Residents from across Darlington County attended a meeting Monday night at Mayo High School for Math, Science & Technology to learn more about a proposed coal-fired power plant.
Santee Cooper’s Pee Dee Energy Campus would be established in lower Florence County, near Kingsburg.
"It is our objective to motivate and mobilize citizens so they can unite and make an informed decision as to whether or not they will allow such an operation in our backyards. It would be ideal if Santee Cooper was coming to build a hydroelectric plant on the Pee Dee River or to put solar panels on every home or even to install windmills in strategic yards; we readily welcome such projects because we do understand the energy demands are growing rapidly. However the coal power source presents risks that are too high on our physical and environmental well being and beyond that, most of the folk in our community are not qualified for the jobs that the project would create, so we are not really gaining," said Rennie Lunn-McAllister, an organizer of the meeting, in a press release.
In addition to information regarding the need for renewable energy, attendees also heard about the public health effects of such a plant and the potential environmental risks.
Santee Cooper officials maintain that the plant will contain the best environmental control technology available, making it one of the cleanest coal plants in the nation.

Advertisement