Members of the Commission, thank you for this opportunity to be heard on the matter of NorthWestern Energy’s acquisition of a share of Colstrip Unit 4. I am Gary Matson, a resident of Milltown, Montana.
As a 50-year customer of first Montana Power and now NorthWestern I appreciate the utility’s goal of providing reliable service at the lowest possible cost to customers. I appreciate the high quality of service delivered to customers. I do not agree that the utility has fully accounted for all costs in its electricity resource utilization and planning.

NorthWestern externalizes the cost of climate change. It is a tragedy of our time that the science has been politicized and is ignored or even denied by many in responsible business and government positions. There has never been simpler science: The behavior of greenhouse gasses is a fixed constant, just as is the law of gravity. As these gasses increase in our atmosphere we create a climate change cost that is staggering. Though the cost is large it is so widely distributed among so many emission sources that the cost to any single source cannot be quantified. The only acceptable cost avoidance is to eliminate greenhouse gasses from every source where it’s feasible .

I agree with the findings in testimony by intervenors Montana Environmental Information Center (MEIC) and Montana Consumer Council (MCC) that NorthWestern’s acquisition of an additional share of Colstrip 4 would bring unacceptable cost increases for NorthWestern consumers. MEIC’s and MCC’s evidence is strong and compelling. Add to this evidence the increasing cost of climate change and the Colstrip 4 acquisition can be defined as just plain wrong.

NorthWestern is like a well-run train headed down a well-maintained track. Unfortunately, the track now in place leads to the unacceptable destination of contributing to climate change. The utility has the resources to build new track that will take us in the right direction towards carbon-free electricity generation.
The purpose of goal setting is to increase the likelihood that a desired outcome will be reached. NorthWestern has no goal of making its electricity resource 100% carbon-free. It must set this goal, with a timeline. Neighboring states and utilities have done this; Washington by the year 2030, California by 2045, Idaho Power by 2045. Oregon’s goal is to end coal-fired electricity generation by 2035. Many other utilities around the country have set similar goals. NorthWestern has the expertise and resources to make a plan and join them.
I understand that NorthWestern operates within the constraints of an investor-owned utility. I strongly believe that if the utility set a goal of 100% carbon-free electricity generation it could do so and at the same time remain financially robust.

I understand that the wind and sun aren’t constant. However, I contend that NorthWestern’s electricity resource planning process is skewed to favor fossil fuel generation because it offers the fewest planning challenges. The utility has made no credible effort to accept the need for change and fairly evaluate a 100% renewable portfolio. NorthWestern must find the mix of hydro/solar/wind/storage that will bring reliable service without a reliance upon fossil fuels.

I understand that the city of Colstrip is made prosperous by coal-fired power plants. No one among us wants to take away jobs. I think of other Montana cities. Butte lost its copper but adjusted and remains prosperous because of the commitment and creativity of its citizens as well as appropriate government assistance. Colstrip can do the same.
Each of us has a responsibility to make correct decisions about our energy resources so that future generations can have a quality of life as rich as we have enjoyed. Reaching that goal is already unlikely because of irreversible global climate change now taking place. The best we can do is the right thing, right now: Deny pre-approval of the Colstrip 4 acquisition; reduce CO2 emissions through carbon-free electricity.

Gary Matson
PO Box 308
Milltown  MT  59851
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(406) 370-6584