Name: North Dakota’s Carbon Capture Project Tundra Another “Expensive Greenwashing” Attempt to Bail Out Coal Power
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North Dakota’s Carbon Capture Project Tundra Another “Expensive Greenwashing” Attempt to Bail Out Coal Power

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Carbon capture technology has generated a lot of controversy–but little private investment–due to its lack of profitability and efficiency. So why is a proposal to retrofit an aging coal-powered plant in North Dakota with smokestack scrubbers receiving millions of federal taxpayer&nbsp;dollars?&nbsp;Ask Senator John Hoeven (R-), who has .The project would install a carbon capture system at the Milton R. Young Station, a two-unit plant that has run on lignite coal from the nearby Center Mine since it began operating in 1970. The captured carbon would then be piped to the Bakken region for injection into oil wells in a process known as Enhanced Oil&nbsp;Recovery.that will go toward a preliminary engineering study for Project Tundra. State and coal industry sources have also contributed, with the aim of keeping the coal industry alive in North Dakota. Other help will come from tax incentives for carbon capture projects that Congress passed in&nbsp;2018.Project Tundra already enjoys tax benefits at the state level. A .Yet all that money may be for naught, given the track record of similar&nbsp;projects.Project Tundra was pushed by the Lignite Energy Council, which Hoeven is close to — the Council since he first ran for the Senate in&nbsp;2010.That may not sound like much these days, but he’s one of their top recipients, and he has spoken at their annual&nbsp;meetings.Other partners in the project include the Minnkota Power Cooperative, which U.S. Bureau of Mines; and the North Dakota Industrial Commission, which . Minnkota external affairs manager Stacy Dahl .Press materials on the project say it will replicate successful carbon capture projects such as Boundary Dam in Saskatchewan, Canada and the Petra Nova plant in Texas. But neither of these projects are great models. that reacts better with the solvent used to capture gas. The Boundary Dam Station installed carbon capture technology on one of its six units with the intent of expanding, but .Project Tundra’s boosters are frank about the project’s intent: To maintain coal’s primary role in North Dakota’s energy mix. “It really is about finding a path forward for coal in a carbon-managed world,” Dahl told the Bismarck Tribune. Neither Minnkota nor Hoeven responded to DeSmog’s requests for&nbsp;comment.But the technologies taxpayer dollars are funding aren’t managing carbon produced from coal any better than renewable sources of energy, experts say. Michael Barnard, Chief Strategist of the energy consultancy , has . The studies all conclude that carbon capture–particularly involving Enhanced Oil Recovery–amounts to what he calls “expensive&nbsp;greenwashing.”It’s a very expensive band-aid for local economies dependent on fossil fuels,” Barnard told DeSmog. He cites studies showing that it takes a ton of carbon to extract anywhere from ¼ to 1 ton of oil from wells, so that when the carbon produced by the process is factored in, it’s “a carbon&nbsp;multiplier.”&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;This is the same message as a produced last year by Mark Z. Jacobsen of Stanford University, which concluded that .Local community development organizations say state and federal funding is better spent helping communities rebound from the inevitable closure of coal-fired plants like the Beulah Station, where after the company that operated the station went&nbsp;bankrupt.Projects like this should be financed by private money only,” said Scott Skokos, Executive Director of the Dakota Resource Council. “If companies want to do it, fine, but it’s too risky to waste taxpayer money that could be used for job retraining and economic redevelopment for communities that will be impacted by potential coal plant closures.”Stay up to date with DeSmog news and alertsLaura Peterson is a writer and policy wonk based in WashingtonThe labelling will "deceive or confuse" consumers, say experts.The labelling will "deceive or confuse" consumers, say experts.The federal government has broad authority to take action to slash greenhouse gas emissions, according to a new report, including transforming an oft-forgotten Southeast public power corporation into a force for clean energy.The federal government has broad authority to take action to slash greenhouse gas emissions, according to a new report, including transforming an oft-forgotten Southeast public power corporation into a force for clean energy.Green MP Caroline Lucas said climate sceptics and “delayers” should be “nowhere near the prime minister’s top team”.Green MP Caroline Lucas said climate sceptics and “delayers” should be “nowhere near the prime minister’s top team”.Graham Stuart MP has championed the UK’s highly polluting wood-pellet burning power station, which is located close to his Yorkshire constituency.Graham Stuart MP has championed the UK’s highly polluting wood-pellet burning power station, which is located close to his Yorkshire constituency.Series:Series:Clearing the PR PollutionSectionsDatabasesTopicsDeSmogFollowClearing the PR PollutionSectionsDatabasesTopicsDeSmogFollowWebsite byStay up to date with DeSmog news and alertsResultsSee all resultsStay up to date with DeSmog news and alerts

Carbon capture technology has generated a lot of controversy–but little private investment–due to its lack of profitability and efficiency. So why is a proposal to retrofit an aging coal-powered plant in North Dakota with smokestack scrubbers receiving millions of federal taxpayer&nbsp;dollars?&nbsp;Ask Senator John Hoeven (R-), who has .The project would install a carbon capture system at the Milton R. Young Station, a two-unit plant that has run on lignite coal from the nearby Center Mine since it began operating in 1970. The captured carbon would then be piped to the Bakken region for...

North Dakota’s Carbon Capture Project Tundra Another “Expensive Greenwashing” Attempt to Bail Out Coal Power

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