Backers say there’s still time to save Ohio’s nuclear plants

TOLEDO, Ohio (AP) — A group backed by the owner of Ohio’s two nuclear plants is taking another run at persuading state lawmakers to come up with a lifeline for the plants, which are slated to close by 2021.

The newly formed coalition, the Ohio Clean Energy Jobs Alliance, says that time is running out and that a solution needs to be found within nine months.

Closing the two plants, which produce 14 percent of the state’s electricity, would make Ohio too dependent on natural gas and take away a reliable source of energy, putting the state at risk of blackouts if the supply is interrupted, backers say.

It also would mean the loss of at least 1,500 jobs and millions in tax money for schools and local governments, they say.

“The list goes on and on,” said Jamie Beier Grant, head of an economic development agency in Ottawa County where the Davis-Besse nuclear plant has been producing power since the 1970s.

But opponents argue a financial rescue for the plants could increase electricity rates across the state.