Outrage in Western North Carolina

Over Proposed Oil-Burning Power Plant

Buncombe County Commissioners Avoid Public Involvement

Canary Coalition pursues legal action against possible violation

of Open Meetings and Public Disclosure Laws

February 21, 2007

Once again we are reminded that democracy can never be taken for granted. The citizens of Buncombe County, North Carolina are learning that their elected officials believe there is one set of rules for Progress Energy Corporation and another set for everyone else.

For two years, beginning in 2004, the Buncombe County government negotiated in secret with representatives of Progress Energy on a proposal to lease 78 acres of public land adjacent to a retired landfill for one dollar a year, for fifty years, to build and operate a new diesel-oil burning power plant in Woodfin, just north of Asheville, NC.

Then, out of nowhere, the commissioners announced in mid-December of 2006 there would be a public hearing, on January 16, 2007, on the proposal. This provided a mere thirty days for public absorption, preparation and response.  About two hundred people packed the hearing room and voiced overwhelming opposition to the project, while demanding a delay in the decision to allow for greater public input.  At the end of the hearing the commissioners promptly voted 5-0 to grant the lease to Progress Energy.  There was never any doubt.

At the next meeting of the county commission, on February 20, although it was not on the agenda, the lease was again the main topic as another room filled with concerned citizens spoke in opposition to the Progress Energy Proposal.  Speaker after speaker was given a strictly enforced limit of three minutes. When the last opponent of the power plant finished speaking, the Chairman, Nathan Ramsey, asked Ken Maxwell, the public relations person from Progress Energy to come forward and speak.  This in itself broke protocol, since the issue was not on the agenda and Mr. Maxwell had not signed the sheet for public speaking. Maxwell went on defending the lease and the plan to build the power plant for well over five minutes without interruption when the people in attendance began getting restless and mumbling about the time limit.  Finally someone shouted out that Maxwell's time had expired.  Ramsey shot back, saying that one point of view had been voiced by everyone else and it wasn't unreasonable for one person voicing another view to be given ten minutes (although Progress Energy had been given two years with no rebuttal).  This preferential treatment of course broke all the rules so strictly enforced prior to Maxwell's testimony and made everyone in the room realize there were two classes of people present. The first class of citizens consisted of Progress Energy personnel.  Everyone else was second class.  A protest arose from the crowd at the obvious arbitrariness of Ramsey's rule bending.  Ramsey responded by threatening to have the police remove the next person who protested from the audience.

In reaction to the County's blatant attempt to by-pass the public in this decision-making process, opposition has manifested itself throughout the community in several ways and continues to mushroom as the commissioners compound their problems with each step through arrogance and heavy-handedness.  In early January, prior to the January 16 hearing, a group in West Asheville held a teach-in at the public library, attended by about fifty people, to organize against the power plant.  The Mountain Voices Alliance suddenly became flooded with new members eager to DO SOMETHING to stop the power plant. They held meetings in Woodfin and Weaverville attended by at least a hundred people.  Two people who identified themselves with the international direct action group, Rising Tide, scaled and hijacked a roadside billboard to hang a huge sign that read, "Burning Oil Ain't Progress.  Stop the Woodfin Power Plant!"  The Canary Coalition decided to pursue legal action against the Buncombe County government for possible violation of the Open Meetings and Public Disclosure laws.

Under the authority of the Public Disclosure laws, on January 30, the Canary Coalition submitted a letter of discovery to the County Manager's office demanding to view all records of meetings between Progress Energy and the County in the past three years.  There was no doubt the spirit of the open meetings law had been broken as the County kept the public completely in the dark about this project for two years while details of the deal were worked out. The Coalition then retained an attorney to study the law and investigate the county records to see if the letter of the law had been broken as well. On February 12, County Manager Wanda Greene responded to the letter of discovery by mailing a packet of information to the Canary Coalition that included copies of relevant ordinances and a handful of email communications between Progress Energy and county officials.  Assuming this small compilation of documents could not possibly be the complete record, a second letter was sent, on February 16, to the County Manager along with a stern letter from the organization's attorney demanding total compliance with the Public Disclosure Law.  To date there has been no response.

Among the documents sent to the Canary Coalition from the County were no records that would substantiate the claim by Progress Energy that it had considered alternatives but found no options other than building a new power plant to accomodate peak loads.  There were no studies, no statistical analysis, no charts, no comprehensive descriptive reports, no comparative research, no detailed commentary on the alternative options that were allegedly reviewed and rejected.  There was no documentation relinquished that indicated Progress Energy representatives met or communicated with any county official, elected or otherwise, other than for a few phone calls and email exchanges over the past three years concerning this matter. 

This could mean only one of two things, neither of which looks good for the commissioners and county government.  One possibility is the County is withholding records of meetings and communications that took place.  If so, the county government is in violation of the Public Disclosure Act.  The other possibility is that there was indeed very little communication between the County and Progress Energy and the commissioners made this profoundly important decision without any informational basis to back them up. If so, they acted solely on the word and in the interest of Progress Energy.  They sought and received no outside advice.

Public input was scheduled in a hearing that was no more than a legal formality, for the last possible moment before a vote was taken affirming the decision. The citizens of Buncombe County and their interests were intentionally avoided throughout the process of negotiating this deal with Progress Energy.  If you're reading this, you should be angry.

Money is needed for the legal fund to fight the Woodfin Power Plant.

Donations may be sent to:

Woodfin Legal Fund

c/o The Canary Coalition

PO Box 653

Sylva, NC 28779

please make checks payable to Woodfin Legal Fund

The Mountain Voices Alliance also needs money to sustain its campaign against the Woodfin Power Plant. Donations for the Campaign may be made by check with No Woodfin Power Plant Campaign written in the “for” space, and mailed to Western North Carolina Alliance, 29 N. Market Street, Asheville, NC 28801.