Fine particulate matter is also a concern. Currently, Lane
County has particulate levels of 68 micrograms per cubic
meter, and the federal limit is 150 micrograms. On average, the
plant would add up to 0.2 micrograms per cubic meter in Lane
County. Particulate emissions have been linked to asthma,
which is on the rise in Lane County.
“Studies have demonstrated a direct correlation between
exposure to fine particulate matter and an increased death rate,”
says David Monk of the Oregon Toxics Alliance. “The fine par-
ticulate matter coming out of these so-called ‘clean’ natural-
gas-fired power plants is coated with the arsenic, mercury and
cadmium also being emitted. Breathing in these fine particles
allows these heavy metals to enter deep into a person’s lungs
and thus directly into their bloodstream.”
In short, says Monk, the West Cascade proposal is not fair.
“The investors get the profit,” he says. “The local community
gets the pollution.”
WATER, LAND, JOBS
West Cascade would provide 270 jobs for two years during
construction of the facility and 30 full-time jobs once it’s run-
ning. The plant would pay $4.4 million a year in property taxes
and spend $7 million a year on supplies and services.
“To see a plant of that magnitude, that imposes that sort of
burden on the local community, only generate 30 ongoing jobs,
is pretty remarkable to me,” says Lininger.
But a local farmers’ irrigation cooperative looks forward to
one of the plant’s potential benefits. Marcus agreed to make $1
million in improvements to the Muddy Creek irrigation canal in
exchange for its use to transport water to and from the facility.
West Cascade would use 10 cubic feet of water per second
(or about 4,500 gallons per minute) from the McKenzie River.
This constitutes about 3 percent of the river’s industrial water
right. The water would travel to the plant via the irrigation
canal, and 90 percent of the intake would evaporate during pro-
cessing. The rest would be cooled to 64 degrees and discharged
to canal, where it would flow toward the farm fields.
The farmers in the cooperative extol Marcus’ generosity,
but Kinnan brushes it off. “It’s the trick of the super-salesmen,”
she says. “They’ll tell you anything and everything to get you
to sign on the dotted line.”
Although some farmers support the plant, others compile
cases against it. According to land use attorney Dan Terrell,
who is representing a Coburg resident, the land use code in
Oregon protects high-value farmland. Although the law allows
17 acres per farm for energy production, West Cascade would
cover 40 acres.
Once land is used for energy production, says Terrell, it is
usually rendered unfit for farming. “Toxic materials that will be
used for everyday processes will invariably make their way
into the ground,” says Terrell. “Does a plant this big have a
right to be on high-quality farmland? The supporters would say
yes, and we say no. The reality is that once these plants are
built, every effort is made to keep them running for as long as
possible.”
DECISION-MAKING
Kinnan estimates that more than half of Coburg’s residents
oppose the plant, but opponents complain that they do not have
a venue to voice their concerns.
Marcus chose to seek binding review of the West Cascade
project through the state Energy Facility Siting Council
(EFSC) rather than through the local Board of County
Commissioners. EFSC will review over 3,700 pages of the
facility’s applications for a variety of permits. Once the agency
deems the permits complete, it will hold public hearings. The
input that EFSC receives from county commissioners and res-
idents is not binding.
‘I NEED THIS PLACE FOR MY
GRANDKIDS. HE NEEDS THE
PLANT FOR HIS PROFIT.
WHOSE NEED IS GREATER?’
– CAROLYN KINNAN
This frustrates opponents of the plant, who want a voice in
the process. “I think the proponents should put their money
where their mouth is,” says Lininger. “If they think this is such
an innocuous plan, and it’s great for the local economy, present
it to our local elected officials.”
Marcus defends his decision, saying that members of
EFSC, unlike the local commissioners, have expertise in the
subject and a resource-rich support staff. Had he sought and
won re-election, “Tom Lininger would have been a county
commissioner,” says Marcus. “And he has demonstrated that
he has very little knowledge about this facility, energy in gen-
eral, and he would be incapable of making this kind of deci-
sion.”
For some residents, Marcus’ decision to pursue permits
through EFSC is reason enough for suspicion. “It looks like
one of those good-old-boy networks going on,” says Nelson. “I
have no problem with people making money, but it doesn’t
have to be at the expense of the people living here.”
LRAPA is currently reviewing the air emissions permit
based on federal air quality guidelines. Robert Koster,
LRAPA’s operations manager, will decide whether to issue the
emissions permit and then hold a public hearing and 30 days of
public comment. He says that the feedback will not affect his
decision unless someone points out that he’s made a legal error.
Lininger encourages opponents to continue to raise their
voices. “The fact that this has been taken away from the nor-
mal democratic process makes it more urgent to speak up,” he
says.
Marcus counters that there is plenty of local input. “There’s
more local input in this project than anyone could ever want,”
he says. “What I want is for the project to be judged on its mer-
its according to the law and according to due process.”
DREAMS AT STAKE
For some, the fight over the power plant is personal. That’s
the case with Kinnan, who became an activist the day she first
got whiff of the proposal.
Kinnan owns less than an acre of property in Coburg. Plants
and wind chimes clutter her front porch. Cats she never meant
to adopt prowl the yard. Inside, her grandchildren’s wedding
photos hang on the walls. She can see the site of the proposed
plant from her house.
“This was my little tiny part of the American Dream that I
worked hard to have,” says Kinnan, who was self-employed
while she raised her five children. She saved up money and
bought her house 14 years ago. Now she lives on Social
Security. “This land is the only thing I had to leave to my kids,”
LONG-TERM CONTRACTS?
Gary Marcus says that the West Cascade Energy Facility will only negotiate 20-year con-
tracts. If so, his energy might be a hard sell. According to energy analyst Steve Weiss, Pacific
Gas & Electric only signs contracts with generating facilities for up to five years. According
to Weiss, few utilities are willing to negotiate long-term contracts for gas-fired power.
“The price [of natural gas] depends on supply and demand, and no one is willing to offer
gas for more than three- or four-year contracts because even the drilling companies are
uncertain about how much gas they’ll have in three to five years,” says Weiss.
West Cascade does not plan to supply natural gas for utilities. Instead, the facility will
negotiate long-term “tolling agreements,” which stipulate that utilities have to obtain their
own gas.
14 APRIL 1, 2004
she says. “I cannot consciously leave something to my grand-
kids, my great-grandkids and beyond, that will kill them. I
can’t do that.”
Her eyes well up behind her big bifocals. “My American
Dream is going up in the cloud of emissions,” she says. “If this
thing comes about, my whole life is destroyed. I need this place
for my grandkids. He needs the plant for his profit. Whose need
is greater? His or ours?”
But Marcus says his need is also personal. “I need to finish
the power plant,” he says. “If this plant gets somehow run out
of town, it sends a very bad message.”
Marcus has lived in Eugene since 1975, and he feels that he
has made the community a better place. He received an inter-
disciplinary master’s degree, and then a law degree, from the
UO. He bailed the Eugene Symphony out of debt, founded the
Eugene Jewish Federation, and started up a knee brace compa-
ny. He’s written two novels (neither published) and is working
on a third. He says that the two issues that concern him most
are overpopulation and global warming.
Marcus professes a commitment to cleaner energy. For his
own home, he buys 100 percent wind power from EWEB. A
small hydropower plant he developed on Falls Creek won a
governor’s award for environmental innovation. He points out
that West Cascade could actually reduce pollution by decreas-
ing the output from dirtier facilities.
“The sooner we switch to all sources of non-fossil fuels, the
better,” says Marcus. “It’s unfortunate that the federal govern-
ment does not take the lead in this as they should. What we
need is a national tax on CO2. We also need to sign the Kyoto
protocol.”
Even Lininger attests to Marcus’ good intentions. “He’s a
good guy,” says Lininger of Marcus. “Among people who
could propose plants like this, Gary’s the one you want. His
heart’s in the right place.”
THE BIG PICTURE
The proposal to build the West Cascade Energy Facility is
part of a larger trend called energy deregulation (see sidebar
story). Even if this facility is defeated, other proposals are like-
ly to fill its void.
Environmental groups such as the Sierra Club recommend
diversifying power to include renewable sources like wind,
solar and biomass. This would cut back on greenhouse gases
while increasing domestic security.
Weiss emphasizes that the energy problem is national, if not
global, in scale. “Ultimately, the problem is the entire country’s
policy,” he says. “Utilities have to stop buying [fossil fuels] and
taking those risks, and the country has to stop subsidizing fos-
sil fuels.”
Lininger suggests an equitable approach. “I’d say first of
all, let’s fully explore renewable resources, see how far we can
get with that,” he says. “Let’s fully explore conservation, see
how far we can get with that. Then, if it’s necessary to build
new power plants, let’s disperse them evenly throughout the
Willamette Valley.”
Surprisingly, Marcus advocates more regulation of the
energy industry. “We have the technology to live in a perfect
world,” he says. “We just don’t have the political will to pay for
it. If we could make greenhouse gases more expensive, it
would just be a matter of a few years before industry would
respond.”
In the meantime, he’ll get to work on his plant.
ew
A community meeting on the power plant is planned for 7 pm May 5 at Harris
Hall. For more, call 465-8860.
“It’s a renting of the equipment, but not of the fuel,” says Weiss. “No power plant devel-
oper can guarantee the price of the electricity. They can guarantee the use of it. So they’ll
offer PacifiCorps, or they’ll offer PG&E, or they’ll offer EWEB what is called a tolling
agreement. You, as a utility, have the right to use my gas plant if you provide the natural gas.”
Weiss doubts that there will be many takers. “If [Marcus] is saying he’s going to make a
deal with someone for 20 years, it’s some stupid utility that signs up for 20 years and then
five years into the deal finds out that gas is so high that they’ll never repay the plant,” he
says. “That’s why the power planning council is saying, ‘Don’t do it. It’s too risky.’”
Considering Marcus’ proposal, Weiss says, “There’s a good chance that this guy will go
out of business.”
— Kera Abraham