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Coal provides energy for East Texas, but new EPA rules could make it more costly

Now, as Luminant’s Liberty coal mine enters into full production as other mining operations wind down, and as Texas faces another summer of high energy demands to power a growing economy, it’s all about that balance again.

The EPA is preparing a new set of rules that could affect coal-fired electrical generation, including facilities such as the Martin Lake Power Plan. Those new rules could be issued as soon as this summer.

In Texas — unlike in California and some other states — electricity is cheap and dependable. The EPA’s Clean Power Plan could undermine that, since 37 percent of the electricity in Texas comes from coal-fired power generation.

“We have the most competitive energy market in the U.S.,” Leigh Thompson, of the Texas Public Policy Foundation, said. “It keeps our prices down. California, for example, pays two and three times more.”

Those proposed EPA rules could force a number of power plants to close.

“We’re one of the cleanest burning operators, but with the EPA rules we would have to shut 19 to 25 units,” Ms. Thompson said. “The million dollar question is what that would do to our capacity. The plants that would likely be forced to close would start to retire early because they couldn’t make the upgrades economically. We think that would be about 16,000 megawatts, and we wouldn’t have backup. It would really affect our grid stability.”

At Martin Lake, Plant Director Wayne Harris wanted to talk about those proposed rules — and the stringent rules already being followed to the letter.

“Martin Lake, like all of Luminant’s plants, meets or exceeds the rules and laws of our state and nation regarding emissions,” he said.

At times, he said, the plant’s stacks do emit what looks like smoke.

“People should always be mindful that what they may see is really water vapor that’s a byproduct of the environmental control processes,” he said.

Martin Lake employs scrubbers to reduce sulfur dioxide, burners to cut down the nitrous oxide, electrostatic systems to reduce particulates, and injection systems to cut down on mercury, he said.

But coal is coal, and there are many concerned about its effect on the environment.

In related news, 21 confirmed dead in north China coal mine flood.
EMISSIONS

Luke Metzger is head of Environment Texas. In a paper his group put out last fall, he pointed out that the state’s coal-fired power plants generate as much emissions “as the entire country of Egypt.”

“When power plants here in Texas create as much pollution as an entire country, we know the climate’s in trouble,” he said.

He added that Texas is the nation’s No. 1 emitter of greenhouse gases from power generation, and said Martin Lake is the biggest emitter in the state.

“Ranked 8th in the nation, Martin Lake released 16.3 million metric tons of carbon dioxide in 2012, the emissions equivalent of 3.5 million cars,” his agency claimed.

Luminant counters that modern coal-burning operations are clean, reliable and — at least for now — the only choice. Wind energy and other renewable forms show promise, but they’re not yet to the point where they’re abundant and dependable enough to replace coal-fired plants.

“The EPA’s proposed Clean Power Plan doesn’t reflect the reality of electricity generation and supply,” Luminant spokesperson Brad Watson said. “The proposals the EPA put forward are unlawful and simply unworkable in light of the reality in which electricity is generated, distributed and used. Power costs would certainly go up. An analysis by NERA Economic Consulting on the impact in Texas projected costs increasing 25 percent for residential consumers, commercial customers 31 percent and for industry 26 percent.”

The Texas Public Policy Foundation’s Ms. Thompson agreed.

“You’re looking at the likelihood of brownouts,” she said. “That hurts everyone. And electricity costs start skyrocketing. The poorest are hit the hardest, especially people on fixed incomes. They’re in a bind. They might have to choose whether to buy food or electricity. If they can’t use the heat, can’t cool their homes, that causes problems.”

ERCOT — the Electric Reliability Council of Texas — has studied the Clean Power Plan, and said the proposed rules are unrealistic, particularly in terms of how quickly the state’s power grid could be upgraded.

“There is a natural pace of change in grid resources due to advancing cost effective technologies and changing market conditions,” ERCOT reported. “This pace can be accelerated, but there is a limit to how fast this change can occur within acceptable reliability constraints.”

ERCOT said there must be a balanced approach to cleaning up coal in Texas.
MINING

Martin Lake is surrounded by coal mines, both active and now-retired. The newest is the Liberty Mine, which is in its first full year of production. It’s a “mine-mouth” operation, meaning that all the coal mined nearby goes straight into Martin Lake furnaces. The Texas lignite, dug from the Wilcox Seam, is supplemented with coal brought in by train from the Powder River Basin in Montana.

Huge drag lines scrape off topsoil and set it aside, allowing access to the coal at various depths. The first seam of coal is just a few feet down, and only a foot or two thick. The main seam is 20 feet below that, and it’s about four to five feet thick. And 10 feet under that, there’s a third seam, from two to three feet thick.

When the coal has all been dug, the topsoil goes back on.

“Before Luminant ever breaks ground at a mine site, a plan is in place to reclaim the land’s topography, soil, vegetation, water resources and wildlife habitat,” said Dan Darr, Luminant Oak Hill Mine senior mine environmental specialist. “We’ve been doing that even before the law required it, and we’re committed to returning the land to productive post mine uses,”

Since 1975, he said, it has reclaimed more than 75,000 acres and planted more than 36 million trees, including more than 1.2 million trees in 2015.

And Luminant does it well enough that last year, when the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department was looking to repopulate Texas with the beloved Eastern wild turkey, it chose the retired Oak Hill Mine at Martin Lake. A total of 80 turkeys were brought to Rusk County and released.

“Large acreage sites with the right mix of forested and open habitat are unique in East Texas, and Oak Hill Mine is a prime location, with over 10,000 contiguous acres of suitable habitat,” said Jason Hardin, TPWD upland game specialist.
ECONOMY

The Martin Lake power plant and mines are significant economic drivers in Rusk County. According to a study by the University of North Texas Center for Economic Development and Research, the mines and the plant were responsible for $523 million in economic activity in the county in 2014. Coal-related jobs totaled 1,212, with $102 million in annual wages and benefits. Total state and local taxes from the plant and the mines totaled $68.9 million in 2014.

And in Tyler, the Luminant Academy at Tyler Junior College provides a career path for young people.

“In 2008, the company constructed Luminant Academy on Tyler Junior College’s West Campus,” Luminant Academy director Dr. Dirk Hughes said. “With a skilled team of instructors with more than 400 years of combined power plant experience, Luminant Academy has served as a critical facility to help develop and transfer real-world industry knowledge and concepts to TJC students and our employees.”

“Luminant has a long-standing commitment to the economic development of the communities it serves. It’s simply good business,” Watson said.
RENEWABLES

Those EPA rules could be issued in August. But Texas already is diversifying its energy generation and investing heavily in renewable forms, particularly wind power.

“If Texas was a nation, it would have fifth largest renewable capacity in the world,” said the Texas Public Policy Foundation’s Ms. Thompson. “But we get no credit from the EPA for the steps we have already taken.”

Luminant points out that the company is one of the state’s largest buyer of wind-generated energy.

“But wind generation has its limitations,” the company said. “The wind does not always blow, especially at times of highest customer use, and electricity cannot yet be stored economically. While wind and other alternatives play a valuable role, reliable generation sources such as natural gas, coal and nuclear power are essential for meeting Texas’ energy needs.”

source: http://eaglefordtexas.com