ONAWANDA, NY (2007-07-31) Carbon emissions at coal-fired power plants would be markedly reduced under new technology unveiled Tuesday at Praxair in Tonawanda.
Praxair is working with three other companies and the University at Buffalo in developing technology that will capture carbon dioxide during the power-generating process and permanently store it underground. The new technology will be tested at a new power generating plant the Jamestown Board of Public Utilities is building.
George Rusk, vice president of Ecology and Environment in Lancaster and one of the partners in the project, said the technology would make the power generated by coal plants even cleaner than the power that comes from natural gas. He said it would also eliminate other pollutants associated with coal.
“We will have much reduced emissions of such traditional pollutants as nitrous oxide, sulfur oxide and mercury,” Rusk said. “The data we’ve seen from boiler manufacturers on this are that we will approach zero emissions. That’s a very significant development.”
If it works, economic forecasts by Ecology and Environment estimate the worldwide demand for the new technology would have a $900 million annual economic impact in New York and would create 3,500 new jobs.