Oral and Written Comments will be taken by the PSC this month regarding the NW Energy IRP - see below for details!
Our Public Service Commission will hold a series of hearing across Montana this month to listen to what Montanans have to say about the proposed Northwestern Energy Integrated Resource Plan; the IRP is a 20 year plan updated every 5 years. There has been no transparency with the modeling used for the plan. The PSC hired consultants which found the plan to be faulty. 350.org raise the money from Montana ratepayers for a study which showed that Montana's future energy needs could be met with renewables and battery storage at a cost savings, with no new gas-fired power plants.
It is important for the PSC to hear the voice of healthcare professionals, and the hearings on via online comments.
1) Comparing coal and methane gas and solar, coal is over 1200 times more deadly (air pollution and accidents) and methane gas is 140 times as deadly.
2) Fossil fuel air pollution kills up to 250,000 Americans every year. (Shindell)
3) Renewables and not only cleaner but cheaper, leading to cost savings for families. Family income is an important social determinant of health.
NorthWestern Energy’s Resource Plan: Higher Prices, More Pollution
Every few years, Montana’s largest monopoly utility, NorthWestern Energy, must produce a blueprint for how to meet customers’ energy needs over the next 20 years. Formerly known as a Resource Procurement Plan, this Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) is intended to:
NorthWestern’s 2023 plan:
it is important they hear from you! The deadline is August 28, 2023. Please send comments to pschelp@mt.gov and include “Regarding docket 2022.11.102” in the subject line.
The PSC will hold hearings on the plan in five cities:
Please contact us at info@montanahphc.org if you are interested but want to know what to say!
Our Public Service Commission will hold a series of hearing across Montana this month to listen to what Montanans have to say about the proposed Northwestern Energy Integrated Resource Plan; the IRP is a 20 year plan updated every 5 years. There has been no transparency with the modeling used for the plan. The PSC hired consultants which found the plan to be faulty. 350.org raise the money from Montana ratepayers for a study which showed that Montana's future energy needs could be met with renewables and battery storage at a cost savings, with no new gas-fired power plants.
It is important for the PSC to hear the voice of healthcare professionals, and the hearings on via online comments.
1) Comparing coal and methane gas and solar, coal is over 1200 times more deadly (air pollution and accidents) and methane gas is 140 times as deadly.
2) Fossil fuel air pollution kills up to 250,000 Americans every year. (Shindell)
3) Renewables and not only cleaner but cheaper, leading to cost savings for families. Family income is an important social determinant of health.
NorthWestern Energy’s Resource Plan: Higher Prices, More Pollution
Every few years, Montana’s largest monopoly utility, NorthWestern Energy, must produce a blueprint for how to meet customers’ energy needs over the next 20 years. Formerly known as a Resource Procurement Plan, this Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) is intended to:
- provide transparency for customers who are very likely to have to pay for new power plants,
- guide NorthWestern’s decisions about how it can affordably and reliably provide electricity to its customers, and
- help the Montana Public Service Commission (PSC) determine if NorthWestern’s plan to build more power plants will result in affordable and reliable electric power for customers.
NorthWestern’s 2023 plan:
- fails to justify its proposal to build very expensive and polluting new fossil fuel and nuclear power plants,
- fails to consider ways to reduce the need for power (such as energy efficiency which is under-utilized in Montana) (particularly during times of high demand when energy prices are highest),
- fails to consider the impact of proposed regulations that limit toxic air pollutants, coal ash, and greenhouse gases,
- fails to consider less expensive (and less polluting) options to provide energy to customers,
- fails to consider fairly consider how to replace the Colstrip power plant with a low-cost mix of clean energy options,
- and fails to account for trillions of dollars in federal funding from the Inflation Reduction Act and Build Back Better Act that is intended to accelerate the deployment of cost-effective clean energy (energy efficiency, renewables, transmission, and storage).
it is important they hear from you! The deadline is August 28, 2023. Please send comments to pschelp@mt.gov and include “Regarding docket 2022.11.102” in the subject line.
The PSC will hold hearings on the plan in five cities:
- Great Falls: August 14, 6:00 p.m., Commission Chambers in the Civic Center, located at 2 Park Drive South.
- Helena: August 15, 12 p.m., Montana Public Service Commission, Bollinger Room, 1701 Prospect Avenue.
- Billings: August 16, 6:00 p.m., Board of Oil & Gas Conservation, 2535 St. Johns Ave.
- Butte: August 17, 6:00 p.m., Butte-Silver Bow Public Archives, 17 W.Quartz.
- Missoula: August 22, 6:00 p.m., Missoula College Learning Center (river campus), 1205 E. Broadway Ave., Room 304.
Please contact us at info@montanahphc.org if you are interested but want to know what to say!