DHEC board upholds air permit for coal-fired Kingsburg plant

COLUMBIA — A majority of S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control Board members have voted against remanding the original air permit for the proposed coal-fired Pee Dee Energy Campus to be built in Kingsburg.

State-owned utility Santee Cooper won initial approval from DHEC to build the plant it says it needs to meet growing electricity demand.

Lonnie Carter, CEO of the company, said it’s a great day for Santee Cooper.

“We’ve said all along that we met all the rules and regulations for this facility,” he said. “We understand all of the concern associated with it. We know that this facility protects the human health and the environment, and I think that is what the board recognized today.”

The 600-megawatt coal-fired generation facility would be located on a 2,709-acre tract in Kingsburg, scheduled to become operational sometime after 2012 at a cost of about $1.25 billion to build.

The board decided the permit was issued properly and will stay as is.

There was a motion to uphold the staff’s decision, but board member Edwin Cooper disagreed, saying he wanted to “take a breather.”

The majority of the board members said although they believe the permit was issued legally, their decision doesn’t mean they like the idea of a coal-fired power plant.

“You don’t see many public companies hanging their hat on coal,” board member Hank Scott said. “That being said, this isn’t the last we’ve heard of this.”

Chairman Paul Aughtry agreed with Scott.

“A coal-fired plant at this point in time bothers me greatly,” he said. “I think, on all sides, this issue was well presented. This is a complicated issue and the state will carry the weight of the final issue for many, many years.”

Cooper said he thinks it’s time for South Carolina to take the lead in blazing new paths toward the necessary energy for the state, rather than following in the footsteps of others.

“If all this board does is act as a application approval process, then we are not doing what Gov. (Mark) Sanford asked of us,” he said.

Aughtry went on to said that he thinks coal is a technology in its twilight years.

“What is proposed is a technology that is closing,” he said. “Everybody knows the availability of energy (is low), but my concern is that it seems to me that this method of production is old technology.”

Blan Holman, an attorney for the Southern Environmental Law Center, said alternatives to the coal plant should be examined.

“This permit doesn’t need to be issued,” he said. “South Carolina is the third-least efficient state in the nation.”

Holman said an investment in efficiency will start delivering returns almost immediately.

He said the board’s decision was disappointing, to say the least.

“They had every reason to overturn the staff (decision),” he said. “Our position is that the permit should have been rescinded. We’ll talk to the clients, but the next step will be to appeal this.”

In recent days, the backlash against coal-fired power has been severe. Gov. Mark Sanford joined the opposition Wednesday. His announcement was followed by a series of press releases agreeing with his decision.

Before the governor took his stand, the S.C. Department of Natural Resources sent a strongly-worded letter to DHEC officials to recommend a remand of the air permit, as well, but Aughtry said the decision was not entirely up to the board.

“We’re constrained by the rules and regulations,” he said. “Our rules and regulations and laws we are guided by are not ours.”

The permit gives Santee Cooper permission to move forward with the process in an attempt to build two 600-megawatt boilers on the campus.

DHEC now has 30 days to formally issue the decision to all concerned. After that, there will be a 30-day period for appeals.

What’s next:

The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control Governing Board now has 30 days to put the vote in writing and send it to all parties concerned.

Once the parties have been notified, they have 30 days to appeal the decision.

The Army Corps of Engineers Environmental Impact Statement, which will determine if Santee Cooper can move forward with in the permitting process, is expected this summer.