SANDPOINT — The City Council voted Wednesday to request a public hearing in Sandpoint on Avista’s Integrated Resource Plan, a road map for how the utility will meet the energy needs of its customers.

The council is making the request at the urging of the Idaho Conservation League because it would provide the public an avenue for involvement in the planning process. Moreover, a public hearing allows Avista to take the pulse of its customer base.

“It’s really a unique opportunity for Avista customers,” ICL’s Matt Nykiel told the council.

The council agreed without discussion to request the public hearing.

Notable elements of Avista’s Integrated Resource Plan include a significant investment in wind power by 2022. The utility plans on seeking 300 megawatts of wind energy from projects in Montana, which peak in winter and when Idaho and Washington most need clean electricity. The plan also contemplates a shift away from its use of a coal plant in Colstrip, Mont., by 2026.

“Avista’s analysis of Colstrip in this IRP,” the document says, “indicates that retiring the plant for Idaho customers in 2025 rather than 2035 is the economic choice.”

Washington state’s Clean Energy Transition Act, meanwhile, prohibits Avista from charging Washington’s retail customers for coal after 2025. Utilities which don’t comply with CETA risk fines, according to the plan.

Information: myavista.com/about-us/integrated-resource-planning

Keith Kinnaird can be reached by email at kkinnaird@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow him on Twitter @KeithDailyBee.