Kansas' top environmental official told lawmakers today his agency is preparing an inventory of carbon dioxide emissions statewide with the goal of reducing pollution.
Kansas Department of Health and Environment Secretary Roderick Bremby said the inventory could lead to CO2 regulations that would affect currently operating coal-burning power plants.
Bremby's comments came during a meeting of the Senate Utilities Committee, which on Monday endorsed legislation allowing two 700-megawatt coal-burning plants in western Kansas.
Last year, Bremby rejected the plants citing concerns about carbon dioxide emissions and global warming. Legislative supporters of the plants have vowed to reverse that decision.
Under questioning today from legislators, Bremby said his agency will have ready in two months a catalog of CO2 emissions by business sector, such as transportation, agriculture and energy.
With that in hand, KDHE would start a public process aimed at limits of CO2, he said.
Bremby said "the stick" of those limits would be used in the process of considering permits to modify equipment at existing coal-fired plants.
When lawmakers expressed displeasure with that approach, Bremby said federal legislation was on the way that would likely force the issue.
"There are bigger sticks that are out there," he said.
Comments
LJWorld.com doesn’t necessarily condone the comments here, nor does it review every post. Read our full policy. Also, read about banned accounts and harassing comments.
belexus73 (anonymous) says…
Ah, so we get the answer on what KDHE is doing. Based on this article, the CO2 regs will only affect coal-fired power plants and not other industries. Obviously this needs to be confirmed when the draft regs are floated out there for publlc consumption. This should greatly assist in tamping down regulatory uncertainty. Of course, the great thinkers that we have mired in the legislature will probably try to make sure Bremby does no such thing.
a_flock_of_jayhawks (anonymous) says…
I didn't read that the new regs would *only* target coal-fired plants. It sounds like the aim may be a bit more comprehensive than that.
It's going to make Kansas look really dumb if the legislature moves forward with the Sunflower Electric initiative and the federal government puts regs in place that are in sync with KDHE's position. Well, it wouldn't be the first time Kansas has looked backward to the rest of the world!
belexus73 (anonymous) says…
I did read into the statement abit. I had a phone call returned to me from a former KDHE staffer who said that he (staffer) thought that the regs would be set to only affect coal plants. Time will tell.
belexus73 (anonymous) says…
IGW, Bremby did say that they have been collecting information on emissions in order to get a clear picture of the CO2 situation in the state. It will be interesting if business reacts to this in a positive way in the short term or if they will wait on the preliminary regulation roll-out.
yankeelady (anonymous) says…
We aren't the only state trying to regulate CO2 and it is only a matter of time before the feds regulate it also. We are running out of time to slow down the warming process. Why not wait on the plants, since we don't need them now. After all the electricity is going to be sold to Colorado, who denied permits for a similar plant, as did Oklahoma. Let technology catch up with the problem. I think the real issue is Sunflower Electric is out to make money, no matter what, and want to ram this through before regulations are enacted. The answer needs to be no. Business needs to start taking the long view.
yankeelady (anonymous) says…
Maybe we need to concentrate on wind and solar a bit more, or spending the extra money to build the plants and control the CO2 emissions. Maybe even nuclear. This also hasn't addressed the effect on the aquifer. We can't keep on with the same technology.
toefungus (anonymous) says…
The affects of all this will be a huge tax on the poor. The wealthy will still turn on the lights, drive the big trucks, and take the planes around the world. If this is done purely by regulation, the disruptions to the market will be devastating. However, if you have the money, you can get in on the new pollution credit trading. When you vote for a liberal democrat, you get this.
BLACKHAWK4058 (anonymous) says…
Let Sunflower build the 2 new modern plants and develop the
Bio Energy center and shut down 1400 megawatts of the
Jeffrey Energy Center.
Thats a win win!!!!!!!
georgeofwesternkansas (anonymous) says…
Word is Bramby is going to limit the number of daily commuters on K10 wheather any legislation passes or not.