Bud Clinch - November 23, 2006
Montana Coal Council
Energy Development
The increasing costs of all forms of energy has been the topic of discussion in many forums over the past year. No one more than Governor Schweitzer has expounded on the possibilities of new and innovative energy projects-right here in Montana. Montana, as he states it, is the Saudia Arabia of “coal”. And his recent announcement last month that a partnership had formed and major capital investments are being secured to build a commercial Coal to Liquids facility at the Bull Mountains Mine in Roundup, Montana is welcome news. It would be a huge economic boost to the economy of Roundup, providing many short term and permanent high paying jobs, it would increase both the local and state tax revenues. Additionally it would provide a positive ripple effect to many other struggling communities in south central Montana . But most importantly it would show the nation that America has begun the process of weaning itself from foreign oil. And the proposed state of the art technology would address all of the known environmental concerns.
Unfortunately though, those in the know will tell you that bringing this project to fruition is a long shot. Montana has a long history of making such natural resource development very difficult. Our permitting system is costly ,onerous and unending. Our statutes, regulations, rules, policies and interpretations are constantly changing. And if that isn’t enough to deter global investors ,the prospect of defending their compliance against environmental litigation before the Montana Court system has a very chilling affect. Usually they choose to take their project to another state.
But this could all change. Governor Schweitzer has an agenda for energy development in Montana. And most recently his Chief Economic Officer, Evan Barrett has been taking this message all across the state. At a recent “Home Town Helena” meeting Evan discussed the Administrations plans for comprehensive energy development. It is unquestionably ambitious, as it should be. When questioned about the historic problem with exhausting analysis and lengthy timeframes in the permitting process he said two pretty astounding things.
First he said this administration plans to introduce legislation that would streamline the existing procedures for securing the necessary environmental permits and furthermore the Department of Environmental Quality is currently working to expedite reviews of pending permit applications. We applaud those efforts. But furthermore, he went on to say that environmental groups that seek only to obstruct development and are not willing to work cooperatively with this Administration, Industry and the public to assure that reasonable projects proceed “will not be welcome in our office”
He clarified the impetus to that last statement by citing the situation in Great Falls where a well known environmental group opposed the proposed power plant that intends to use a technology know as “fluidized bed combustion”. The opponents pressured for the use of the developing technology know as “IGCC”. Ironically just months later when the Roundup announcements were made including the use of this new IGCC technology, the same group came out in opposition. Such constant “raising of the bar” has characterized Montana’s environmental groups , the permitting processes, and the inevitable court decisions that follow.
However the upcoming legislature may have a unique opportunity to fix some of this by acting on this administration’s energy development legislative proposals. They need to establish an environmentally protective, yet reasonable process for energy developers to follow as well as a clear set of penalties for non- compliance. They need to make the process definitive, straight forward and transparent for both the benefit of project developers and the concerned citizenry. Montana deserves no less.
Thanks to the Governor’s vision and persistence Montana is at the crossroads of pursuing some serious energy and economic opportunities. If collectively this Administration and the upcoming legislature will create a framework of laws that continue to protect our much cherished environment without strangling responsible and legitimate development opportunities—Montanans will indeed reap the long overdue benefits.
Wishing you a Happy Thanksgiving, this is Bud Clinch on behalf of the Montana Coal Council.
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