Jun 23 - McClatchy-Tribune Regional News - Mannix Porterfield The Register-Herald, Beckley, W.Va.

Capturing and storing carbon dioxide to lower greenhouse gases and protect the planet is likely to raise household electricity bills and pose certain risks, an environmental leader acknowledged Sunday.

In the long run, however, Dr. Vickie Wolfe told Judiciary Subcommittee A the move toward CO2 sequestration would make the planet healthier, based on the global warming theory, and could inspire more efficient uses of energy.

If consumers are charged more for electricity, she said, the effect could prompt conservation.

"People will start using less electricity," said Wolfe, who heads the renewable energy committee of the West Virginia Environmental Council. "Just like the high price of gasoline has caused people to drive less."

Another benefit is that carbon dioxide sequestration could inspire a heavier reliance on renewable sources of energy, as opposed to the consumption of fossil fuels.

"From an environmental standpoint, this could be considered a good thing," Wolfe said.

Using energy more efficiently is another goal of the CO2 sequestration, she said, pointing out that 56.3 percent of it in this country is wasted.

"I refuse to believe that's the best the United States of America can do," she said.

Wolfe acknowledged there are some risks to storing captured CO2, citing reports indicating a "sudden and large" release of the gas with a volume of 7 to 10 percent in the air could imperil humans and animals alike.

Another element that needs to be factored in entails the rights of landowners, and Wolfe wasn't sure if public officials should consider eminent domain for the public welfare.

However, she emphasized, "One holdout landowner can stymie a whole project."

Wolfe cited as a positive move the partnership of West Virginia Alloys in Fayette County with RED on carbon capturing, calling it "the kind of thing we need to be promoting."

Panelists were advised to consider "stringent" regulations for capturing and storing CO2. Wolfe said the state should not allow a permit based solely on the assumption that a plant would be retro-fitted in the future to arrest CO2 and store it.

Randall Harris, representing the Mingo County Development Authority, said lawmakers face a challenge in coal-dependent West Virginia in terms of compelling compliance with CO2 capturing.

"No matter what we do with fossil fuels, at the end of the day, we end up with CO2," he said.

Harris presented a nearly one-hour slide presentation on the subject, suggesting the move toward protecting the environment could have some positive economic benefits.

"We have a lot of sequestration opportunities," he said. "We actually could create a whole new industry. This is a unique time in West Virginia. We want to do something today whose beneficiaries are two to three generations down the road."

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