There is no such thing as clean coal! There are better alternatives!!!

The Benefits of Solar and Wind:

• According to the U.S. Department of Energy, Indiana has enough wind capacity to produce two and a half times more electricity than we are currently producing by burning coal. This is confirmed by testimony by Dennis Elliott of the DOE's National Renewable Energy Laboratory to the Indiana House Utilities and Energy Committee in January, 2006
• The cost of wind is cheaper than the cost of burning coal on a per kilowatt and per kilowatt hour basis because there are no fuel costs for wind and the operations and maintenance costs for wind turbines is far less than that of a coal burning power plant (See the Duke IGCC Report)
• Solar panels on the roofs of public buildings can help meet peak demand on the hottest (and sunniest) days of the year when everyone is running their air conditioners and using more electricity
• No emissions

If Indiana set the goal of producing 10% of its electricity from renewables by 2017, it would bring investment dollars and jobs to the state:

• As much as $6 to $8 billion investment dollars
• 6,000 construction jobs
• 12,000 contractor and retail jobs
• 1,200 additional contractor and retail jobs to fulfill the need for long-term maintenance of wind turbines
• 600 permanent maintenance jobs

  Source: Indiana Coalition for Renewable Energy and Economic Development

The Benefits of Energy Efficiency:

• Reduces demand for electricity
• Reduces pollution
• Saves ratepayers billions of dollars
• Implementing efficiency costs less than half of what it costs to build and operate a new power plant

According to CAC's expert witness testimony before the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission in 2004, the utilities with the best energy efficiency programs in the country spend 1% - 3% of their revenue on these programs. Based on PSI's 2005 revenues, that figure would be about $42 million per year, which is less than half of the $105 million annual operations and maintenance costs of the proposed IGCC coal-fired power plant.

Reducing the demand for electricity by 1.5% per year will have a broader impact on Indiana’s economy by:

• Creating over 800 net jobs per year in the construction, manufacturing, retail and services sectors

  Source: Environmental Law and Policy Center - Job Jolt Indiana

• After 15 years, saving ratepayers $1.4 billion a year on utility bills
• Bringing down the wholesale price of natural gas

  Source: American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE)

For more information, download the Duke IGCC Fact Sheet