Why is it so improbable that we can transform a resource and beneficially use it to our advantage? Why is it so improbable that an industry with a long history of meeting our nation’s energy needs can transform itself to meet current economic and environmental objectives?
There are lots of folks out there today who are doing the improbable, already doing what we thought was unlikely to be done.
There are lots of folks out there today who are doing the improbable, already doing what we thought was unlikely to be done. Take Margie Brown, CEO of Cook Inlet Region Inc. (CIRI), who is developing a commercial-scale underground coal gasification (UCG) project just outside of Anchorage.
Take our newest ACC member, Calera Corporation, which is advancing technology to capture massive volumes of CO2 and other emissions and convert them into sustainable building materials and water.
Take the technologies being developed by ACC Coal 2.0 Alliance members to develop clean solid fuels that combine coal and biomass products that can be used in existing boilers with higher efficiency and lower emissions.
These projects and others described in this magazine and prior editions, are just a few examples of what the future of clean coal energy looks like. It’s a possible future ~ not improbable.
The modern environmental industry is four decades old; we’ve been using coal for centuries. Younger industries may look upon us as unwavering or unwilling to change; they may judge us solely by our past and not be willing to acknowledge our transformational efforts.
History documents that our industry has adapted to change and has achieved results in terms of safety, efficiency and environmental performance. I believe we’ll continue to do so in the future. But I’m part of that older industry, so what do I know …?
Oscar Wilde also said, “I’m not young enough to know everything.”
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