Dr. Frank Clemente
CCS Will Unlock the Full Economic Value of Coal
The United States needs to get three energy realities: 1) we need more energy at lower prices; 2) coal is America's greatest energy resource; and 3) carbon capture and storage (CCS) will allow us to fully realize coal's dramatic potential.
Let’s get a grip. We’ve got to support the emerging clean coal technologies that hold so much promise for our future.
Coal-based electricity is the foundation of our prosperity. Since 1977, for example, national GDP has increased 140%. It is no coincidence that coal-based electricity increased 105% over the same period. Even more importantly, existing coal reserves, coupled with clean coal technologies, will enable the United States to continue the upward path of increased productivity in an ever improving quality of life.
Coal’s versatility opens the door to conversion technologies which include production of electricity, natural gas equivalents, liquid fuels, chemicals and hydrogen. Indeed, such coal-based energy manufacturing would have far reaching beneficial impacts on the U.S. economy resulting in lower energy prices, a higher gross domestic product and more than one million new jobs. We can revitalize this nation's industrial base. Further, as past experience has demonstrated, these economic gains could be achieved with significant improvements in environmental quality.
Coal has made remarkable progress reducing regulated pollutants, such as sulfur dioxide, particulates, and nitrous oxides, and now a full slate of new technologies promise the capture and sequestration of carbon dioxide. The path to emissions-free coal-based energy is now clear. The time for CCS has come:
- The International Energy Agency (IEA) identifies CCS for power generation as “the single most important new technology for CO2 savings”
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology concludes, “there do not appear to be unresolvable open technical issues.”
- Battelle Institute reported that “potential storage capacity should be more than enough to address CO2 storage for at least this century.”
- The U.S. Department of Energy estimates over 89 billion barrels of stranded oil could be obtained using CO2 enhanced oil recovery.
- Exciting new technologies to use captured CO2 to make cement, chemicals and livestock food and a wide variety of other products are rapidly emerging.
If the new Congress and President are serious about the integration of economic growth, climate change policy and reducing our dependence upon foreign energy, the road is clear: support clean coal technologies and let’s move forward greater use of our greatest resource. Our reserves of coal dwarf the energy resources of the Middle East, Russia and Venezuela. Let's quit relying on these often hostile and risky governments and put our vast coal reserves to use for Americans.