It's an ill wind that blows no good. The new proposed EPA rules on power plant emissions may have a positive impact on drilling in the Utica and Marcellus shale formations as local utilities rush to either convert existing coal fired power plants to burn natural gas or build new gas fired plants. From the Wheeling News-Register:
"One of the areas of fastest growing demand is natural gas-fired power generation, as facilities either switch to cleaner-burning natural gas or are built to run on it," said Wendy K. Olson, spokeswoman for Spectra Energy Corp., the Houston, Texas-based pipeline developer.While this news may mitigate the damage done to Ohio and the nation by the EPA it does not mean that the the new rules are desirable or a net plus. Rate payers, both residential and commercial will be forced to bear the cost of these upgrades. One of benefits of the new regulations according to the EPA will be a reduction in the rate of childhood asthma while the Center for Disease Control admits it doesn't know the cause. Another benefit would be a reduction of mercury in the atmosphere although no one can point to a single case of mercury poisoning. Still, as I said, it an ill wind that blows no good as it may create thousands of temporary construction jobs on power plants and pipelines.
Spectra announced its intention to build the new pipeline - capable of transporting 1 billion cubic feet of natural gas each day - Wednesday. At the same time, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency released its report that will likely lead to the closure of many coal-fired power plants across the county, including AEP's Kammer Plant in Marshall County. AEP serves much of the Upper Ohio Valley, except Hancock, Brooke, Wetzel and Tyler counties.
Natural gas "is 45 percent cleaner than coal and 30 percent cleaner than fuel oil. It's efficient and reliable. And now with the abundance of supply being brought online thanks to developing shale plays, it's now more affordable than ever," added Olson.
Olson said the proposed pipeline would originate in Carroll County, Ohio, which lies to the north of Cadiz in Harrison County and west of East Liverpool in Columbiana County. This north-south running line would wind through Harrison and Belmont counties, before intersecting with the east-west running Texas Eastern pipeline near Clarington.
What government entities do is they throw out money to "researchers" of friendly facilities, who "find" that pollution of whatever sort the EPA wants to "find" is damaging the bodies and lives of (fill in the blank)_____ people, who will live happily and without coughing for years to come because of the new rules EPA imposed.
ReplyDeleteThat way departments like EPA can "support" their claims with "scientific evidence," which they sponsored with a specific goal in mind.
One wonders how long this circle of friendly "science" can continue. Just as the global warming scheme is falling apart, you can hope this one will too.