The dirty business of clean coal.
Springfield Illinois Times 19 Aug
Politics
Economics
Other NewsXcel's plan for Valmont power plant in Boulder County to be revealed Friday.Boulder Daily Camera 13 Aug Report highlights split among utilities on EPA's 'transport' rule for air pollution.Greenwire 12 Aug EditorialsTVA takes a bold step toward a cleaner future.The Tennessee Valley Authority is taking a step in the right direction by reducing its reliance on coal-fired plants to produce electricity. Knoxville News Sentinel 31 Aug Let more sun shine in.The entire state would benefit from cleaner air with the increased use of nonpolluting and renewable energy. More solar-generated power could provide a cushion against outages on peak-demand days and electricity consumers, in particular, would gain. Philadelphia Inquirer 31 Aug The politics of power.Ontarians know the days of cheap and dirty coal-fired power are coming to an end. They understand the need to pay more for green energy as we go forward. But the government risks losing their support if it is seen to be irresponsibly driving ups costs. Toronto Star 19 Aug Miners aren't alone in depending on coal.Coal should be mined responsibly, with as little damage as possible to the environment. But simply making coal expensive so as to force people to use renewable sources would be ruinous economic policy, and not just for West Virginia. Charleston Daily Mail 17 Aug Time for action - CCS technology vital to coal's future.We believe it is important to proceed with the development of new clean coal technologies. The task force report is another small step in the right direction when it comes to ending this senseless attack on coal. Bluefield Daily Telegraph 15 Aug Beyond petroleum?Coal and oil — the real "Axis of Evil" in the U.S. today — present a major challenge in the context of climate change. The nation has taken strong actions to reduce coal-fired power, yet it faces an electric power marketplace dominated by coal that may discourage vehicle electrifications. Science 13 Aug Yes to "clean" coal.Coal is dirty stuff, and burning it for electricity produces vast clouds of pollution. No matter how hard we try, we'll never succeed in making coal "clean." But making it cleaner could be well worth it, depending on the price. Chicago Tribune 06 Aug Emissions cap bill right move.Liberals out to destroy the U.S. coal industry - and with it, the economies of West Virginia and Ohio - believe they have found a secret weapon against a reasonable bill sponsored by U.S. Sens. Jay Rockefeller and George Voinovich. In reality, they have unveiled merely another example of their irrational, hypocritical hatred of coal. Seneca County Advertiser-Tribune 23 Jul OpinionWest Virginia can seize energy opportunity.West Virginia is at a defining moment for determining what its energy future will be. Charleston State Journal 02 Sep Victoria takes leading steps on climate change.As environmentalists, our job is to look at the coming climate crisis and demand action commensurate to the problem we all face. We are painfully aware of the need for deeper cuts in greenhouse pollution. Sydney Morning Herald 01 Sep Coal ash pollution in Texas waters.Texas faces an energy crossroads. While the rest of the country is being powered by a diverse set of energy options, we continue to give tax breaks and subsidies to toxic energy sources, like coal, that contaminate our air, our water and our land. Fort Worth Star-Telegram 31 Aug Nuclear safety remains issue.A decision by the Tennessee Valley Authority to increase nuclear power generation while idling some of its coal-fired units is a sign of the times. Huntsville Times 31 Aug China's mega-jams show the true cost of coal.The fact that almost every vehicle in the giant Chinese traffic jam on the G110 motorway was a coal truck and almost every driver said they were used to mega-jams suggests the congestion was as much caused by the strains on China's energy supply as its transport system. London Guardian 26 Aug 5 better ways to spend money than on a FutureGen clean-coal plant.The big problem with the so-called FutureGen 2.0 project is that there's no such thing as truly clean coal power. Even when CO2 from coal powerplants is sequestered, the coal used to power the plants still has to be mined - a dirty business. Popular Mechanics 25 Aug CCS is a dangerous waste of tax money.Given the overwhelming scientific evidence that continued reliance on coal is tantamount to climate suicide, spending more and more public funds in pursuit of better ways to burn coal is a tragic and possibly lethal detour from the road to a livable future for subsequent generations. Charleston Gazette 23 Aug Debate: Energy.New energy is what the country should seek and is seeking. The government now has to carry out the plans for the development of new energy, including policy adjustments, electricity tariff reform and fund distribution, properly and successfully. China Daily 23 Aug |
Plant in the frame as firm goes for coal.Southeast Northumberland could become the base for a pioneering bid to produce almost emission-free electricity from coal without having to mine it first. Blyth News Post Leader 03 Sep WVU to lead new carbon capture project.West Virginia University will lead a new effort to help develop technology to capture greenhouse gas emissions from coal-fired power plants, as part of a U.S.-China partnership focused on clean energy. Charleston Gazette 03 Sep Shell pulls out of CO2 injection project.Shell has abandoned plans to truck CO2 into the Montezuma Hills near Rio Vista, for which it had joined with the West Coast Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnership (WESTCARB). The intent was to demonstrate the viability of pumping excess CO2 emissions more than two miles under ground. Martinez News-Gazette 03 Sep Facebook faces campaign to switch to renewable energy.In one of the web's fastest-growing environmental campaigns, Greenpeace international says at least 500,000 people have now protested Facebook's intention to run its giant new data centre mainly on electricity produced by burning coal power. London Guardian 02 Sep Paul makes Sebree visit.Republican candidate for U.S. Senate Rand Paul visited the Big Rivers Electric plant near Sebree Wednesday to "steadfastly oppose" any form of a "carbon tax" on coal. Evansville Courier & Press 02 Sep U.S. Senate candidate Rand Paul tours plant to tout coal.Paul said recent climate legislation that would place a fee on carbon emissions from coal-fired power plants, sometimes referred to as cap-and-trade, would kill industry in Kentucky. Associated Press 02 Sep Banks grow wary of environmental risks.After years of legal entanglements arising from environmental messes and increased scrutiny of banks that finance the dirtiest industries, several large commercial lenders are taking a stand on industry practices that they regard as risky to their reputations and bottom lines. New York Times 31 Aug Coal crackdown will not reduce emissions.Labor's promised emissions standards for new coal electricity generators would not cut greenhouse gas emissions from any of the 12 coal power plants proposed in Australia, an analysis of the carbon profiles of each project shows. Sydney Morning Herald 31 Aug W. Coloradans air concerns on Xcel energy plan.Many western Coloradans are urging state regulators to reject moves to switch from coal to natural gas as the fuel to generate electricity. Associated Press 31 Aug Miners give clean-energy bill the coal shoulder.Legislation aimed at cleaning up Denver's air and turning Colorado into a model state for clean energy and jobs is feared as a job killer for the Western Slope's coal country. Denver Post 31 Aug Low prices stoke coal sales, despite pollution concerns.Coal trading is poised to rise to a record high this year as prices at less than half their 2008 peak stoke demand, defying governments’ efforts to phase out the most-polluting fossil fuel. Bloomberg News 30 Aug How the stimulus is changing America.The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 – President Obama's $787 billion stimulus – is about jobs, sure. But it is also about fighting oil addiction and global warming, transforming health care and education, and building a competitive 21st century economy. Time Magazine 30 Aug China coal drive will not end health risks-report.China's drive to promote clean coal technology is unlikely to reduce significantly the health risks of extracting what remains the dirtiest of fossil fuels, environmental group Greenpeace said. Reuters 29 Aug Coal plants under fire.Controversial plans to build the Barrancones thermoelectric plant near a protected area in the northern Chilean region of Coquimbo were cancelled Friday, but not before reviving the debate on other projects for polluting coal-fired power stations. Inter Press Service 28 Aug Appalachian Dems seek distance from Obama on coal, climate.Democrats in Appalachia are running away from the Obama administration's coal record like their political lives depend on it. They may be right. Greenwire 27 Aug Carbon-capture project near Craig gets boost.A project to study the potential of carbon sequestration in northwest Colorado received a $5 million boost from the U.S. Department of Energy, the Colorado state geologist said. Grand Junction Daily Sentinel 27 Aug U.S. government may finance massive coal projects in India, South Africa.The United States Export-Import Bank voted on Wednesday to seek a final review of a $900m loan for a controversial 3,960 MW coal-fired power plant in India, reports Pacific Environment, a San Francisco-based environmental group. Mongabay 26 Aug U.N. carbon funding key for China clean coal developers.Developers of clean-coal power plants in China fear for the viability of their projects after a U.N. carbon-credit scheme denied funding for a similar plant in India at the end of July. Reuters 26 Aug TVA to idle nine coal-fired units.TVA plans to idle nine coal-fired electric power generating units at its Shawnee, John Sevier and Widows Creek fossil plants to reduce its use of coal-generated power by 1,000 megawatts over the next five years. Knoxville News Sentinel 25 Aug TVA cuts power generation at nuclear plant to avoid overheating river.The Tennessee Valley Authority has cut back electricity generation at its Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant by up to 50 percent this summer to keep from heating up the Tennessee River too much, and it has cost ratepayers $50 million so far for replacement power. Nashville Tennessean 25 Aug TVA shutters old coal units.Four days after TVA decided to revive work on its unfinished Bellefonte Nuclear Plant, the federal utility announced Tuesday it will begin next year to idle its oldest coal units at the nearby Widows Creek Fossil Plant. TVA announced Tuesday it will shutter nine of its 59 coal-fired units by 2015. Chattanooga Times Free Press 25 Aug Xcel's CEO among those calling for a tax on carbon.Dick Kelly, CEO of Xcel Energy Inc., is irked that Congress hasn't raised his taxes. Kelly, Duke Power CEO Jim Rogers and other utility executives have been expecting Congress to pass cap-and-trade legislation, which would effectively place a tax on carbon emissions. Minneapolis Star Tribune 24 Aug The life and death of Desert Rock.
The Navajo Nation, like many tribes, has tried to take control of resource development on its own land. The tribe's Desert Rock coal plant was conceived to do just that. But now it may collapse entirely. High Country News 22 Aug Government delay sparks fear of Kingsnorth revival.Protestors fighting against plans for a new coal-fired power station at Kingsnorth fear defeat after Government signalled a delay in introducing its pollution standards promise. Kent News 22 Aug Coal supporters plan Washington rally.The Eastern Coal Council is in the process of organizing a rally for coal industry supporters willing to travel to the nation’s capitol for a pro-coal rally on Capitol Hill on Sept. 15. Bluefield Daily Telegraph 22 Aug TVA to shutter coal plants, turn to nuclear.TVA will shutter part of its aging fleet of coal power plants and turn to nuclear power and energy conservation to power the Tennessee Valley under a 10-year plan adopted Friday. Chattanooga Times Free Press 21 Aug Group lodges objections to planned coal power plant.Environmentalists warned a new coal-fired power station in Scotland would damage the climate as consultation on the controversial plan closed yesterday. Edinburgh Scotsman 21 Aug Miner planning Alberta plant.Laurus Energy has applied to mine coal in Alberta for power generation, using below-surface technology to convert the resource into a synthetic fuel that could be competitive with natural gas. Calgary Herald 21 Aug Church of Scotland makes stand against coal power station.The Church of Scotland claims a new coal-fired power station planned in Ayrshire could seriously jeopardise attempts to combat climate change, despite its claims to use the latest clean-coal technology. London Guardian 21 Aug Thousands oppose plans for new Hunterston coal plant.Ayrshire Power wants to build a plant with experimental carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology at the site. But campaign groups say thousands oppose the scheme which they claim will harm wildlife and the environment. BBC 20 Aug |
