Here is the gist of recent recommendations to the Vermont Climate Council and several editorials in Vermont papers, calling for the profitable renovation of Vermont’s two wood-burning electrical plants, McNeil and Ryegate, thereby transforming them into negative-emission power and storage stations.
A similar plan for Vermont Yankee is also financially attractive and will certainly create more jobs, profits and climate benefits than building a new nuke plant at Vermont Yankee, as industry advocates still seek. Any nuke plan for Vermont Yankee, if seriously proposed, will likely become a radioactive third rail to most voters in the tristate region.
The nuclear waste crisis is only getting worse. Besides, Vermont can generate more green watts from green resources in Vermont, such as solar and hemp, as Canada is doing. Hemp makes CBD, milk, bread, fabrics, drywall, car parts and biofuels. Hemp is a cover crop that restores soil and rotates easily between cash crops. Moreover, hemp removes CO2 from air faster than trees via photosynthesis.
CO2 from burning hemp biofuels can be captured at the point of emission and chemically reused to make synthetic e-fuels and feedstocks, such as H2, ethanol, gasoline, diesel, butanol, graphene and more. Diverse companies such as Siemens, Porsche and LanzaTech are revolutionizing biofuel and e-fuel production.
Besides, Vermont is way overdependent on Hydro Quebec, which is not the green benign resource HQ claims it is. Rotting biomass emits much greenhouse gas. Worse, native fishing villages have suffered terribly from methyl-mercury poisoning over decades.
Then too, the Vermont Climate Council is still looking to reduce CO2 emissions by another 500,000 tons per year to compensate for the implosion of the Transportation and Climate Initiative and other setbacks. Yet, there is still no focus in the governor’s office or Vermont utilities or the council on renovating Vermont’s wood plants. Though small, these two plants emit together over 600,000 tons of CO2 per year, based on EPA estimates.
Or Vermont, Vermont utilities and Vermont plant owners can profitably renovate these two plants with EPA blessing and Department of Energy support to reduce CO2 emissions by 600,000 tons per year and remove 600,000 tons per year from the atmosphere at the same time. Carbon credits and offsets will apply nicely.
Surely, transforming Ryegate into a negative-emission power and storage station is better than closing Ryegate, which will lead to the permanent loss of many jobs and much revenue to Ryegate township and local economy.
Closing Vermont Yankee was a victory for nuclear safety and an economic disaster for the tristate region. With hindsight and new chemistry, transformation is the optimal solution and a good example to the nation, world and Joe Biden too. Updated editorial, research, see: VT Climate Council public comments received, tinyurl.com/5cf7338m.
Jim Hurt
Woodstock
