Sierra Club challenges Arizona power-plant approval near Randolph - The Arizona Republic

Sierra Club challenges Arizona power-plant approval near Randolph

Sierra Club asks regulators to reconsider SRP power plant expansion in Pinal County
Russ Wiles

Salt River Project last month received permission to expand a power plant in Pinal County, but the deal isn’t sitting well with environmentalists. The Sierra Club has asked the Arizona Corporation Commission to reconsider the matter and hold a new hearing on the case.

After years of controversy, including the commission’s denial of the original expansion request — a move upheld by Maricopa County Superior Court— SRP received the green light after residents of Randolph, a small, historically Black community located near the plant, dropped their opposition.

The Coolidge Generating Station is located about 60 miles southeast of downtown Phoenix. SRP says the expansion is needed to meet higher electricity demand during peak periods such as now, amid a record-breaking heat wave. Both SRP and utility Arizona Public Service say heavy electricity demand over the past week have shattered records for power use.

Environmentalists decry the prospect of higher emissions there.

Neighboring community of Randolph drops opposition

The Randolph residents agreed to a settlement under which SRP pledged $23.8 million in scholarships, home-improvement funds, financing of a community center, upgrades to a block wall around the plant, paving of additional roads to reduce dust and other assistance on behalf of the community of roughly 150 people.

The expansion could provide enough electricity to power about 139,000 average-sized homes, SRP said.

It also would worsen air, light and noise pollution in the area, the Sierra Club contends.

SRP agreed to scale back its planned expansion there, with the goal of adding 12 natural gas turbines, rather than the 16 it requested originally, and locating them about 400 feet farther away from Randolph. The utility said it won't run the added generators full time but, rather, at about 30% of annual capacity.

SRP has argued that it needs additional generating capacity during periods of peak electricity demand, when air conditioners are running practically around the clock.

Citing climate change and rising temperatures, the Sierra Club countered that utilities should reject natural-gas projects for cleaner alternatives.

"Solar and battery storage can provide the same capacity and reliability as gas-fired generation at lower cost and without generating harmful pollution," said Sandy Bahr, director of the Sierra Club’s Grand Canyon Chapter, in a statement to The Arizona Republic.

She called on Phoenix-area utilities to invest aggressively in these and other lower-emitting alternatives.

Request to reopen the case

The Sierra Club contends that the commission lacked sufficient evidence for its decision to approve the expansion, failed to conduct a evidentiary hearing as required and rushed the process in a way that didn’t provide an opportunity for other parties to be heard.

The group said evidentiary hearings, which involve testimony and physical evidence, are required when there have been substantial changes to a project that is seeking a certificate of environmental compatibility.

“The Arizona Corporation Commission has essentially bypassed necessary procedural steps to allow this project to move forward, skipping a required new evidentiary hearing and demonstrating that the ACC will allow itself to get walked over by Salt River Project,” Bahr said in a statement. “We’re asking that the ACC follow the rules" and hold a new hearing.

Those rules, she said, include having the commission direct SRP to file an amended environmental application and hold required hearings. The Sierra Club contends SRP’s agreement with Randolph residents wasn’t adequately disclosed, "making it impossible to fully evaluate the terms."

SRP cites high-energy demands

SRP countered that the Sierra Club's arguments are "without merit and should be rejected."

In a statement to The Republic, the utility noted that the commissioners, in explaining their vote to approve the environmental certificate, cited the need for the Coolidge plant to help meet customers' demand for electricity and enhance the reliability of the power grid. The settlement with the Randolph community addressed the commission's concerns in that regard, too, the company said.

SRP said it is pleased with its work with the Randolph community and with the commission's vote allowing it to pursue the expansion project and vowed to comply with all local, state and federal air-quality regulations.

The Sierra Club filed its request on July 17, giving the commission 20 days from that date to decide on a new hearing. If the commission doesn't act, the request would be denied automatically.

The commission didn't announce whether it would hear the case again.

Reach the writer at russ.wiles@arizonarepublic.com.