All: I am concerned that Longview is violating the agreement made with Sierra, TU, and the National Parks group. I cant recall if paying our witness and lawyers was a written part of the agreement itself. If so, what assurance do we have that any of the issues they agreed to in that settlement will be adhered to? Larry
Charles L. Harris Professor of Biochemistry West Virginia University School of Medicine 304-293-7749
Duane330@aol.com 05/16/06 4:28 PM >>>
Minutes of the Mon Valley Clean Air Coalition May 15, 2006 The MVCAC met at 7:00 on May 15, 2006 at the Prete Building with nine participants in attendance. At the beginning of the meeting, John Gever circulated a copy of the MVCAC flyer for comment. He stated that we needed to find a good map that we can put existing power plants on. It should not be too "busy" in the background. Duane indicated that he had a friend who he could
consult about this. Duane provided a review of recent events. Initial and rebuttal briefs were filed with the PSC regarding Longview's requests for siting and transmission line certificates. These were prepared by Phil, Bill, Duane, Jim, and Paula. A final decision from the PSC is due June 27. Special thanks go to Paula for her editorial work on the initial brief and to Bill for his editorial work on the rebuttal brief. Jim mentioned that when Sierra Club and Joe Lovett made their settlement
with Longview regarding the air quality permit, Longview agreed to pay Joe Lovett 's fees, as well as the fees of Sierra's expert witnesses. Longview was to pay half within 30 days of the settlement and the other half when the plant was built. As of today (many months after the settlement), Longview has provided none of the money. Jim suggested that MVCAC begin a petition drive to request that the County Commission, Board of Education, and Development Authority revoke the PILOT agreement with Longview, since the expert witness from Synapse Energy stated that Longview did not need the PILOT in order to make a profit. There was some discussion of this. Duane suggested that instead of a petition drive, we have a letter writing campaign. Bill was concerned that the agencies in question would argue that this was a binding agreement, and they could not legally rescind the PILOT. After further discussion, Duane proposed that the Executive Committee deal with the issue. Jarrett reported that Longview's storm water permit was still in technical review. He stated that Longview filed a core sample report in 2004, but they left some pages out. After Jarrett noted this omission, Longview sent the remaining pages. Jarrett stated that Longview had filed, as an attachment to its rebuttal brief, a proposed order by the PSC granting the siting and
transmission line certificates to Longview. Longview went so far as to put Sandra Squires' stamp on it. Jarrett recently sent a letter to the PSC in protest of these activities. Cindy sent the West Virginia Environmental Council $100 for a group membership. She also sent a check for $4000 to Synapse Energy. This left us with a balance of approximately $630. We still owe Synapse Energy $2900, and Duane asked for ideas for fund raising. Robert Tower has indicated in an email that MVCAC will receive half of the $500 that was made at the Mon Earth concert. [By getting greater publicity for MVCAC and by completing the flyer as an appeal for funds, some additional money may be raised. Additional ideas for fund raising are needed to support our on-going activities.] Don reported that the truck traffic through Morgantown issue will be dealt with at the City Council's Committee of the Whole meeting on May 27 and again in June. Participants provided John with some suggestions for the flyer. He will make the suggested changes and send the final version to Duane. The meeting
adjourned at 9:00 pm. Respectfully submitted, Linda Shuster, May 16, 2006.