Jul 15 - McClatchy-Tribune Regional News - Jack Torry The Columbus Dispatch, Ohio



Declaring that a major global-warming bill cannot pass the Senate, Republican George V. Voinovich of Ohio and Democrat Jay Rockefeller of West Virginia want to spend $20 billion in the next decade to develop a commercially viable way to burn coal cleanly.

If the bill wins congressional approval, the federal government would funnel billions of dollars to utility companies seeking ways to burn coal mined in Ohio and West Virginia without emitting carbon dioxide, which is believed to cause global warming.

The measure, which was introduced yesterday, would be financed with a fee imposed on utility rates paid by consumers and companies. Because the fee would amount to a tax, it very likely will be opposed by most Republicans.

Utility companies have dabbled in technology known as carbon capture and sequestration, where the carbon dioxide emitted from a utility plant would be captured and stored in the ground. But though the technology is promising, it is currently too expensive to be viable commercially.

 In a conference call with reporters, Rockefeller and Voinovich said it was unlikely their bill would be folded into a larger global-warming measure championed by Democratic Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts and Independent Joe Lieberman of Connecticut.

The Kerry-Lieberman bill, which also offers more money for carbon capture and the development of nuclear power, relies on a regulatory system known as cap-and-trade.

Under cap-and-trade, a utility plant would need permits for its emissions of carbon dioxide. Utility plants that dramatically reduced their emissions could sell their permits to other utilities who have not achieved their own reductions.

But Voinovich said yesterday that cap-and-trade has become a dirty word on Capitol Hill because it has provoked staunch opposition from businesses that fear higher utility rates. Under Senate rules, Kerry and Lieberman need 60 votes to end a filibuster and clear the way for a floor vote.

"It's common knowledge (on Capitol Hill) that cap-and-trade can't get 60 votes," said Rockefeller, adding that the measure he and Voinovich are co-sponsoring "is a bill that can pass."

Frank O'Donnell, president of the Washington-based Clean Air Watch, expressed skepticism about the Rockefeller and Voinovich bill, saying "maybe they missed the polling that shows that a lot of people want to reduce the deficit rather than having federal money be used to underwrite experimental technologies."

"At this point, the only proven method of putting carbon in the ground is keeping the coal in the ground in the first place," O'Donnell said.

Voinovich said the $20?billion would not only spur new research to lower the costs of carbon capture, but the bill would also include tax credits for utility companies to help reduce costs.

Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, said he had questions about the bill's financing, but added, "There is no doubt in my mind that coal will be part of any kind of energy legislation we will do. I like the idea; I want to see the details before I would say yes."

jtorry@dispatch.com

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