Judge rules in favor of Holland plant; hope for Wolverine?

by Richard Lamb, Advance Editor

As Wolverine Power awaits a ruling in Missaukee County Circuit Court, which could determine the fate of its proposed power plant near Rogers City, supporters of another power plant received good news last week. According to a report in the Holland Sentinel, Ottawa County Circuit Judge Jon Van Allsburg ordered the state to reconsider the Holland Board of Public Works James DeYoung Plant?s (BPW) application based on rules as they stood in August when it was denied, saying the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and Environment (DNRE) ?wrongly based its denial of a permit on how much power the community would need in the future and not air quality issues,? the newspaper reported.

Like it did for the proposed Wolverine plant, the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) was asked to comment on the Holland expansion in an executive order issued by Governor Jennifer Granholm in February of 2009. The MPSC said the Holland plant ?failed to adequately meet its projected capacity requirements.? The MPSC called the forecasted growth of 2.1 percent ?overly optimistic? and the DNRE used that recommendation to justify the denial of the permit.

The Holland Sentinel reported the city of Holland sued the state in October to force the state agency?s decision. The BPW contended that the DNRE responded with a denial based on a needs analysis by the MPSC that said the city doesn?t need the expanded capacity and didn?t explore alternative energy sources deeply enough. The ruling came Dec. 15, with the judge giving the state 60 days to reconsider the application. The judge agreed with BPW that the state had wrongly based its denial on future energy needs, not air quality issues. Judge Van Allsburg also ruled that the DNRE should ignore the MPSC opinion.

The BPW plant application is for a 78-megawatt (MW) plant at the existing James DeYoung Power Plant located in the city limits of Holland. BPW filed its permit application Jan. 17, 2007 and was denied Aug. 20 of this year. Supporters of the Wolverine plant are hopeful the Holland ruling is a sign of things to come with the Rogers Township plant. Wolverine is asking for much the same ruling the Ottawa court gave Holland. Wolverine is asking the Missaukee County Circuit Court to reverse the action taken when the DNRE denied the permit and send it back to the state for reconsideration ?based on science and the law.?

Secondly, it is asking the judge to declare Gov. Granholm?s executive order of 2009 unlawful, when she asked for input from the MPSC. ?The Holland case and our case are slightly different in their legal approaches,? said Ken Bradstreet, Wolverine communication and government affairs director. ?The one thing that they have in common is that they both challenge the governor?s authority. The judge made a fairly strong case for the department to reconsider its decision without considering the governor?s directive. That is one of the things we have asked the judge in

Missaukee County to do.?

Wolverine has help in its suit in the form of Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox. The attorney general entered the case as a plaintiff-intervener, supporting Wolverine?s ?petition and motion for a summary disposition.? Cox agreed with Wolverine that the DNRE?s denial of Wolverine?s application for a permit was ?unauthorized by law and thus seeks reversal and remand of the final agency action.? Judge William Fagerman heard arguments on Wolverine?s motion for summary disposition earlier this month and took the information under advisement. He could render a decision at any time.

Wolverine Power Supply Cooperative, Inc. applied for a permit to install Sept. 26, 2007 for a 600-MW coal-fired power plant and was issued a denial May 21 of this year. No air quality permit means no power plant will be built. Even if a permit is issued, it is no guarantee the plant will be constructed, Wolverine officials have been cautioning all along.

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