Saturday, December 11, 2010
West Virginia Energy Summit
WEST VIRGINIA...
One topic of major discussion at this week’s West Virginia Energy Summit was carbon capture and sequestration technology. The state is looking into how this may play a part in the state’s energy future.
Carbon capture and sequestration, or CCS, is a process of taking carbon dioxide at sources like power plants and storing it underground. This keeps some CO2 emissions from entering the atmosphere.
This technology is being discussed as a way to make coal more “clean.” Stephanie Timmermeyer, chair of the group studying its possibilities, says it’s not just a coal-aimed technology, but any type of large facility that emits carbon dioxide could potentially use this technology, not just the electricity generating plants.
The working group is putting a report together on CCS for the State Legislature. It’s due next summer. Timmermeyer says some of the most important issues have to do with legal issues like landowner rights, trying to figure out how you’re able to maximize using carbon capture, sequestration within our current regulations and trying to decide whether we need new regulations, and what those might be.
Since last year, American Electric Power has been using CCS at its Mountaineer Plant in Mason County.
It captures about 100,000 tons of carbon dioxide a year and stores it underground in injection wells. Gary Spitznogle, AEP’s director of new technology development and policy support, AEP understands there’s probably going to be required reductions in CO2, whether it’s from the EPA or legislation, the company anticipats having to comply with something.
One topic of major discussion at this week’s West Virginia Energy Summit was carbon capture and sequestration technology. The state is looking into how this may play a part in the state’s energy future.
Carbon capture and sequestration, or CCS, is a process of taking carbon dioxide at sources like power plants and storing it underground. This keeps some CO2 emissions from entering the atmosphere.
This technology is being discussed as a way to make coal more “clean.” Stephanie Timmermeyer, chair of the group studying its possibilities, says it’s not just a coal-aimed technology, but any type of large facility that emits carbon dioxide could potentially use this technology, not just the electricity generating plants.
The working group is putting a report together on CCS for the State Legislature. It’s due next summer. Timmermeyer says some of the most important issues have to do with legal issues like landowner rights, trying to figure out how you’re able to maximize using carbon capture, sequestration within our current regulations and trying to decide whether we need new regulations, and what those might be.
Since last year, American Electric Power has been using CCS at its Mountaineer Plant in Mason County.
It captures about 100,000 tons of carbon dioxide a year and stores it underground in injection wells. Gary Spitznogle, AEP’s director of new technology development and policy support, AEP understands there’s probably going to be required reductions in CO2, whether it’s from the EPA or legislation, the company anticipats having to comply with something.
# posted by Homer Owens @ 10:36 PM 
