Draft Sixth Power Plan Comment

The Northwest is on the cusp of being a national leader in addressing climate change, and improving our health and environment. I applaud the Council's decision to include strong energy efficiency targets in the draft 6th power plan, but we must go farther. We cannot truly protect ourselves from both the financial and social risks of climate change without setting a strong price for the cost of carbon, and we cannot truly solve climate change without taking substantive steps to end our reliance on the biggest culprit in global warming pollution coal. Council staff has performed an analysis that shows the way. The Northwest can become coal free by 2020 in steps that are both achievable and affordable. What we can't afford is to waste any more time. Please put the Northwest on the path for a clean energy future with a 6th power plan that phases out coal from the Northwest, and sets a strong carbon price. It makes me crazy when I see ads on TV and hear politicians say the phrase "Clean Coal" Clean Coal is a myth propagated by PR firms hired by those who have a LOT of money to gain by continuing to rely on Coal as a source of power. It doesn't matter how much of it we have, if the planet becomes unable to sustain life because of its use. The cost of the technology to clean up coal exhaust is so prohibitive that power producers will never do enough of it to make coal sustainable as a power resource. It's time to stop kidding ourselves. Coal is not sustainable for two reasons. One; it is not renewable, and Two; it continues to contribute too much to global warming.