Smoke Free Coal Power

Illinois has been leading the country in alternative power sources. They are a large supplier of the country’s corn – which is used in ethanol based fuels, and now they are poised to open a nearly pollution free power plant. It works by storing the smog under ground.

This is great because not all of the problems of climate change are from oil use, alot of it comes from the smoke produced from coal use. The US actually uses alot of coal for electricity production. Also, the US is rich in coal as a natural resource, unlike oil. So if we can somehow find out how to use it better without polluting we have access to an abundant, “clean” resource.

The town of Mattoon beat out three other finalists as the site for the FutureGen coal gasification plan, which aims to convert coal into hydrogen and electricity while capturing and storing the carbon dioxide 3000 ft. underground. The U.S. Department of Energy hopes the $1.5 billion plant will generate 275 megawatts of electricity and power 150,000 homes, and be nearly free of greenhouse gas emissions.

Last year, Americans consumed more than 1 billion tons of coal, and more than 80 percent of the carbon dioxide emitted by generating electricity in the United States comes from coal. Proponents say the plant’s integrated gasification combined cycle, which turns coal into gas before combustion, dramatically reduces most emissions—except CO2, though that will soon be buried in the heartland.