ROCK COUNTY, Wis. (WIFR) – Yusuf Adama arrived to Beloit City Council with eyes wide open on his community’s concerns. Four years into his role as a council member, he keeps a saying close to his politics.
“Any problem that you see in a community has someone that is directly responsible.”
Just outside the City of Beloit limits, Adama says he sees one of those problems hurting his area: Alliant Energy’s Riverside Energy Center.
Emissions from the natural gas plant put Rock County on par with oil-producing countries like Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. Alliant’s proposal for a liquefied natural gas facility would store two billion cubic feet of fossil fuels in the area.
Wisconsin Power and Light Company (doing business as Alliant Energy) says the project meets the need for “more firm natural gas capacity to reliably meet current and reasonably anticipated needs moving forward while maintaining an adequate reserve margin.”
Adama argues the facility delivers dire consequences for the stateline.
“It’s not going to matter how fast our electric grid can move if someone is dying of asthma.”
The LNG building would be constructed on 100 acres of farmland within the Town of Rock, Wisconsin (near W. B.R. Townline Rd. and S. Walters Rd.). Although Adama doesn’t represent that community, he feels the need to speak against the proposal up the road from his city.
“The air doesn’t stay in one place,” he exclaimed. “If this does leak or damages the watershed, that’s not going to affect just one area.”
A map of the project shows a natural gas pipeline and power lines connecting the facility to the Riverside Energy Center.
Commenting on the project’s environmental analysis, Alliant asserts the project isn’t “inconsistent” with Governor Tony Evers’ Clean Energy Plan, since some greenhouse gas-emitting sources will exist as renewables take off.
Local climate advocates criticize the project as “backwards.”
Healthy Climate Wisconsin’s Brittany Keyes keeps watch on two charts from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The first documents Illinois’ energy consumption estimates from 2023 and shows sizable “clean” nuclear power.
A profile of Illinois’ energy estimates by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.(Nathaniel Langley)
In comparison, the same chart concerning Wisconsin reveals natural gas as the leading source of energy consumption.
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration.(Nathaniel Langley)
Keyes suggests Wisconsin’s chart fuels concern for her state’s future clean energy goals, pointing to Aliant as slacking progress.
“They are taking us backwards… and really entrenching us into this high-polluting and dangerous type of energy generation.”
As a clean air coordinator with Healthy Climate Wisconsin, Keyes believes the utility company puts profits over people.
“Instead of investing in clean energy again, they are on the pocketbooks of ratepayers and our energy bills. They are going to be taking us backwards to the tune of half-a-billion dollars.”
In a statement to questions regarding climate concerns and economic benefits, Alliant highlighted its LNG facility would employ more than 200 construction jobs. The number of permanent jobs is still being evaluated.
A spokesperson for the company added the following as well:
We appreciate input from local stakeholders as we continue to hold valuable conversations about the proposed Liquified Natural Gas facility near our existing Riverside Energy Center campus.
We are committed to building a resilient energy future for customers through investments in reliable, cost-effective and safe energy solutions. Our all-of-the-above approach optimizes new, traditional and renewable sources to meet customer demand and support economic growth in our communities.
Wisconsin families and businesses rely on natural gas to stay warm during the coldest winter days. This project is the most cost-effective way to meet our customer needs and improve the reliability of Wisconsin’s natural gas supply…
We take stewardship in our communities and our environmental obligations seriously. For this project, an air permit application has been submitted to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources that contains the information needed to issue a permit with conditions that are protective of public health. We will adhere to the permit requirements, all regulatory and environmental standards set by regulators, including the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, and ensure the highest level of operational safety.”
Steve Howland, a Beloit area climate activist, remembers when Riverside Energy Center was described as “cleaner than coal.”
While natural gas is relatively “clean-burning,” Howland says there are healthier energy sources these days – such as solar or wind.
“The goal posts seem to keep moving when you increase production by an incredible percentage, you end up throwing out a whole lot more pollution than they were when it was just the coal-fired plant, because you’re creating a lot more energy,” he said.
As of July 29, public comment isn’t available on the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin’s page for the LNG facility.
“I personally don’t think that there’s enough community outreach done by not the gas plant or the governing bodies to make sure that people are actually involved in the process as it’s happening,” countered Adama.
The city council member hopes Alliant considers the project’s climate consequences as it moves toward state approval.
“People shouldn’t have to always be in the room to say, ‘Hey, please don’t kill me.’”
If the PSC greenlights the facility, construction could begin in February 2026 and end by May 2028.
In the meantime, Keyes started a petition calling for Alliant to pay for a regulatory PM 2.5 (i.e., harmful air pollutants) monitor in the Beloit area. Currently, there’s no system tracking such air quality in Rock County.
Keyes’ petition can be found here.
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