Garden City, Kan.-area government bodies, educators and business organizations have thrown their full support behind the planned Holcomb Station Expansion Project to be built by Sunflower Electric, Tri-State and other utilities.

Resolutions were drafted to support the project in advance of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) public hearings to review Sunflower’s air quality permit required for the construction of two new 700-megawatt units at its existing 360-megawatt Holcomb Station. Hearings were held Oct. 24 and Oct. 26 in Garden City and Topeka. A third hearing was held in Lawrence on Nov. 16.

Government entities that have issued resolutions in support of the Holcomb expansion include both the Finney and Kearny County Board of County Commissioners, the Garden City Commission and the Holcomb City Council. The Holcomb and Garden City public school districts, along with Garden City Community College, have also issued resolutions of project support. Numerous business leaders also are in favor of the plant expansion, and project endorsements have been received from the Garden City Area Chamber of Commerce and the Finney County Economic Development Corp.

Lee Boughey, Tri-State’s public relations manager, said he was pleased with the “broad-based support” for the project, noting, “Western Kansans are eager for the new jobs and increased tax base that the project will bring.

“They also have confidence in both Sunflower and Kansas regulators,” he said. “With Sunflower’s strong operating record at Holcomb Station and the stringent emissions limits in the proposed permit, the community understands that economic growth is not at the expense of the environment.”

Wayne Penrod, Sunflower executive manager/environment added, “Sunflower is eager to demonstrate to KDHE and the public the facts about our Holcomb Expansion Project and our stellar record for pollution control at Holcomb. Our expansion will feature the best available control technologies and stand among the cleanest coal-based plants in the country.”

Penrod also noted at the hearings that there were incorrect reports released to the media that the new units would increase the amount of mercury emitted by coal-based plants in Kansas by 80 percent. “Based on the groundbreaking mercury control research demonstrated at Holcomb in 2004, we can predict that the total mercury emissions from the entire facility, when completed, will be no greater than the emissions are today,” Penrod said.

The KDHE will continue to accept written public comments until Dec. 15. A decision on the air permit is expected early in 2007.

The KDHE air permit approval is one of several regulatory steps Sunflower will comply with to receive final approval for construction of the new Holcomb units.

The new units will be owned by G&Ts that together serve more than 1.5 million consumer-owners of 66 electric cooperatives in seven states. Golden Spread Electric Cooperative (Amarillo, Texas), Sunflower and other investors will jointly own the first, new 700-megawatt unit. Golden Spread will own the first 400 megawatts of the unit’s output for supply to its member systems. Sunflower, operator of the units, will utilize up to 150 megawatts from the unit and Midwest Energy (Hays, Kan.) will take 75 megawatts. Tri-State will own a second 700-megawatt unit.