to the Pee Dee. We’ve been pointed that out for a while now; and we’re resolved to continue doing so in the new year. Now it looks like others are coming along. The truth will out.