“The promise of replacing Middle Eastern and Venezuelan oil with Pennsylvania coal is an investment we should pursue. And the Tester-Byrd amendment that I voted for today will do so in an environmentally responsible way. There is great potential to utilize our coal reserves to increase our energy security by making us less dependent on foreign oil and while also protecting our environmental security.”
The mechanism contained in the Tester-Byrd amendment would ensure that funds could only be spent on coal-to-liquid refineries that utilize new technologies that produce less global warming pollution than existing petroleum refineries. This is an important step forward that addresses the environmental concerns with previous generation coal-to-liquid technology. New coal-to-liquid plants that also process biomass produce emissions comparable to current conventional refineries.
Senator Casey is also cosponsoring legislation to conduct a national assessment on carbon storage to further decrease carbon emissions.
