A Zero Carbon World will need Carbon Capture.

Bipartisan approach to combat climate change is stuck in Congress

CLOSE WASHINGTON - A proposal mired in Congress could go a long way to curbing the carbon emissions that contribute to climate change - and Republicans from fossil fuel producing states are helping lead the effort.

 From article, (A proposal mired in Congress could go a long way to curbing the carbon emissions that contribute to climate change — and Republicans from fossil fuel producing states are helping lead the effort.
The bill would extend and expand a tax credit to reward companies for practicing “carbon capture and storage,” an expensive process supporters say can extract up to 90% of the carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions generated from the use of fossil fuels in producing electricity and other industrial processes.

In Texas, the independent power company NRG Energy last year completed a $1 billion venture known as Petra Nova that's become the world’s largest post-combustion system for capturing carbon at a power plant.
Petra Nova separates more than 90% of the carbon dioxide from 240 megawatts of coal-fired power at a generating plant near Houston. It injects the captured gas into the ground to extract more crude.

But the use of the process has been limited by its high price tag. Carbon capture is only going to succeed if its readily available and affordable, objectives the revamped tax credit seeks to accomplish, said Waltzer with the Clean Air Task Force.

“If we’re going to get these kinds of technologies applied not just in the U.S. but in countries like India, like China, we’re going to need to get them deployed and see the costs come down," he said. "We think (carbon capture) is a crucial component of getting to a zero carbon world.”

The FUTURE Act, which has the backing of 25 senators and 44 House members would increase the amount of the credit for each ton of carbon extracted, eliminate the 75 metric ton limit for new projects, and allow companies to take advantage of the credit if they start building before Jan. 1, 2024. 

Waltzer said the last provision is especially important because lenders would be more willing to finance carbon capture and storage projects knowing the government was investing in the project. He compared the proposed credit favorably to the tax breaks Congress granted in the 1990s that elevated the fortunes of the wind industry.)

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