Jackson Free Press

The Mississippi agency responsible for protecting the state's natural resources is pushing back against a proposed federal clean-power plan designed to reduce climate changing carbon pollution and improve citizens' health.

In June 2014, under the direction of President Barack Obama, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency proposed to cut carbon emissions from the nation's power plants by 2030. Known as the Clean Power Plan, or CPP, the standards are based on the same objective but leaves it up to states to develop their own ways implement to roll back carbon-dioxide emissions.

The plan immediately met political blowback from Republicans for whom the EPA is a favorite punching bag. In stating his opposition to the plan, Mississippi's senior U.S. Sen. Thad Cochran said the CPP offers few climate-change benefits.

"The Environmental Protection Agency is on a relentless quest to impose strict carbon-emissions rules no matter what the costs to families or the nation's economic wellbeing," said Cochran, who will ascend to the chairmanship of the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee when the new Congress convenes later this month. Mitch McConnell, the incoming Senate majority leader, of Kentucky, also hinted at a campaign to derail the rule, saying that he would do everything in how power to "get the EPA reined in."

Mississippi isn't waiting for Congress to act, however. Gary Rikard, the executive director of the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality, also blasted the CPP in comments his agency submitted to the EPA.

In a letter to the EPA, Rikard—whom Gov. Phil Bryant appointed in July to replace former director Trudy Fisher (Bryant later rehired Fisher as an environmental policy consultant for $195 per hour)—called the EPA's emission-reduction goals for Mississippi are "overly aggressive and unachievable" and questioned whether the EPA even has the legal authority to regulate power plants.

"EPA is attempting to federalize this nation's energy policy, resulting in forcing the states to abandon their constitutionally derived sovereign rights," Rikard wrote in his letter. "EPA hides behind a fig leaf of federalism and flexibility while in effect forcing major changes to the states' administration of electricity generation and consumption."

Mississippi environmental officials point to the state's already-low rate of CO2 emissions compared to other states because Mississippi relies more heavily on nuclear- and natural-gas-generated electricity. Overall, Mississippi's electric-power generating capacity has remained fairly stable, around 16 gigawatts, since 2003. Most of the state's modest increase in capacity has resulted from using more natural gas.

Because Mississippi's CO2 levels are lower than national averages, Michael Callahan, chief executive officer of Electric Power Associations of Mississippi, which represents electric cooperatives in the state, told the Associated Press that Mississippi would have exceed projected nationwide cut of 30 percent, which he said is "unreasonable, unachievable and unfair."

Rikard, of MDEQ, also argues that meeting the EPA's renewable energy goal of 5.4 gigawatts would be burdensome for Mississippi, which, according to the Energy Information Agency, currently received only 2.8 percent of its electricity from renewable energy resources in 2013, all of which came from wood waste (biomass).

"Mississippi has no wind potential and does not have the solar capacity that western states have," he wrote. "Mandating this new renewable energy generation is simply an excessive and unnecessary cost for the rate payers of Mississippi."

The Obama administration, however, believes the moves would pay off in the long run. Information from the EPA said the emissions cuts would shrink electricity bills by approximately 8 percent with boosted efficiency measures and reduce overall demand for power. In addition, the new emissions standard would avoid up to 6,600 premature deaths and 150,000 child asthma attacks in children for an overall benefit of $93 billion.
 Historically, Mississippi has a higher-than-average prevalence of childhood asthma, an inflammatory lung disease. Information from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that child lifetime asthma prevalence was 14.1 percent compared to 10.2 in the rest of the nation in 2008. State information shows a decline in childhood asthma, dropping to 9.8 percent for children up to age 17 in 2012. Asthma-related emergency-department and hospital cost Mississippi about $770 million.

The Mississippi Sierra Club, which earlier this year back-burnered its ongoing fight with Mississippi Power Co. over the Kemper County lignite coal power plant, believes what the EPA is asking of states is conservative. Robert Wiygul, the Sierra Club's attorney, filed a letter supporting the CPP to the Mississippi Public Service Commission, which governs utilities in the state.

In August, the Sierra Club agreed to drop lawsuits pending against Mississippi Power Co. if the company, a subsidiary of Atlanta-based Southern Co., met certain efficiency requirements. The agreement also includes phasing out coal at Mississippi Power's Jack Watson power station in Gulfport. Wiygul believes taking Watson generating plant, which burns coal and has a capacity of 877 megawatts, "will take the state a significant distance toward achieving its target."

Wiygul added that CPP would provide Mississippi with an opportunity to diversify its electric-power system, reduce power bills and create jobs.