Two alleged voting “irregularities” — including a conflict of interest — should disqualify an advisory vote recommending a heavy industrial zoning for the proposed site of a coal-fired power plant, a group opposed to the project said this week.

A protest period on the rezoning decision concludes Monday and Citizens for Clean Energy, a group opposing the plant, requested this week that commissioners hold off on taking final action.

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http://www.greatfallstribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080301/NEWS01/803010303

HELENA — Two environmental groups said Thursday that the state air-quality permit for the proposed coal-fired Highwood Generating Station is invalid in light of a recent federal court ruling and must be redone.

In a letter to Montana Department of Environmental Quality Director Richard Opper, the groups said that because the Highwood plant’s permit does not comply with the federal Clean Air Act’s mercury emission requirements, construction of the plant cannot lawfully begin.

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Gov. Brian Schweitzer on Thursday asked the state attorney general to investigate whether the former owner of a power plant near Thompson Falls deceived regulators last fall to avoid paying more than $1 million in fines.

The governor’s request follows accusations by two environmental groups and others that former Thompson River Co-gen co-owner Barry Bates provided false or misleading information to the state Department of Environmental Quality.

In a letter to the governor this week, the Clark Fork Coalition, the Montana Environmental Information Center and more than a dozen Sanders County residents alleged that Bates wasn’t forthcoming about the company’s financial situation and its plans to sell the troubled plant to an investment firm.

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http://www.helenair.com/articles/2008/02/22/state/100st_080222_investigation.txt 

HELENA — Two environmental groups and 14 Sanders County residents are asking Gov. Brian Schweitzer to investigate whether the former owner of a Western Montana power plant deceived regulators last fall to avoid paying a stiff state fine.

In a letter faxed to the governor’s office this week, representatives from the Clark Fork Coalition and the Montana Environmental Information Center, along with some Sanders County residents, accuse former Thompson River Co-gen co-owner Barry Bates of misleading the state Department of Environmental Quality. They say Bates wasn’t completely honest about the company’s financial situation and its plans to sell the troubled plant to an investment firm.

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http://www.greatfallstribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080221/NEWS01/802210305

Turner Industries Group LLC, the Louisiana company hired by CHS Inc. to build the $325 million coker facility at the Laurel refinery, was fined $60,000 last month by the state of Montana for hiring unlicensed electricians for the project. The company paid $40,000 of the fine, and the remainder was stayed.

The legal dispute went all the way to the Montana Supreme Court before the sides negotiated a settlement.

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http://www.billingsgazette.net/articles/2008/02/14/news/local/22-contractor.txt 

Commissioners Joe Briggs and Lance Olson supported the rezoning, but stopped short endorsing Highwood Generating Station.

“There are elements of this proposal about which I am very positive and others which concern me mightily,” Briggs said.

His concerns relate to the state’s review of small particulate emissions and the potential use of eminent domain to secure utility right-of-ways associated with the plant.

State law allows rural utilities to use eminent domain. However, Briggs said this case is unusual because the owners who might be asked to sacrifice land are not in SME’s electricity service area.

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http://www.greatfallstribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080201/NEWS01/802010317