Newly proposed rules for limiting emissions from coal-fired power plants aren't as bad as once feared, U.S. Rep. Vicky Hartzler said Wednesday at the conclusion of a panel discussion of energy policy on the University of Missouri campus.

The draft rules, issued this week by the Environmental Protection Agency, target greenhouse gases and set a goal of reducing emissions by 30 percent from 2005 levels. Missouri's goal is a 21 percent reduction. The final rules will be issued next year, and states' implementation plans will be due in 2016.

The main concern, Hartzler said, is the impact the rules will have on consumer prices.

"I think it is better than we initially thought it might be in that it allows some flexibility and it allows some states to have more control over how they implement and meet these standards," Hartzler told reporters. "That is better than EPA just mandating that coal powered plants have to reduce emissions by a certain percentage."

Hartzler, a Republican representing Missouri's Fourth Congressional District, brought three utility executives to campus, where they were joined by Gregg Coffin, manager of the MU Power Plant, and Cerry Klein of the Mizzou Advantage Sustainable Energy Initiative. Some audience members told Hartzler they were disappointed that alternative energy didn't have a stronger voice on the panel.

"I want to commend you for your savvy of having a stacked deck up here," Paul Lehman of Fayette told Hartzler. "We didn't hear anything from anyone who was an advocate of alternative energy. There was some reported on that, but there was no advocacy for that because you need to hear that."

Hartzler said the panel was chosen to provide a voice to energy producers to share their concerns about regulation and highlight efforts to improve efficiency and introduce alternative resources.

The utility executives � Ameren Missouri Vice President Warren Wood, Missouri Public Utilities Alliance Vice President Floyd Gilzow and Association of Missouri Electric Cooperatives Vice President David Klindt � all highlighted efforts to find energy that doesn't rely on fossil fuels but warned it will be expensive and have unintended consequences.

If too many people switch to solar power, Klindt said, it could drive up rates. "When you put panels on your roof, the utility doesn't have as much power to sell, but their fixed costs haven't changed," Klindt said.

Ameren in October will roll out a plan for adding more wind and solar sources to its capacity, Wood said. The utility hasn't completed an analysis of the new rules, but alternative sources won't replace large generating plants, he said.

"The Midwest, to be clear, we are not going to walk away from coal," he said. "There isn't a good alternative."

Missouri relies heavily on coal for electricity and obtains 85 percent of its total energy needs from fossil fuels. Switching large generating plants to natural gas, currently an inexpensive fuel, might seem like a good idea now but there is no certainty prices will remain low, Gilzow said.

"We are making long-term policy decisions based on current conditions, and we are assuming the world is going to be the way it is for the next 30 to 50 years, and that is a dangerous assumption on our part," he said.

This article was published in the Thursday, June 5, 2014 edition of the Columbia Daily Tribune with the headline "Hartzler: EPA proposal not as bad as feared;�Panel includes industry reps."