The Lansing Board of Water & Light retired its last standing coal-fired power plant, the Erickson Power Station, on November 27th
BWL is now Michigan's largest utility to generate coal-free power by 2022.
BWL General Manager Dick Peffley says the move is in line with plans to implement more clean and renewable energy.
“It’s time to move forward so that’s what we’re doing,” Peffley said.
In past years, the utility had burned more than a million tons of coal annually.
Peffley says they are also looking into adding natural gas plants on top of renewable energies, as solar and wind aren’t always the most reliable in natural weather conditions like cloudy days.
Compared to coal, a natural gas plant would reduce their carbon emissions by 80%, and their sulfur dioxide emissions by 99%.
“The more renewables we use it’s definitely great for the region and, you know, the planet,” Peffley said.
The BWL has a goal of becoming carbon-neutral by 2040.