Michigan AG Dana Nessel visits Kalamazoo to address rising energy prices

KALAMAZOO, Mich. — Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel was in Kalamazoo on Thursday to discuss rising energy prices in the state.

She is pointing the finger at the Trump administration, and the federal push to keep a local coal plant in operation.

J.H. Campbell Plant in West Olive was built in the 1960s, and was planned to close down. Nessel said it’s costing Michiganders every day.

“Consumers Energy cannot use long-term coal contracts to save money, and the aging facility requires extensive repairs, so the plant costs some more to operate than it could ever recoup in profits,” Nessel said.

“And that’s a whopping $615,000 loss every single day that that plant is forced to stay open,” she added.

The U.S. Department of Energy issued another emergency order in May keeping the facility online through mid-August. The plant had originally been scheduled to close in May 2025.

The Department of Energy said the decision is centered on energy reliability, though Nessel said coal-fired plants are a major cause of climate change.

“I think since we’re here to talk in part about the J. H. Campbell plant, it’s worthy to note that coal fired plants are the single single largest source of emissions that cause and create climate change, such as what’s affecting us right now,” Nessel said in regards to the hazardous pollutants that blanketed most of Michigan on Thursday.