Washington's Coal Plant Conundrum: A Clash of State and Federal Powers

Washington state officials are fuming over a federal order that forces a coal plant to stay open. The Department of Energy, led by President Trump, has told TransAlta to keep running its Centralia coal plant. This goes against a state law that says coal power must stop by the end of the year. The order, under the Federal Power Act, says the plant must keep running until March 2026. This is part of a bigger federal push to keep coal plants open longer. States like Michigan and Pennsylvania have seen similar orders. Washington's governor, attorney general, and ecology director are not happy. They say the federal government is using "emergency powers" to keep dirty coal plants running. They argue there's no real emergency. The plant was already shutting down, and there's no coal left to burn.The state has a plan to go green. The Clean Energy Transformation Act says all utilities must stop using coal by the end of this year. The goal is to have no greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and zero emissions by 2045. But the federal order says coal must keep running, citing energy security. TransAlta had plans to switch the plant to natural gas. This aligns with the state's clean energy goals. But now, the federal order puts these plans in doubt. It's unclear what this means for Washington's energy future. TransAlta says it's looking at the order and will work with both state and federal governments. They still plan to convert the plant to natural gas. More details will come as they become available.