A Court decision that blocked construction of a 1200-megawatt coal-fired power plant may bode well for opponents of new coal plants in Michigan.

Last week a judge in Fulton County, GA, denied a permit for the plant planned by LS Energy/Dynegy because of the millions of pounds of CO2 it would release each year.

Continued – This case appears to be the first in which a judge has applied an April U.S. Supreme Court decision that carbon dioxide be classified as a pollutant subject to regulation.

Here in Michigan several new coal-fired power plant proposals are under consideration and the Citizens for Environmental Inquiry is suing the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality — charging that they should be considering CO2 emissions in their permit process for coal plants.

LS Energy/Dynegy is seeking a permit for a 750-megawatt plant in Midland.

Coal-fired power plants are the largest emitters of CO2, which is a greenhouse gas linked to climate change.