TX Air "Policy" - Cheer Future-Gen Site, Build 11 Conventional Coal Plants

[hatrack]

While state energy officials are preparing for an influx of more coal-fired power plants across Central Texas, one plant with the potential for very low emissions is getting heavy plaudits. An influential congressman and group of state energy officials toured a Leon County site Monday that ranks tops in the country for a proposed $1 billion power plant project, FutureGen. “It’s a real project with real potential,” said U.S. Rep. Joe Barton, R-Ennis.

One of four finalists for the plant, designed to usher in a new era of environmentally-sound energy technology, the Jewett site received strong reviews after Monday’s two-hour tour. Jewett is about 60 miles southeast of Waco.

The panel that will pick the final site considered 12 semi- finalists nationwide and gave the Jewett location its top rating. Jewett is competing with a site in Odessa and two in Illinois for the low-emission plant. The federal government is launching the project with an $800 million investment.

Under the FutureGen proposal, the harmful carbon dioxide most coal-fired power plants release into the atmosphere is harnessed during energy production and buried under the earth’s surface. A final site will be selected next year, and the plant should begin producing electricity in 2012, officials say.

EDIT

http://www.wacotrib.com/news/content/news/stories/2006/08/15/08152006wacfuturegen.html