colstrip Archives - Montana Environmental Information Center - MEIC https://meic.org/tag/colstrip/ Clean and healthful. It's your right, our mission. Fri, 06 Jun 2025 17:36:30 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://meic.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/cropped-MEIC_whitesmall-32x32.png colstrip Archives - Montana Environmental Information Center - MEIC https://meic.org/tag/colstrip/ 32 32 Trump and Congress Try to Revive Dying Coal Industry https://meic.org/trump-and-congress-try-to-revive-dying-coal-industry/ Thu, 05 Jun 2025 14:15:23 +0000 https://meic.org/?p=38683 by Anne Hedges As the saying goes, “the Stone Age didn’t end because we ran out of stones,” and neither are we moving away from coal because we’ve run out of coal. And yet, Pres. Donald Trump is trying to revive the dying industry with Executive Orders (EOs) and presidential pardons for toxic polluters, including …

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]]> Press Release: Montana Supreme Court Supports Ability of Public to Access Documents https://meic.org/press-release-2025-gianforte-bad-actor-right-to-know-press-statement/ Thu, 29 May 2025 15:39:46 +0000 https://meic.org/?p=38608 Montana Supreme Court Supports Ability of Public to Access Documents    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 29, 2025 MEDIA CONTACTS Anne Hedges, Montana Environmental Information Center, 406-443-2520, ahedges@meic.org Bonnie Gestring, Earthworks, 406-546-8386, bgestring@earthworks.org Helena, MT – On Thursday, May 29, the Montana Supreme Court ruled that public access to government documents is so important that the …

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]]> Press Release: President Grants Pollution Exemption to Coal Plant that Emits Most Air Toxins in the Nation https://meic.org/press-release-president-grants-pollution-exemption-to-coal-plant-that-emits-most-air-toxins-in-the-nation/ Tue, 08 Apr 2025 23:22:01 +0000 https://meic.org/?p=38130 The exemption will push the deadline for compliance with air toxics standards back by two years, despite every other similar coal plant complying with the rule.   CONTACTS Dr. Lori Byron, MD | 406-671-5824 | lori.byron@gmail.com Dr. Robert Merchant, Pulmonologist | 406-671-5767 | merch57@gmail.com Dr. Robert Byron, MD | 406-679-0584 | rgbyron@gmail.com Anne Hedges, MEIC …

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]]> Statement from MEIC’s Anne Hedges: Gaslighting Americans is no way to protect clean air, water and land https://meic.org/statement-from-meics-anne-hedges-gaslighting-americans-is-no-way-to-protect-clean-air-water-and-land/ Wed, 12 Mar 2025 22:03:21 +0000 https://meic.org/?p=37897 Gaslighting Americans is no way to protect clean air, water and land Lying to Americans is no way to protect clean air, water and land. Unfortunately, that is exactly what the new administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) did today when he announced the most massive rollback in U.S. history for regulations that limit …

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]]> Supreme Court Rejects NorthWestern’s Bid to Avoid Cleaning Up Colstrip Plant Air Pollution https://meic.org/supreme-court-rejects-northwesterns-bid-to-avoid-cleaning-up-colstrip-plant-air-pollution/ Tue, 10 Dec 2024 15:17:32 +0000 https://meic.org/?p=36737 By Derf Johnson Earlier this year, the Biden Administration announced a new standard for coal plants under the Mercury and Air Toxics Standard (MATS) that will dramatically reduce the pollution emanating from the Colstrip coal-fired power plant, as well as other plants across the country. With the implementation of the rule, the owners of the …

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]]> MEIC and Partners Pursue Access to “Junque” Files at Legislature https://meic.org/meic-and-partners-pursue-access-to-junque-files-at-legislature/ Tue, 10 Dec 2024 15:16:24 +0000 https://meic.org/?p=36745 By Derf Johnson For decades, Montanans have had access to draft bills and associated documents at the Montana Legislature. This information, commonly referred to at the Capitol as the “junque” file, is a collection of information that includes key documents such as bill drafts, communications between legislators and lobbyists, and other analyses that shed further …

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]]> NorthWestern Energy Moves to Acquire Majority of Antiquated Colstrip Plant https://meic.org/northwestern-energy-moves-to-acquire-majority-of-antiquated-colstrip-plant/ Tue, 15 Oct 2024 14:18:29 +0000 https://meic.org/?p=36345 By Anne Hedges NorthWestern Energy is desperate for people to believe that our lights can only stay on if the utility owns more of the Colstrip plant. The Colstrip plant, a 1,500 megawatt coal-fired power plant, consists of two 40-year old units that are owned by six different companies (see graph). Each year, the plant …

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]]> NorthWestern Asks to Raise Electricity Rates AGAIN — by 26% more https://meic.org/northwestern-asks-to-raise-electricity-rates-again-by-26-more/ Tue, 15 Oct 2024 14:15:46 +0000 https://meic.org/?p=36352 By Nick Fitzmaurice NorthWestern Energy has returned to the Montana Public Service Commission (PSC) asking for permission to reach into customers’ pockets for another significant rate increase to prop up its budget-busting and heavily polluting fossil fuel investments. Unfortunately, these increases have resulted in Montana having the second highest electricity rates in the region (and …

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]]> Statement from MEIC’s Anne Hedges on NorthWestern Energy’s announcement about acquiring Puget Sound Energy’s shares of the Colstrip coal-fired power plant. https://meic.org/statement-from-meics-anne-hedges-on-northwestern-energys-announcement-about-acquiring-puget-sound-energys-shares-of-the-colstrip-coal-fired-power-plant/ Wed, 31 Jul 2024 16:54:15 +0000 https://meic.org/?p=35425 NorthWestern Energy’s announcement of its intention to acquire Puget Sound Energy’s shares of the unreliable Colstrip plant is the epitome of NorthWestern’s inability to plan for an affordable and reliable energy future. Not only is Montana’s monopoly utility the only utility in the country planning to invest more in coal-fired power, but it’s choosing to …

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]]> NorthWestern Energy Wants More of Colstrip (hold on to your wallets) https://meic.org/northwestern-energy-wants-more-of-colstrip-hold-on-to-your-wallets/ Wed, 15 Mar 2023 15:04:19 +0000 https://meic.org/?p=30812 By Anne Hedges NorthWestern Energy’s proposal to permanently increase homeowners’ and small businesses’ electricity rates by 25% is bad enough. Add to that its proposal to build a $1 billion methane gas plant outside of Laurel to be paid for by customers over 20 years. Then there is its failure to submit its Integrated Resource …

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