Union president says letter to editor is ‘mistaken’
The recent (letter to the editor) from Gay Thistle stating that the Hatfield’s Ferry power plant closed by FirstEnergy last year was one of the most polluting power plants in the U.S. is mistaken.
Only five years ago, the former owner Allegheny Energy invested $725 million in state-of-the-art air emissions control equipment at the plant.
FirstEnergy’s rash decision to close Hatfield’s Ferry idled one of the nation’s most efficient electric generating stations. The company’s closure of this plant plus the Mitchell plant in nearby Courtney, Pa. destroyed nearly 380 family-supporting jobs and removed 2,080 megawatts of much-needed power from our region’s electric grid.
State Representative Pam Snyder and Senator Tim Solobay have worked tirelessly for working families in our communities during the economic crisis caused by FirstEnergy’s closure of these two plants.
House Bill 2354 sponsored by Representative Snyder will in no way curtail the greenhouse gas reductions standards called for by recent EPA rules, but instead will help ensure that the state DEP develops common-sense emission control standards at the least cost to Pennsylvania ratepayers – while also protecting jobs that are so vital to Pennsylvania’s economy. We urge the state Senate to support Representative Snyder’s legislation.
Senator Solobay also has a companion bill (Senate Bill 1453) in the Senate that is similar to Representative Snyder’s bill.
– Robert Whalen, President
Utility Workers Union of America System Local 102, AFL-CIO