MECOSTA COUNTY, Michigan (WPBN/WGTU) — Mike Rogers, a Republican candidate for U.S. Senate, held a campaign rally in Green Charter Township and expressed his opposition to Gotion’s construction of an electric vehicle battery factory.
At the event, demonstrators from both sides competed against each other.
“They don’t have our interests at heart,” said Rogers, a former Michigan state legislator.
“This is our chance to stand up and tell Washington, DC, which doesn’t seem to be listening very carefully, that we will not tolerate a Chinese company with Chinese interests taking away American jobs in our community,” Rogers said.
While Rogers and Congressman John Moolenaar oppose the planned power plant out of concern about China, others have different reasons.
“There is pretty solid evidence that it would have a major impact on the state’s environment and on our water system,” Patti Kooy said.
“We live in the Great Lakes region. It’s beautiful. We don’t want pollution. I don’t think they have the water supply to support the project they’re proposing,” Patti Kooy said.
But Chuck Thelen, vice president of North American manufacturing at Gotion, said the company will protect the 90 acres of wetlands surrounding the factory and the materials used do not pose a threat to the environment.
“We produce the cathode active material here. It is lithium iron phosphate, and if scrap is generated during the process, it is completely recycled. So nothing needs to be disposed of,” said Thelen.
“When the full battery and return batteries reach the end of their life, about 99.9% of these materials can be recycled. People don’t realize that. They are far more recyclable than lead batteries.”
Gotion promises 2,300 jobs at the plant by 2033.
“We need jobs and we need to look to the future and not get stuck in the past,” said Karen Turnbull, chairwoman of the Mecosta County Democratic Party.
“The other benefit, besides jobs, is electric cars and battery technology. That’s the future we’re going into,” Turnbull said. “It’s like going from a horse-drawn carriage to a petrol car. Now we’re going from petrol cars to battery technology.”
“We should do everything we can to prevent this,” Mike Rogers said. “Remember, this benefits China, not this community. I’ve talked to a lot of small and medium-sized manufacturers in this area. The government will subsidize higher wages for a Chinese plant at their expense.”
Despite the resistance, Thelen said Gotion is making progress.
Meanwhile, many expect this fight to continue both through protests like this one and in court.
