U.S. Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., said Desert Rock was one of three coal-fired power plants for which the EPA is considering permits.
Waxman complained in a seven-page letter to EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson that the agency failed to consider the effects of global warming when it issued a permit two weeks ago for the Bonanza Power Plant in northeast Utah.
The permit issuance followed a U.S. Supreme Court decision in April that said the EPA could regulate carbon dioxide.
Waxman linked the case to power plants under consideration, saying permit decisions for Desert Rock and two other power plants were "critical to the fight against global warming."
Desert Rock would produce 1,500 megawatts of electricity on Navajo land about 30 miles southwest of Farmington. The $3 billion power plant is backed by Diné Power Authority, a Navajo company, and Sithe Global Power, a multinational corporation that is owned by two giant New York investment firms.
The congressman, who chairs the House oversight committee, urged the EPA "not to approve any new projects until you have considered the impact of, and options for reducing, greenhouse-gas emissions from these plants."
Besides Desert Rock, the EPA is considering proposals to build coal-fired power plants near Ely, in eastern Nevada; and in New York.
Mike Eisenfeld with Durango-based environmental group San Juan Citizens Alliance said Waxman was "right on top of it."
"EPA has now been given marching orders to regulate (carbon dioxide) under the Clean Air Act, and now it's time for them to take action," Eisenfeld said. "It's no longer OK to bypass their responsibility to evaluate the effects of carbon emissions from all these coal-fired plants."
But an adviser for the Desert Rock project said Waxman's letter misinterprets the Supreme Court decision.
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"That case dealt with cars and trucks, not power plants," said Jeff Holmstead, a former EPA air administrator who is now working with Desert Rock Energy Co.
"Further, the Supreme Court did not compel carbon regulations. It merely insisted that EPA consider the formulation of carbon regulations - a serious process in which the agency is currently engaged," Holmstead said.
Desert Rock spokesman Frank Maisano said Waxman failed to consider the economic benefits of Desert Rock to the Navajo people. Desert Rock would create 420 permanent jobs and send $43 million a year in tax and royalty payments to tribal government, according to the project's draft Environmental Impact Statement, an evaluation prepared by federal agencies.
The draft EIS says that measurable concentrations of Desert Rock's emissions would likely extend less than 62 miles from the plant. "Minute quantities" could be blown by wind across a wider area, the document says.
The draft EIS estimates Desert Rock would emit 12.7 million tons of carbon dioxide annually. Carbon dioxide is believed to contribute to global warming.
Fluor Corp. of Irving, Texas, has been chosen to build Desert Rock. The power plant would be the third within 30 miles of Farmington, joining Four Corners Generating Station and San Juan Generating Station. Four Corners is one of the largest coal-fired plants in the U.S., producing 2,040 megawatts of electricity.
The draft EIS says Desert Rock's emissions would be substantially lower than those of its neighbors because of modern pollution-control technology.
