First Energy deactivating two coal-fired power plants--the future of energy in the U.S.?

On Tuesday, First Energy Corp. announced plans to deactivate two coal-fired power plants in Pennsylvania. The Hatfield's Ferry Power Station in Masontown, Pa., and Mitchell Power Station in Courtney, Pa., will not be active after October 9. First Energy cites the cost of compliance with new and future environmental standards such as the Environmental Protection Agency's Mercury Air Toxic Standards, and the declining cost of electricity due to cheap and plentiful natural gas, as the reasons for the shut downs. There could be another issue at play, however. As reported by Anya Litvak of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, persons familiar with the electricity market believe the reason for the closures is a general lack of demand for electricity.

Both facilities had previously been under consideration for retrofits to turn them into coal and natural gas powered plants but, instead, will join the nine other facilities First Energy plans to close. 

There is little doubt that the Hatfield's Ferry and Mitchell power stations are contributors of harmful pollution in southwest Pennsylvania, and nearby residents will breathe easier after the closures. In 2006, PennFuture filed a lawsuit involving the Hatfield's Ferry Power Station due to its inability to comply with federal standards for particulate pollution. The suit was successfully settled, and the facility was ordered to take aggressive action to come into compliance.

First Energy claims that after the shut downs, nearly 100 percent of its power generation will come from non- or low-emitting sources, with 13 percent from renewables. Hopefully, we'll see them bump up that 13 percent as the country's appetite for coal continues to decline.