Hearing brings out critics and supporters of coal-fired power

...The BIA released the draft document in May supporting the project. It reviewed three alternatives — the proposed 1,500-megawatt plant, a scaled down version and no plant at all — and the impacts each would have on the tribe and the region’s environment.

According to the document, a smaller plant would disturb fewer acres but the BIA contends it would be less efficient and use more resources for each kilowatt of electricity produced. No plant would mean a loss of more than $50 million in tax, lease and royalty payments to the Navajo Nation as well as potential jobs.

DPA and Sithe have touted Desert Rock as the cleanest coal-burning plant in the nation and a much-needed source of jobs and revenue for the Navajo Nation, where unemployment hovers around 50 percent.

From the Santa Fe New Mexican