Our Values

We all value a comfortable and healthy life, things like clean drinking water and power bills we can afford. And we like having a say in the important decisions that concern our health and our lives.

The Problem

However, some of the decisions the East Kentucky Power Cooperative has been making on our behalf are putting these things we value at risk.

"I have serious concerns about the proposed Smith power plant and believe there’s an alternative that will be better for the environment, less costly to co-op members, and far more beneficial economically. The jobs generated by a clean energy portfolio would be a welcome boost to our local economy. I can’t tell you how significant this would be to an area that has lost much of its agricultural base in recent years."

--Rachel Harrod

EKPC provides power to 16 rural electric co-ops in eastern and central Kentucky. The folks on the EKPC board come from each of these local co-ops, like Big Sandy RECC in eastern Kentucky or Blue Grass Energy in central Kentucky.

Now, EKPC is proposing to build a new coal burning power plant in Clark County called the Smith plant. Right now they estimate it'll cost close to one billion dollars, and costs keep going up. And here's the biggest problem: the power plant isn't even needed! 

The Solution

EKPC could meet the power needs of their customers by investing in energy-saving and renewable energy programs. Not only would these programs help keep people's bills from sky-rocketing, but they'd create thousands of good local jobs--and they would keep the toxic pollutants that would be emitted by the plant out of the air and the harmful coal ash out of our Kentucky River.

Along with our allies, Kentuckians For The Commonwealth has shared with EKPC a plan that would generate nearly 9,000 local jobs all throughout the 87 counties that are in the co-op area. This plan is a real win-win: it would help customers use less energy at home, saving them money; and it would create new hydropower at existing dams throughout the state--right here in the places where we live. 

Taking Action

But, for EKPC to do the right thing, they need to hear from lots of informed folks, and they need to feel the public pressure of thousands of Kentuckians taking action on the issue. Visit our Campaign Overview to get more informed on the Stop Smith and what KFTC is doing to work toward a clean energy solution. You can dive even deeper into the research behind EKPC's financial situation and the clean energy solution on our Research Documents page. Then, visit the Take Action page to join the campaign and add your voice to the chorus. Finally, you will find information for informing your friends and neighbors about the campaign--flyers, presentation, petitions--in our Tools & More Info pages.

Our Vision

Just think about it: energy bills that folks can afford, clean energy sources that don’t dirty up our air and water, and thousands of new jobs in Kentucky that will put people all over the state to work. Isn't this is the kind of Kentucky we all look forward to living in?