‘Real Clean Energy’ Needed, Not Climate Crisis Causing Coal
Carbon dioxide and methane are accumulating in the Earth’s atmosphere exponentially!
From the Letter to the Editor by Jim Kotcon, Morgantown Dominion Post, February 19, 2023
West Virginia legislators are adopting one taxpayer rip-off after another. For example, bills to subsidize uncompetitive coal companies or power plants are moving quickly (e.g., HB 3133).
Nuclear power, the most expensive way to generate electricity, seems to be targeted for West Virginia. (HB 2896 allows radioactive waste dumps in West Virginia.)
Bills to encourage a hydrogen hub are also being adopted. Building carbon capture and sequestration may make sense for biofuels, but it only throws good money after bad when trying to prolong fossil fuels (SB 162).
If any of these had a legitimate role in combating climate change, I might be more supportive, but there is simply no way they will make a meaningful impact.
There are better options. A report last month from Energy Innovation and University of California, Berkeley shows that building renewable energy such as wind or solar will generate electricity more cheaply than operating any existing power plant in West Virginia.
Instead of gouging ratepayers or ripping off taxpayers, our political leaders should invest in the cheapest, cleanest, safest and fastest alternatives first. Why should we continue to subsidize the dirtiest and most expensive alternatives?
If the free market has spoken, why are our political leaders so intent on subsidizing dinosaurs and ripping off the taxpayers?
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NOTE: You are invited to E-Day at the West Virginia State Capitol Building on February 28th from 9 am to 2 pm. WV Environmental Council.