Introduction

My name is William Owens, a resident of Cen opportunity to testify. May I deliver two testim first is from Ms. Leslie Weise, of Monument, 

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Ms. Weise's testimony 

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:do Springs City Council, which etings I volunteer with a small group of d of renewable energy and efficiency serve over 500,000 people. Change uncil meeting we heard two members
e deniers, with one of them proudly 

## • EPA Public Hearing: Proposed Carbon Regulations for Power Plants

Testimony Delivered at: EPA Region 8 Office 1595 Wynkoop Street, Denver, CO 80202

Tuesday 29 July 2014 By: William Owens, Jr. , Centennial, CO 80112

"Accepting a Truer Cost of Coal-fired Power Generation"

ennial, CO. Thank you for the vies in this time slot? Thank you! The 0. I will then deliver my testimony and

I have worked as in-house counsel for Fortun 500 companies, focusing for the past 10 years on those developing technology and products to displace fossil fuels for energy production. (I have solar PV panels on my home, and drive a plug-in hybrid vehicle.)

My 8-year old son and I have witnessed, liter. Colorado's most destructive wildfires over the fire, the Waldo Canyon fire, and the Black For including that of my sister. It's disturbing that wildfires are normal. Yet, he is academically class presentations on carbon and water cycl when a substitute teacher read to his class a class that climate change was not true, but w Because of our knowledge and advocacy on t and had to make a statement of correction to Ily from the road side, three of past 3 years: Boulder's 4-mile Canyon st fire that destroyed over 500 homes e is growing up believing that these dvanced in science (and has given two s). So he was genuinely confused ook about weather and then told the s something made up by scientists. e topic, that teacher was reprimanded he class.
Climate change denial also exists in the Color manages their electric utility. At city council m community professionals to ensure that a ble investments are included in the utility's plans t won't be easy because at last month's City C of the City Council profess to be climate chan stating he had written extensively on the "hoa 

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I've seen the real-world impact of climate cha ge in the catastrophic impact of the Colorado fires and in the teacher's and counci members' ignorance on the science of climate. Therefore, I enthusiastically support t e EPA's plans for carbon reduction standards so that this critical topic can be add essed, rather than ignored. (End of Ms. Weise's testimony)
Mr. Owens' testimony (next page)"Accepting a Truer Cost of Coa -fired Power Generation" Testimony by Ms. Leslie Weis and Mr. William Owens (continu d)

This debate about CO2 in power production i often framed in the context of jobs. I'm not here to deny the importance of jobs. I've b-en laid off a few times so, I fully appreciate the value of jobs. But we should al .o weigh the costs of CO2 and other harmful emissions from burning coal because they impose a tremendous cost on human health.
The coal industry (producers and users) want us to simply accept the value of the electricity they produce. They say that to do o herwise will cost us jobs. You see, they are waving the JOBS flag to distract us from il, costs to life and health. The costs include: 1. The negative impact to the agriculture e need to sustain life due to CO2- driven climate change, 2. The increase in downwind debilitating -sthma cases, 3. Breathing difficulties for others with im•aired lungs due to nitrous and sulfurous oxides from older plants, and 4. Changing our diet to reduce or eliminat- the consumption of coal plant mercury laden tuna from our diet.

behalf of jobs, we must uld ask, "How many created or et the cost of the lives they So, as we hear the coal industry's argument o also consider the cost to public health. We sh saved coal industry jobs are needed to o compromise?" 8

We can do better. I urge that the EPA's propo ed regulations be adopted substantially as proposed. We have to start s•mewhere, and this is a small but important step toward doing better.

Part of the solution to reach 30% CO2 reducti in is to use more clean and renewable energy sources. They, too, create jobs, but th y don't cost lives and health like coal plants do.
(End of Mr. Owens' testimony)
On behalf of Ms. Leslie Weise and myself, thank you for this opportunity to testify.

29 July 2014 Rev 4 WO