Comments sought on Pa. plan to subsidize untested carbon-capture technology

The following is from the Web site of Dante Picciano:

RENDELL AND MCGINTY PROPOSE TO USE PUBLIC LANDS FOR COAL AND UTILITY INDUSTRIES

Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell and Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Kathleen McGinty are at it again. This time they want to try to store waste carbon dioxide underground on state-owned forestlands. The waste carbon dioxide will come from private coal-burning power plants and other private industrial sources. Carbon dioxide is believed to be a major cause of global warming.

As previously reported, Pennsylvania has no money for bridge and road repair or property tax reform and yet Rendell and McGinty are proposing to be the first in the nation to fund and build Carbon Capture and Sequestration (CCS) "demonstration" projects. McGinty said the state will OFFER PUBLIC LANDS and ASSUME ALL LIABILITIES: health, property, insurance and funding, for this totally unproven technology! CCS is technology that Wall Street, venture capitalists and bankers won't fund and scientists are not certain will work.

Many concerned citizens and groups, including the Sierra Club, are reporting that they do not believe that public lands should be used as dumping grounds for industrial wastes from utility companies. They also question why the state should provide another subsidy to the coal and utility industries.

Why would Rendell and McGinty be in favor of subsidizing the unproven technology for the coal and utility industries? It is our opinion that both are seeking appointments in the next administration should the Democrats take back the White House in November.

It is our belief that Rendell would like to be Secretary of Energy and McGinty would like to be the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. Both positions would require confirmation by the U.S. Senate and Rendell and McGinty are hoping to use our tax money on unproven technology in order to gain industry support for any confirmation hearings.

We can do something to stop this abuse of power and taxpayer money. The Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources has issued a one-sided report on the CCS technology and will accept public comments on the report until June 15, 2008. We will be sending a copy of this story to the DCNR. Please send your comments on this unproven technology to:

DCNR
Office of Legislation and Strategic Initiatives
Rachel Carson State Office Building
400 Market Street
P.O. Box 8767
Harrisburg, PA 17105-8767