Phil Radford: 2012 is make or break for dirty Duke Energy
Creative Commons: Josh Lopez for Tar Sands Action, 2011
North Carolina ratepayers don’t have a choice about where they get their energy. Despite a committed local movement opposing the most recent rate hike, they’re seeing a 7.2% increase on their electricity bills in March, not to pay for an investment in renewable energy, but to invest more in new coal projects like the Cliffside plant.
Enough is enough–Duke ratepayers have said loudly and clearly that they don’t want to pay for more investments in dirty energy.
And Duke Energy also holds a unique position in energy politics right now. It is currently the third largest emitter of CO2 in the US–and that’s before it takes on Progress Energy’s dirty fleet. CEO Jim Rogers has spoken openly about the threat of climate change and pollution controls for coal plants, and yet Duke holds a membership in the industry group ERCC (Electric Reliability Coordinating Council), a group that was aggressively lobbying against the recently passed Mercury Rule. It’s no secret that Duke’s money and influence–$6.5 million in lobbying dollars in 2010– could have a significant impact in US energy policy.
To top it all off, this year, Rogers has been the lead fundraiser for the Democratic National Convention, to be held in Charlotte where Duke Energy is based, lending the Democrats $10 million dollars to pay for the convention.
On 60 Minutes in 2009, Jim Rogers said, “I remember the first time I took a helicopter to look down at a power plant like this, I was 41 years old, and I said, ‘Oh my goodness, I’m responsible for that?’” He is.
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