THE NETL CARBON

SEQUESTRATION NEWSLETTER: 

ANNUAL INDEX 

SEPTEMBER 2006 – AUGUST 2007 

This is a compilation of the past year’s monthly National Energy Technology Laboratory Carbon 

Sequestration Newsletter. The newsletter is produced by the NETL to provide information on 

activities and publications related to carbon sequestration. It covers domestic, international, 

public sector, and private sector news. This compilation covers newsletters issued between 

September 2006 and August 2007. It highlights the primary news and events that have taken 

place in the carbon sequestration arena over the past year. Information that has become 

outdated (e.g. conference dates, paper submittals, etc.) was removed. 

To navigate this document please use the Bookmarks tab or the Acrobat search tool (Ctrl+F). 

To subscribe to this newsletter, please visit http://listserv.netl.doe.gov/mailman/listinfo/sequestration. 

HIGHLIGHTS ............................................................................................................................................ 2

SEQUESTRATION IN THE NEWS ............................................................................................................ 10

SCIENCE................................................................................................................................................. 27

POLICY .................................................................................................................................................. 34

GEOLOGY .............................................................................................................................................. 43

TECHNOLOGY ....................................................................................................................................... 52

TERRESTRIAL/OCEAN........................................................................................................................... 62

TRADING ............................................................................................................................................... 74

RECENT PUBLICATIONS ........................................................................................................................ 82

LEGISLATIVE ACTIVITY......................................................................................................................... 97

ANNOUNCEMENTS .............................................................................................................................. 106
HIGHLIGHTS 

September 2006 

“Carbon Sequestration Technology Roadmap and Program Plan (2006).” The Department of 

Energy (DOE) National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) has released its annual update of the 

“Carbon Sequestration Technology Roadmap and Program Plan (Roadmap).” The Carbon Sequestration 

Program is managed within DOE’s Office of Fossil Energy and implemented through the National Energy 

Technology Laboratory (NETL). The Roadmap (1) defines the current status of carbon dioxide (CO2) 

capture and sequestration technology, (2) identifies research pathways that lead to achievement of the 

Carbon Sequestration Program goal, and (3) describes efforts that the DOE program is pursuing along 

priority pathways. Among the past year's Program highlights contained in the Roadmap are the following: 

1. The Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnerships have progressed to a validation phase in which they 

will conduct 25 field tests involving the injection of CO2 into underground formations where it will be 

stored and monitored. 2. Pilot-scale tests and modeling of amine-based CO2 capture have shown that 

operating an amine stripper at vacuum can reduce energy use 5–10 percent per unit of CO2 captured; 

and 3. Novel metal organic frameworks have shown significant potential as CO2 sorbents. 

http://www.netl.doe.gov/publications/carbon_seq/2006%20Sequestration%20Roadmap%20FINAL.pdf.

“Carbon Sequestration Project Portfolio (2006).” The Department of Energy National Energy 

Technology Laboratory has released its annual update of the Carbon Sequestration Project Portfolio 

(Project Portfolio). The Carbon Sequestration Project Portfolio 2006 is a comprehensive document, 

designed to serve as a key resource of the National Energy Technology Laboratory’s Carbon 

Sequestration Program. The Project Portfolio includes maps of project distribution; a copy of the new 

“Carbon Sequestration Technology Roadmap and Program Plan 2006”; budget information; details about 

each individual research project; programmatic papers; and an index of project participants. The Project 

Portfolio is designed to be printed for use in a three-ring binder, or to be viewed online. Frequent updates 

will be posted to ensure that any new information is incorporated. To view and/or download the various 

sections of this document, go to the pdf table of contents: 

http://www.netl.doe.gov/publications/carbon_seq/project%20portfolio/project_portfolio2/1_CarbonSeques

trationProjectPortfolio2005.pdf. To access each section of the document though the table of contents 

online, click on: 

http://www.netl.doe.gov/publications/carbon_seq/project%20portfolio/project_portfolio2/table_contents.pd

f. 

http://www.fossil.energy.gov/programs/sequestration/publications/programplans/2006/project_portfolio_s

equestration_06.pdf. 

October 2006 

DOE Fossil Energy Techline, "Critical Carbon Sequestration Assessment Begins: Midwest 

Partnership Looks at Appalachian Basin for Safe Storage Sites. Seismic Surveys to Determine 

Viability of Rock Formations for CO2 Storage." The US Department of Energy's National Energy 

Technology, through the work of the Midwest Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnership, is conducting 

seismic testing of the Appalachian Basin geology to determine whether the sites can serve as reservoirs 

for carbon dioxide (CO2) storage. The testing is being conducted at FirstEnergy Corp's R.E. Burger plant 

in Shadyside, Ohio, and in nearby areas. The program falls under the President's Global Climate Change 

Initiative, which aims to reduce greenhouse gas intensity-the ratio of greenhouse gas emissions to 

economic output-by 18 percent by 2012. An earlier phase of the project determined that the sandstone 

and limestone rock formations around the plant held potential for serving as a repository for CO2-

estimated storage of at least 200 years. The current phase of the project utilizes truck-mounted seismic 

equipment to generate pulses in the ground around the Burger plant. The seismic signal from the 

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vibrations is used to create images of the subsurface area and determine its suitability for injecting CO2. 

The surveys focuses on the area immediately surrounding the Burger Plant but also extends 10 miles in 

length, and along other routes in order to provide a "quasi three-dimensional" survey, at a lower cost 

than a full-three dimensional survey. Wells will be drilled at depths of 4,000 to 7,000 feet, well below 

drinking water supplies, which are at 100 feet in that region. Eventually, CO2 will be injected into the 

brine field to test the feasibility of geologic sequestration in this type of setting. Battelle of Columbus, 

Ohio, leads this project in cooperation with the Midwest Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnership, 

which includes 38 partners in seven states: Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, 

and West Virginia. In addition to this geologic project, the Battelle-led partnership will later conduct two 

additional geologic and three terrestrial projects throughout its multi-state region. To see a video of NETL 

project manager Charlie Byrer discussing the project, go to: http://ims.netl.doe.gov/video/TL-Byrer256k.wmv. September 12, 2006, http://www.fossil.energy.gov/news/techlines/2006/06052-

Sequestration_Assessment_Begins.html.

November 2006 

DOE Techline, “DOE Project Injects 700 Tons of Carbon Dioxide Into Texas Sandstone Formation; 

Researchers to Determine the Ability of Brine Formations to Sequester Greenhouse Gas,” and 

United Press International, “US Tests CO2 Underground Storage Options.” As part of the Carbon 

Sequestration program, the US Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory is 

following up on its 2004 effort to determine the feasibility of storing carbon dioxide in brine formations 

though the Frio Brine Project. The Frio Brine test site is located 40 miles northeast of Houston, Texas 

near Dayton, Texas. The latest stage in the research consists of pumping more than 700 tons of carbon 

dioxide (CO2) underground to determine how the CO2 moves though brine-filled highly porous 

sandstone. This sandstone is representative of formations found worldwide. The Frio Brine project is a 

carbon sequestration project funded by the US Department of Energy and managed by the DOE’s 

National Energy Technology Laboratory. The lead project partner is the University of Texas at Austin's 

Bureau of Economic Geology, and the research team includes: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 

Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the US Geological Survey, and Sandia Technologies LLC. The Frio 

Brine Pilot project falls within the Gulf Coast Carbon Center area, a participant in DOE's Southeast 

Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnership. In 2004, the researchers used computer models to predict 

that the CO2 would stop quickly after traveling a short distance through the formation, and that the 

researchers were able to accurately measure the pattern of movement and the final distribution of the 

CO2. For the current year-long monitoring project, researchers have begun to collect chemistry, pressure 

and temperature data, and by the end of the project, will have collected information to better assess and 

monitor larger-scale, longer-duration injections of CO2. "This current project will ... help to advance our 

injection and monitoring technology to the point where we know what formations can safely and 

effectively store greenhouse gases in each region of the country to address global climate change," said 

Assistant Secretary for Fossil Energy Jeffrey Jarrett. October 12, 2006, 

http://www.netl.doe.gov/publications/press/2006/06057-Frio_CO2_Injection.html, and 

October 12, 2006, http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/view.php?StoryID=20061012-011940-4991r. 

China Daily, “Nation Ready To Join US FutureGen Power Project.” At the 12th US-China Joint 

Commission Meeting on Scientific and Technological Co-operation, China announced that it plans to join 

the FutureGen International Partnership. The US Department of Energy’s plans to collect about $950 

million in international funds to help to build FutureGen, a zero-emission, coal-fired electric and hydrogen 

production plant. As a member of the International Partnership, China would need to contribute $10 

million to the FutureGen program. India and South Korea are already members of the International 

Partnership. China’s Huaneng Group, the country's leading power corporation, is one of the corporate 

members that are part of the FutureGen Industrial Alliance. Final talks between the US and China 

regarding the International Partnership will be held once the draft of the general agreement for the 

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FutureGen partners is finalized by the US Department of State. November 19, 2006, 

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2006-10/19/content_711519.htm.

December 2006 

Fossil Energy Techline, “Secretary of Energy Announces Nearly $24 Million in Grants for Carbon 

Sequestration Research.” On October 23, US Department of Energy Secretary Samuel W. Bodman 

announced grant recipients for carbon capture projects. Nine projects will receive a total of almost $24 

million toward the development of novel and cost effective technologies utilizing carbon dioxide (CO2) 

capture from coal-fired power plants, and sequestration of the CO2. Recipients of the funds will 

contribute $8 million in cost sharing funds. The projects support the President’s Global Climate Change 

Initiative, which requires an 18 percent reduction in US greenhouse gas intensity (a ratio of greenhouse 

gas emissions to economic output) by 2012. Established by the Department of Energy’s Office of Fossil 

Energy and managed by the National Energy Technology Laboratory, the Carbon Sequestration 

Program aims to develop safe, effective, low-cost carbon sequestration technologies; as well as 

reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and controlling climate change. Grant recipients are working on 

three methods of CO2 capture: 1.) Precombustion capture, in which fuel is gasified to form a mixture of 

hydrogen and CO2, called synthesis gas or ‘syngas,’ where CO2 is captured from the syngas before it is 

combusted; 2.) Post-combustion, which involves capturing CO2 from flue gas after fuel has been 

combusted in air; and 3.) Oxycombustion, in which fuel is combusted in pure, or nearly pure, oxygen 

rather than in air, producing an exhaust mixture of CO2 and water that can easily be processed to 

produce pure CO2. See the news link below for a list of the recipients of the grants and a description of 

the projects. October 23, 2006, http://www.fossil.energy.gov/news/techlines/2006/06061-

Sequestration_Research_Grants.html. 

Fossil Energy Techline, “Department of Energy Advances Commercialization of Climate Change 

Technology.” On October 31, the US Department of Energy (DOE) Assistant Secretary Jeffrey D. 

Jarrett announced plans to provide $450 million in federal funding to support seven tests for the 

advancement of carbon sequestration technologies in the United States. The announcement was 

delivered during the Assistant Secretary’s attendance at the Asia-Pacific Partnership on Clean 

Development and Climate, a multilateral partnership comprised of government and private sector 

partners from Australia, China, India, Japan, the Republic of Korea, and the United States. DOE will 

distribute the funding over the next ten years and will work with the seven Regional Carbon 

Sequestration Partnerships to develop large volume sequestration tests. This will be a follow-on activity 

to the current work being completed by the Partnerships, which has involved working to characterize 

their regions’ opportunities and existing infrastructure for carbon sequestration. Results from the newly 

funded development phase will then be used to identify deployment opportunities for carbon 

sequestration technologies throughout North America. Additionally, the results will be applied to further 

development of DOE’s FutureGen power plant, a zero emissions coal-fired power plant and potential 

sites for other plants similar to FutureGen. DOE’s seven Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnerships 

currently include more than three hundred organizations in forty states, three Indian nations, and four 

Canadian provinces. They have collaborated to establish NATCARB, a comprehensive mapping tool 

which has identified sources that produce carbon dioxide and sinks where it can be stored. (For more 

information concerning the Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnerships and links to their current 

activities, please refer to the following: Midwest Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnership (Battelle 

Columbus Laboratories, Ohio), http://198.87.0.58/; Midwest Geological Sequestration Consortium (The 

Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois, Illinois State Geological Survey),

http://www.sequestration.org/; West Coast Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnership (California 

Energy Commission), http://www.westcarb.org/; Big Sky Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnership 

(Montana State University), http://www.bigskyco2.org/ ; Southwest Regional Partnership on Carbon 

Sequestration (New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology), 

http://www.southwestcarbonpartnership.org/; Southeast Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnership 

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(Southern States Energy Board), http://www.secarbon.org/; Plains CO2 Reduction Partnership (University 

of North Dakota Energy and Environmental Research Center), http://www.undeerc.org/pcor/.) October 

31, 2006, 

http://www.fossil.energy.gov/news/techlines/2006/06062Carbon_Sequestration_Testing_Suppo.html.

January 2007 

FutureGen Alliance, “Xstrata Coal Joins FutureGen Alliance,” and Xstrata Press Release, “Xstrata 

Coal Commits $25 Million To FutureGen Clean Coal Project.” Xstrata Coal has become a member of 

the FutureGen Alliance (Alliance) and will put $25 million toward the $1 billion FutureGen Initiative. 

FutureGen is a project to build a first-of-a-kind near zero emissions 275 megawatt (MW) prototype coalfueled power plant. The Alliance is a non-profit consortium of global electric utilities and coal companies 

working with the US Department of Energy to design and build the FutureGen to generate electricity by 

hydrogen-driven turbines and capture and permanently store carbon dioxide deep underground. Xstrata 

is the world’s largest exporter of thermal coal, and is joining the Alliance to demonstrate its commitment 

to work collaboratively to reduce greenhouse gas emissions resulting from the use of coal in power 

generation. Xstrada joins 11 other companies to become a member of the Alliance. These other 

companies include: American Electric Power, Anglo American, BHP Billiton, the China Huaneng Group, 

CONSOL Energy Inc., E.ON US, Foundation Coal, Rio Tinto Energy America, Peabody Energy, PPL 

Corporation, and Southern Company. Four candidate sites are in the running to host FutureGen, two in 

Texas and two in Illinois. The US Department of Energy is reviewing the candidate sites in accordance 

with the National Environmental Policy Act prior to the Alliance's selection of a final site by late summer 

2007. For more information visit http://futuregenalliance.org/. December 6, 2006, 

http://www.futuregenalliance.org/news/releases/pr_12-06-06.pdf, and December 7, 2006, 

http://www.freemarketnews.com/Press-Release.asp?nid=12585. 

E&E News PM, “Supreme Court Appears Divided in Greenhouse Gas Case,” and Reuters,

“Supreme Court Hears First Global Warming Case.” The Supreme Court considered the oral 

arguments of its first global warming case on November 29. The case, Massachusetts v. EPA, was 

brought against the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) by Massachusetts, 11 other US states, 

and 13 organizations. The plaintiff argues that greenhouse gases from vehicles and factories should be 

regulated by the US government. The EPA maintains that it lacks the authority to limit greenhouse gases 

such as carbon dioxide (CO2), and that even if it did have this authority, the science on global warming is 

so uncertain no regulation should be made. The plaintiffs argue that if the greenhouse gases fit the 

federal Clean Air Act’s definition of a pollutant, EPA has the power to regulate the emissions. During the 

hour long oral arguments, the justices examined whether the plaintiffs had standing under the 

Constitution to challenge EPA’s decision not to regulate vehicle greenhouse gas emissions. Chief Justice 

John Roberts and Justice Antonin Scalia had doubts about the plaintiff’s ability to show standing in the 

case. Legal analysts have predicted that Justice Anthony Kennedy will provide the swing vote regarding 

standing, and hinted during oral arguments that the plaintiffs have room to advance their case. Justice 

Stephen Breyer indicated that a new rule by the EPA could trigger wider action domestically, including 

sequestration of CO2 emissions from power plants. The Supreme Court is expected to issue its opinion 

by next summer. The case is Massachusetts v. Environmental Protection Agency, 05-1120. To view the 

oral argument transcript, see: http://www.supremecourtus.gov/oral_arguments/argument_transcripts/05-

1120.pdf. (Subscription may be required.) November 29, 2006, 

http://www.eenews.net/eenewspm/2006/11/29/archive/1/?terms=sequestration, and November 30, 2006, 

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N29372625.htm. 

February 2007 

DOE Press Release, “U.S. and China Announce Cooperation on FutureGen and Sign Energy 

Efficiency Protocol at the U.S.-China Strategic Economic Dialogue.” China will follow India and 

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South Korea in becoming the third country to join the United States in the FutureGen International 

Partnership. They will also participate in the Government Steering Committee of the FutureGen Initiative. 

FutureGen is a $1 billion initiative to build a near-zero emission fossil fuel-fired power plant run by both 

electricity and commercial-grade hydrogen from coal. The two nations also signed an Energy Efficiency 

and Renewable Energy Protocol during the US-China Strategic Economic Dialogue session, which was 

held in Beijing. This agreement renews the joint collaboration in developing and deploying clean, energy 

efficient and renewable energy technologies including solar, wind, biomass, geothermal, and hydrogen 

energy. US Secretary of Energy Samuel W. Bodman joined other US government and industry officials 

on a five day trip to Asia that began on December 12. He met with senior Chinese government officials to 

discuss ongoing cooperative efforts to continue the advancement of energy security and other energy 

related issues. The Asia Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate; the International 

Partnership for a Hydrogen Economy; the Carbon Sequestration Leadership Forum; the International 

Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor; and the Generation IV International Forum are examples of these 

cooperative efforts. Secretary Bodman expressed his appreciation of China’s commitment to join the 

United States in their advancement of new technologies to enhance energy efficiency and reduce 

emissions. December 15, 2006, http://www.energy.gov/news/4535.htm. 

March 2007 

DOE News Release, “President Requests $863 Million for Fossil Energy Programs: FY2008 Fossil 

Budget Request One of Largest Since Taking Office.” President Bush’s Fiscal Year (FY) 2008 budget 

for the Office of Fossil Energy totals $863 million, a 33 percent increase over last year’s budget. The 

proposal focuses on early initiation of an expansion of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to 1.5 billion 

barrels by 2027; accelerating the development of carbon sequestration technologies to manage and 

virtually eliminate emissions of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide from fossil fuel use in power 

generation and other industrial activity; and moving forward with the design and early work on the 

FutureGen Initiative. Funding for the FutureGen Initiative will increase two-fold from $54 million in the 

FY2007 budget to $108 million in the FY 2008 budget. FutureGen is currently in the site selection phase. 

The FY 2008 FutureGen funding will be used to support detailed plant design and procurement, ongoing 

permitting, preliminary design and site characterization work. A core Fossil Energy program receiving 

heavy emphasis is Carbon Sequestration. Sequestration research and development increases its budget 

from $74 million in FY 2007 to $79 million in FY 2008. This budget request will allow for continued 

research and development into carbon dioxide capture and storage, as well as measurement, monitoring 

and verification technologies and processes. The program will focus on developing capture and 

separation technologies in order to lower the costs and energy requirements for reducing carbon dioxide 

emissions from fossil-based (especially coal) energy generating plants. Of primary importance is to 

dramatically lower the cost and energy requirements of pre- and post-combustion carbon dioxide 

capture. The Regional Partnerships Initiative, comprised of the federal government, state agencies, 

universities and private industry, will continue its work to determine which options for capturing and 

sequestering carbon dioxide are most feasible for various regions of the country. The Carbon 

Sequestration Leadership Forum will continue to execute its mission of gathering data, exchanging 

information and participating in joint projects to advance carbon sequestration technology. The goal is to 

have a technology portfolio enabling safe, cost-effective and long-term carbon mitigation, management 

and storage, which will lead to substantial market penetration after 2012. Technology developments 

within the Carbon Sequestration Program are expected to significantly contribute to the President’s goal 

of developing technologies to substantially reduce greenhouse gas intensity by 18 percent by 2012 and 

to fill a critical need in efforts to ultimately stabilize US greenhouse gas emissions. To view a chart of 

DOE's Fossil Energy Budget for Fiscal Year 2008, go to: 

http://www.fossil.energy.gov/aboutus/budget/08/FY_2008_Budget.html. February 5, 2007, 

http://www.fossil.energy.gov/news/techlines/2007/07004-FY_2008_Budget_Request.html. 

DOE Press Release, “Bush Administration Plays Leading Role in Studying and Addressing 

Global Climate Change.” The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released its findings 

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on February 2 in Paris in its Fourth Assessment Report. The report confirms that climate change is a 

global challenge that will require continued US leadership in the advancement of climate research, while 

at the same time maintaining the economic competitiveness of the nation. Energy Secretary Samuel 

Bodman, Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Stephen Johnson, and National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Administrator Vice Admiral Conrad Lautenbacher discussed the 

findings from the Working Group I, which included significant involvement from US climate science 

experts in its draft and review. Dr. Susan Soloman, a climate expert from NOAA served as the Working 

Group I co-chair. In order to meet his goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 18 percent by 2012, 

President Bush has devoted approximately $29 billion to the cause, which is more than any other 

nation’s expenditures on climate-related science, technology, international assistance, or incentive 

programs. Through the multi-agency Climate Change Science Program, a total of $9 billion has been 

spent on climate change science research by the Administration since 2002. Federal funding dedicated 

to these causes helps US scientists to develop and deploy the types of research efforts summarized in 

the IPCC report. (See News section of this newsletter for more information in news item “Science 

Panel Calls Global Warming ‘Unequivocal’.”) The Summary for Policymakers can be downloaded 

from the IPCC’s website at: http://www.ipcc.ch/, or by clicking on a direct link to the pdf document at: 

http://www.ipcc.ch/SPM2feb07.pdf. A webcast of the IPCC Press Conference held on February 2 can be 

heard by clicking on: 

http://www.empreinte.com/richmediaevent/20070202/vod/ipc_audio_en_900x540_WindowsLD.htm. To 

read a Fact Sheet on Global Climate change, see: 

http://energy.gov/media/FactSheetOnGlobalClimateChange.pdf. February 2, 2007, 

http://energy.gov/news/4704.htm. 

April 2007 

Fossil Energy Techline, “DOE Lab Teams with Universities to Develop New Carbon Capture 

Technology.” Researchers at the Department of Energy’s (DOE) National Energy Technology 

Laboratory (NETL) are collaborating with scientists from West Virginia University and the University of 

Pittsburgh to develop improved carbon dioxide (CO2) sorbents, a new carbon capture technology that 

could help address the issue of global warming. The technology is called electrostatic layer-by-layer selfassembly, or LBL, and is currently used to prevent infection in patients with medical implants and to 

deliver precise doses of medicine. NETL researchers are hoping that the nanotechnology could be used 

to remove CO2 from fossil fuel combustion gases. In order to do this, the researchers are searching for a 

way to produce a higher quality, more uniform sorbent. Typically, NETL researchers prepare amine 

sorbents by a process that deposits the amines (the chemical compounds that contain nitrogen as the 

key atom) on the substrate (the base onto which the active material is deposited). The sorbent becomes 

more effective when it is distributed with greater uniformity on the substrate, thus capturing more CO2 in 

the process. As much as 100 times more amine could be deposited using the new technology than is 

currently being used. The research is possible through a program called the University Research 

Initiative, a program that teams NETL researchers with university professors and students from West 

Virginia University, the University of Pittsburgh, and Carnegie Mellon University. The program is valueadded in that it allows for technologies to be used in applications where they would otherwise not be 

applied. For more information on DOE’s Carbon Sequestration Program, go to: 

http://www.fossil.energy.gov/programs/sequestration/index.html. March 20, 2007, 

http://www.fossil.energy.gov/news/techlines/2007/07013-FE_Science_Meets_Medicine.html.

DOE Press Release, “Department of Energy Submits $23.6 Billion Spending Plan to Congress for 

FY’07.” On March 16, the US Department of Energy submitted their Fiscal Year 2007 spending plan to 

Congress totaling $23.598 billion. This marks a $45 million (0.2 percent) increase over the original 

request, as a result of the Continuing Resolution signed by President Bush on February 15. Significant to 

the plan is the amount of funding allocated in order to meet the President’s goal of developing 

technologies to substantially reduce the nation’s dependency on fossil fuels, as laid out in his most 

recent State of the Union Address. A highlight of the spending plan is the President’s $2 billion 

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commitment to clean coal technologies. This includes the funding for projects aimed at near-zero 

emissions goals, including carbon emissions. A 55 percent increase in funding for carbon sequestration 

will help initiate the deployment of large scale geologic field projects. Funding for research and 

development into clean coal technologies is also allocated in the budget. Emphasis on investments in 

alternative fuel technologies is part of the current spending plan, and President Bush’s Twenty in Ten 

Initiative will direct funding to areas aiming to reduce the country’s dependence on foreign energy and 

fossil fuels. March 16, 2007, http://energy.gov/news/4884.htm. 

May 2007 

Fossil Energy Techline, “DOE Signs FutureGen Cooperative Agreement.” On April 10, The US 

Department of Energy (DOE) and the FutureGen Alliance agreed to terms of the next phase of the 

FutureGen project, valued at $42.5 million. FutureGen is a first-of-its-kind, near-zero emissions coalfueled power plant that will integrate carbon dioxide capture and storage technology to reduce 

greenhouse gas emissions. The cooperative agreement outlines the inclusions in the current project 

phase and updates to overall cost estimates for the project. Current funding will pay for a detailed 

summary of the project’s conceptual designs, final site selection, negotiation of a site agreement, and 

release of required National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) documentation. By 2016, the total cost for 

FutureGen is projected to increase from $950 million to $1.7 billion, due to the increased cost of 

materials and labor in heavy construction. An expected $300 million in power revenue will help to offset 

the more than $1 billion and $400 million to be funded by DOE and the FutureGen Alliance, respectively. 

Both parties will continue to monitor expenses for future phases of the project. To read the FutureGen 

Alliance press release on this development, see: http://www.futuregenalliance.org/news/releases/pr_04-

13-07.pdf. For a link to the FutureGen Alliance website, click on: http://www.futuregenalliance.org/. 

For a link to DOE’s FutureGen Initiative webpage, go to: 

http://www.fossil.energy.gov/programs/powersystems/futuregen/index.html. April 10, 2007, 

http://www.fossil.energy.gov/news/techlines/2007/07019-DOE_Signs_FutureGen_Agreement.html. 

Fossil Energy Techline, “DOE Regional Partnerships Find More Than 3,500 Billion Tons of 

Possible Carbon Dioxide Storage Capacity.” The “Carbon Sequestration Atlas of the United States 

and Canada,” made available online on March 27, describes in great detail the stationary sources of 

carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in the two countries, suitable geologic storage formations for CO2, as 

well as the capacity estimates for CO2 in these formations. By first identifying the sources of the 

greenhouse gas CO2, efforts can be initiated to greatly reduce the amount of the gas emitted into the 

atmosphere by capturing and safely sequestering it in geologic formations. Power plants and other 

stationary sources of CO2 account for more than 3.8 billion tons of CO2 emissions per year in the US and 

Canada. The Atlas was created by researchers at the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) in 

cooperation with the seven Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnerships and the National Carbon 

Sequestration Database and Geographical Information System (NATCARB). Altogether, the Partnerships 

comprise more than 400 organizations, including 40 states, four Canadian provinces, and three Indian 

nations. The main objectives of the Atlas are to: (1) provide an overview of the lifecycle of CO2 through 

the capture and sequestration processes; (2) summarize the Energy Department’s activities in 

sequestration research and development; and, (3) present information about the Regional Carbon 

Sequestration Partnerships’ activities. The Atlas is currently available in both static and interactive 

versions. The printed version will be available in May 2007. To download the Carbon Sequestration Atlas 

from the NETL website, go to: http://www.netl.doe.gov/publications/carbon_seq/atlas/index.html. To 

access the link to the frequently updated, interactive version of the Atlas from the NATCARB website, 

see: http://www.natcarb.org/. March 27, 2007, http://www.fossil.energy.gov/news/techlines/2007/07016-

Carbon_Sequestration_Atlas_Publish.html. 

June 2007 

8
NETL News Release, “DOE Releases 2007 Carbon Sequestration Technology Roadmap, Marks 

Tenth Year of Carbon Sequestration Program.” On May 10, the US Department of Energy’s (DOE) 

Carbon Sequestration Program announced the release of “The 2007 Carbon Sequestration Technology 

Roadmap and Program Plan.” The roadmap contains a carbon sequestration program overview with 

highlights and accomplishments to date, a section describing the challenges facing the program, and an 

extensive description of the program portfolio of technologies. The Carbon Sequestration Program is 

managed by DOE’s National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) and has been very successful in 

researching, developing, and deploying technologies for the advancement of carbon sequestration 

technologies. The capture and storage of carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gases is the focus 

of the program, whose overall goal is to develop fossil fuel conversion systems by 2012 that achieve 90 

percent CO2 capture with 99 percent storage permanence at less than a 10 percent increase in the cost 

of energy services. To download the 2007 Carbon Sequestration Roadmap from the NETL website, go 

to: http://www.netl.doe.gov/publications/carbon_seq/project%20portfolio/2007/2007Roadmap.pdf. May 

10, 2007, http://www.netl.doe.gov/publications/press/2007/PrinterFriendlyHTML_1_104305_104305.html. 

Fossil Energy Techline, “DOE, EPA Launch Coordinated Carbon Sequestration Project.” As part of 

DOE’s Carbon Sequestration Program, researchers from DOE and the US Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA) are collaborating on a joint carbon sequestration research project. DOE will fund 

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) to examine the potential impact that carbon 

sequestration will have on groundwater resources, ensuring that the US drinking water supply will not be 

adversely affected. In general, DOE will focus on large-scale injection of CO2 into deep saline formations 

and the potential for water displacement into shallow groundwater systems, and the EPA will concentrate 

on the migration of CO2 and its possible impact on underground sources of drinking water. To date, 

LBNL has completed simulation modeling and initiated a literature review on the effects of water 

displacement and pressure buildup in various geologic formation parameters. Findings from the threeyear long project will assist DOE’s Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnership Program by identifying 

potential areas of concern in each of the seven partnerships’ regions of the country. It will also contribute 

to meeting the goals set forth in the President’s Global Climate Change Initiative. May 1, 2007, 

http://www.fossil.energy.gov/news/techlines/2007/PrintVersion_1_29071_29071.html?print. 

July 2007 

Fossil Energy Techline, “DOE Releases Draft EIS Statement for FutureGen Project.” The US 

Department of Energy (DOE) has released a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the 

FutureGen Project, a detailed document describing the potential environmental effects of constructing 

the state-of-the-art 275-megawatt coal-fired power plant with hydrogen production capabilities. The near 

zero-emissions plant will use carbon sequestration technology to capture carbon dioxide (CO2) 

emissions from the plant and pump the gas underground for permanent storage. The draft EIS provides 

detailed descriptions of the proposed power plant, CO2 capture and storage methods, monitoring 

activities, planned and potential research activities, resources required for the proposed project, and 

construction and operation plans. The EIS also considers the various human and environmental impacts 

at the site and surrounding community that could result with the construction and operation of the power 

plant. These include potential impacts on land resources, water supply, air quality and noise, ecological 

resources, human health, and socioeconomics, among other factors. Comments from DOE-hosted 

public hearings conducted in the communities located near the four candidate sites were also 

incorporated into the EIS. Locations under consideration for the FutureGen site include Mattoon, Illinois; 

Tuscola, Illinois; Jewett, Texas; and Odessa, Texas. Additionally, the draft EIS suggests mitigation 

options that will be considered as the project develops. This comprehensive assessment will be used for 

reference in the design, construction, and eventual operation of the FutureGen plant. DOE’s National 

Energy Technology Laboratory will oversee the project, which is a partnership between DOE and the 

FutureGen Alliance, Incorporated, the non-profit consortium responsible for the design and construction 

of the facility. Comments to the draft EIS will be considered for inclusion in the final EIS. To read the 

9
complete FutureGen Draft Environmental Impact Statement, click on: 

http://www.netl.doe.gov/technologies/coalpower/futuregen/EIS/. To read the Federal Registrar Notice, go 

to: http://www.fossil.energy.gov/programs/powersystems/futuregen/futuregen_frnotice_060107.pdf. May 

25, 2007, http://www.fossil.energy.gov/news/techlines/2007/07044-

FutureGen_Draft_EIS_Released.html. 

August 2007 

 

NETL News Release, “Department of Energy Supported Technologies Recognized with R&D 100 

Awards.” R&D Magazine has awarded the prestigious R&D 100 Awards to three technologies 

developed at the US Department of Energy’s (DOE) National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL). 

The magazine annually recognizes organizations for the most technologically significant products 

introduced into the marketplace. SEQURETM, a commercially available well finding technology that 

locates potential carbon sequestration sites, was designated as one of the winners. SEQURETM

effectively locates abandoned and leaking oil and gas wells by using magnetic and methane sensors 

deployed on helicopters. The technology ultimately provides for the secure and successful storage of 

carbon dioxide (CO2) that may otherwise be released back into the atmosphere. The CO2 sequestration 

technology offers a promising solution to mitigating global warming. The other award recipients include 

Armstrong Process CP (Continuous Process) Ti (Titanium) and Ti Alloy Powder and Products, and MFIX 

(Multiphase Flow with Interphase eXchanges). The September issue of R&D Magazine will feature the 

awards. July 9, 2007, 

http://www.netl.doe.gov/publications/press/2007/PrinterFriendlyHTML_1_108430_108430.html. 

Sequestration in the News 

September 2006 

The Intelligencer, “Experiment to Begin at Burger Plant.” The Midwest Regional Carbon 

Sequestration Partnership (MSRCP), under contract with the National Energy Technology Laboratory, is 

coordinating with First Energy at its R.E. Burger Plant outside Shadyside, Ohio to conduct a geologic 

carbon sequestration demonstration project pilot validation test. The pilot test is in its early stages. First 

Energy spokesperson Mark Durbin stated that geologists and seismologists are currently examining old 

mining records and maps, and are conducting tests to determine the underground geological makeup of 

the site. The plan is to pump pressurized carbon dioxide directly into a brine formation located between 

4,000 and 7,000 feet below the surface. The MRCSP is evaluating the possibility of capturing the carbon 

dioxide produced at the Burger Plant for the pilot test. Initial plans call for injecting about 3,000 tons of 

carbon dioxide at the site over a period of several months. This is about the same amount of CO2 that 

would be produced in two days during operations at the Plant. July 24, 2006. (Link not available.14 day 

online archive of news story only.) 

The Globe and Mail (Canada), “Oil Industry to Study CO2 Potential.” The Petroleum Technology 

Alliance Canada (PTAC), a not-for-profit association that facilitates collaborative research and 

technology development for the Canadian upstream conventional oil and gas industry, announced a 

major study in enhanced oil recovery. PTAC has issued an RFP, due August 31, 2006, for the estimation 

of capital and operating costs for capturing, purifying/separating, and transporting carbon dioxide (CO2) 

that is emitted from Edmonton-area industrial operations, in particular oil refineries. (See link for RFP: 

http://www.ptac.org/co2/co2r0601.html.) PTAC’s goal for the project is to establish a rough cost estimate 

to support the initiation and ongoing operation of commercial enhanced recovery of conventional oil in 

specific Alberta oil fields, allowing private industry to establish deals to start construction of CO2 plants 

with the next year. The study may also make a case for the need for government assistance for these 

types of projects. The study is being sponsored by the CO2 committee within PTAC whose members 

include Penn West, Enbridge Inc, Suncor Energy Inc., Husky Energy Inc., Shell Canada Ltd., EnCana 

10
Corp, and several representatives from the Alberta and Canadian governments. July 7, 2006, 

http://www.ptac.org/about/dl/media0601.pdf. 

Cincinnati Post, “Project Traps Carbon Dioxide.” The Midwest Regional Carbon Sequestration 

Partnership is conducting a field demonstration at Duke Energy’s East Bend Generating Station in Boone 

County, Kentucky. After seismic tests are conducted in late September or early October to gain more 

information regarding the geologic formations, 3,000 to 10,000 tons of carbon dioxide will be 

sequestered at 3,000-4,000 feet below the surface beginning within a year. The brine saturated rock of 

the area’s Mount Simon Sandstone formation is considered to be ideal for containing the carbon dioxide. 

The project is testing the drilling technology, the injection process, the environmental and safety impacts, 

and public acceptance of the sequestration concept. Also tested will be the containment of the carbon 

dioxide and the movement of the carbon dioxide within the porous rock. August 9, 2006, 

http://news.cincypost.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060809/NEWS01/608090348. 

Clean Coal Today, “Sequestration Conference Explored Technology Progress.” Over 400 persons 

attended the Fifth Annual Conference on Carbon Capture and Sequestration on May 8–11, 2006, in 

Alexandria, Virginia, which was partly sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy, and the National 

Energy Technology Laboratory. The conference focused on carbon capture, geological and terrestrial 

sequestration of carbon dioxide, including regulatory and economic aspects of sequestration, and 

international cooperation. The keynote address was given by the Department of Energy’s Secretary 

Samuel Bodman in which he outlined the US Government’s multi-faceted approach toward ensuring 

clean and reliable sources of energy as presented in the Advanced Energy Initiative, announced by 

President Bush in his January 2006 State of the Union address. The Initiative supports transformational 

technologies including carbon sequestration. (Highlights of many other speakers’ presentations are 

outlined in this news article.) Spring/Summer 2006, 

http://www.netl.doe.gov/technologies/coalpower/cctc/newsletter/documents/cctoday_spring_summer_20

06.pdf.

USA Today, “Burying the Evidence of Global Warming.” Carbon dioxide (CO2) can be sequestered 

in sandstone in the Midwestern United States, where there are plenty of sandstone layers, in contrast to 

the Pacific Northwest and Southeast that lack sandstone formations. Environmental scientist B. Peter 

McGrail of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland, WA reports that carbon dioxide can be 

sequestered under the hardened lava of volcanic eruptions. In a study in the American Geophysical 

Union's Journal of Geophysical Research-Solid Earth, McGrail and his team report that ancient lava 

flows, approximately 10 million years old and located in Washington State, form layers with deep basalt 

rock that could serve as potential sites for CO2 sequestration. The layers are located about 3,000 feet 

deep and were formed as bubbles in lava flows became trapped between the cooling outer crust, making 

the interior of the lava layer permeable. The study reports that the lava basalt within those water-filled 

layers appears to mix with carbon dioxide to form limestone rock, which can serve to enhance the 

sequestration process. The study further states that the limestone formation process starts within one to 

three years of carbon dioxide injection. August 21, 2006, 

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/science/columnist/vergano/2006-08-20-carbon-sequestration_x.htm. 

Clean Coal Today, “NatCarb Evaluating Carbon Sequestration Potential.” The National Carbon 

Sequestration Database and Geographical Information System (NatCarb) is a mapping and analysis tool 

funded under an agreement by the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) and the University of 

Kansas Center for Research. Geological Survey organizations in Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, and 

Ohio, the US Geological Survey, NETL’s seven Regional Partnerships, and the Massachusetts Institute 

of Technology are all participating in this project which provides access to natural resource data related 

to carbon management. NatCarb data include data collected from the characterization phase of NETL’s 

Regional Partnerships Program, as well as several national data sources including data from the USGS 

Earth Resources Observation Systems (EROS) center, the Geography Network, the US Environmental 

Protection Agency, and the US Energy Information Administration. Access the database at: 

11
http://www.natcarb.org/. Spring/Summer 2006, 

http://www.netl.doe.gov/technologies/coalpower/cctc/newsletter/documents/cctoday_spring_summer_20

06.pdf. 

Greenwire, “Underground Movement Emerges for Sequestering CO2.” An overview of many aspects 

of carbon capture and sequestration are discussed. Three major commercial projects currently underway 

and implementing sequestration technology include: 1. The Sleipner project which began in 1966 and 

injects about 1 million tons of CO2 per year into saline aquifers in the North Sea, with an estimated 

project capacity of 20 million tons; 2. The Great Plains Synfuels natural gas power plant in Beulah, North 

Dakota which has captured about 1 million tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) per year since 1999, with a 200-

mile pipeline to the Weyburn field in Saskatchewan, Canada, for Enhanced Oil Recovery operations; and 

3. Sonatrach, the state energy company in Algeria, which partners with Statoil and BP on a project to 

reinject 17 million tons of CO2 that is extracted from a natural gas field. The 2005 report by the 

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (http://arch.rivm.nl/env/int/ipcc/pages_media/SRCCSfinal/IPCCSpecialReportonCarbondioxideCaptureandStorage.htm) estimated that geologically there is 

200 to 2,000 gigatons of CO2 storage capacity worldwide that is economically available for sequestration. 

Also, the Battelle report from April 2006 

(http://www.battelle.org/news/06/CCS_Climate_Change06.pdf#search=%22%22carbon%20dioxide%20c

apture%20and%20geologic%20storage%22%22) 

estimated 11,000 gigatons of geologic CO2 storage with 3,400 gigatons of capacity in the US. Humans 

produce about 7 gigatons of greenhouse gas emissions per year. Ocean sequestration would provide for 

additional storage. August 14, 2006. http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/2006/08/14/#1. (Subscription may 

be required.) 

Nature, “Putting the Carbon Back: The Hundred Billion Tonne Challenge,” and Nature, “Putting 

the Carbon Back: Black is the New Green.” This two-part series of articles discusses 1. geological 

carbon sequestration technology and 2. “terra preta” soils as a tool for carbon sequestration. The first 

article mentions the upcoming project in Ketzin, Germany that, within the next two years, will be the site 

of Europe’s first large-scale carbon capture and storage demonstration project. About 60,000 tons of 

carbon dioxide will be injected into a saline formation over 2,000 feet below the surface. The capacity of 

the Earth for geological sequestration is discussed, as is implementing carbon capture and storage at 

power plants, including integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) plants. The article on “terra preta” 

discusses the origin of the scientific study of “terra preta” soils which started with Wim Sombroek. “Terra 

preta” is the dark and fertile soil of the Amazon that is fortified with material including char, organic matter 

that smolders in an oxygen-poor environment rather than burning. “Terra preta” soils can contain 250 

tons of carbon, as opposed to 150 tons that is contained in unimproved soil. The production of char is 

discussed, including turning farm waste into biofuel while producing char. Robert Brown, an engineer 

from Iowa State University working on “terra preta” production technology, estimates that a 250-hectare 

farm which uses a char created from biowaste which is then combined with ammonium bi-carbonate, a 

nitrogen fertilizer, can help to sequester roughly 1,900 tons of carbon per year. August 10, 2006, 

http://www.nature.com/news/2006/060807/full/442624a.html, and 

http://www.nature.com/news/2006/060807/full/442620a.html. (Subscription required.) 

The New York Times, “Team Looks At Seafloor As Gas Trap.” A paper was published in the August 

7 edition of the weekly Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences in which a team of researchers 

identified seafloor sediments that are suitable for carbon sequestration. The research, partly funded by 

the Department of Energy, shows that there are ideal depths of ocean water and sediment that would 

allow carbon dioxide to stay denser than the water above; at about 10,000 feet deep where the 

temperature is typically about 35 degrees and the pressure from the water above would cause liquid 

carbon dioxide pumped into porous sediment to stay denser than water. Experts who were not involved 

in the analysis say that the concept would need to be extensively tested in the field. The lead author of 

the study, Kurt Zenz House said that the study showed there was “an inherently stable and permanent 

storage option that could bite off a huge chunk of the CO2.” (For an abstract of the proceedings

12
“Permanent carbon dioxide storage in deep-sea sediments” see this Newsletter’s

Terrestrial/Ocean section.) August 8, 2006, http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/07/science/07cndcarbon.html?_r=1&ei=5094&en=d638052622c63014&hp=&ex=1155009600&adxnnl=1&partner=homepa

ge&adxnnlx=1155128076-qXekUhbJIQKkfqjHBj1vJQ&oref=slogin. (Subscription Required.) 

October 2006

DOE Fossil Energy Techline, "Two-For-One Solution....Alabama Project Plans to Store Carbon 

Dioxide, Boost Oil Production." In the Department of Energy's (DOE's) efforts to pursue demonstration 

projects to promote the capture, transportation, and injection of produced carbon dioxide (CO2) for 

sequestration into oil and gas fields while boosting oil and natural gas production (mandated in the 

Energy Policy Act of 2005), a funding opportunity was announced earlier in 2006 for research in 

enhanced oil recovery (EOR) with carbon sequestration. The project selected for funding was University 

of Alabama-Birmingham's (UAB) CO2 flooding of the Citronelle oilfield in Mobile County, Alabama. 

Citronelle is Alabama's largest producer and a mature field that has undergone primary and secondary 

recovery (waterflooding) efforts, and is now a candidate for tertiary recovery, or EOR. Typically, an 

additional 20 percent of the original-oil-in-place in a reservoir can be recovered using CO2 EOR, with an 

estimated 64 million barrels of oil that could be recovered in Citronelle. Southern Company of Atlanta, 

Georgia, a large electrical power producer, is evaluating the capacity of reservoirs such as Citronelle for 

possible sequestration of any CO2 that it might capture and separate from its emissions. Sequestration 

potential and estimated oil yields will be studied under this project, as will computer simulations of the oil 

yield and sequestration capacity of a given geologic formation and the rate at which CO2 can be 

introduced into the underground formations. Partners with UAB and Southern Company in the project are 

Citronelle field owner and operator Denbury Resources Inc., Plano, Texas; University of Alabama, 

Tuscaloosa, Alabama; Alabama A&M University, Huntsville, Alabama; Geological Survey of Alabama, 

Tuscaloosa; and the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, North Carolina. Total project cost is about 

$6 million, with a little under $3 million to be cost-shared by DOE. September 6, 2006. 

http://www.fossil.energy.gov/news/techlines/2006/06050-DOE_Awards_EOR_Project.html. 

Air Liquide Press Release, "Air Liquide Partners in CO2 Sequestration Project Sponsored by U.S. 

Department of Energy." Air Liquide is collaborating on a project with the Midwest Geological 

Sequestration Consortium (MGSC) in a project sponsored by the US Department of Energy, National 

Energy Technology Laboratory and the Illinois Office of Coal Development. The project is being led by 

the Illinois State Geological Survey (ISGS). Air Liquide's R&D center in Countryside, Illinois has been 

involved in a carbon sequestration project since 2003. Phase II of the project has begun under which 6 

real-scale CO2 injection tests will be conducted, lasting until 2009. Air Liquide's subsidiary, Air Liquide 

Industrial US LP serves on the project's Advisory Group. Air Liquide will provide 19,000 tons of liquid 

CO2 to be injected during these tests as well as storage tanks for the CO2. Expertise will be provided by 

Air Liquide regarding the design of the injection skid, and analysis of the results to ensure that the buried 

CO2 will remain trapped geologically. August 28, 2006, 

http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=2006082800

5624&newsLang=en. 

BBC News, "BP Warning On 'Clean' Power Plant." BP has warned that without more financial 

incentives from the UK government it may have to pull out of its Peterhead project for hydrogen power 

generation and carbon capture and storage. The project, which would generate 'carbon-free' electricity 

from hydrogen and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by capturing carbon dioxide (CO2) and storing it, 

was slated to be operational by the end of 2009. Energy Minister Malcolm Wicks confirmed further CCS 

measures would be outlined in a pre-budget report later this year. August 25, 2006, 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/north_east/5284800.stm. 

13
Energy Business Review Online, "RWE CEO Calls for Cooperation for Zero-Emission Plant," RWE 

presented its plans to the general assembly of the European Commission's ZEP (European Technology 

Platform for Zero Emission Fossil Fuel Power Plant) in Brussels. RWE plans to build a large-scale power 

plant with integrated coal gasification, and carbon dioxide (CO2) separation and storage, resulting in no 

emissions of CO2. The plant would have a gross output of 450MW and could be operational by 2014. 

The decision to use hard coal or lignite as the plant's primary fuels will occur in 2007, and approval for 

the construction of the plant should be received by 2010. September 13, 2006, http://www.energybusiness-review.com/article_news_print.asp?guid=D64FBDAB-45AE-4FA7-8B8B-95B33BD70A18. 

Casper Star Tribune, "Thomas, Feinstein Talk Coal Plant." US Senator Craig Thompson, RWyoming, and Dianne Feinstein, D-California, met with representatives of utilities and government 

agencies about planning to build a 200-megawatt integrated gasification combined cycle plant, with 

sequestration of its carbon dioxide, in Wyoming. The plant would cost between $500 million and $600 

million, and would send its produced power to California. Congress has approved an initiative that calls 

for a coal gasification demonstration plant to be built at an elevation of at least 4,000 feet above sea level 

and to use Western coal, but Congress has yet to appropriate money for the project. The senators will 

look into funding a study to prove that carbon sequestration will be viable with Wyoming's geology. 

September 20, 2006, 

http://www.casperstartribune.net/articles/2006/09/20/news/wyoming/63804a435f7a11ea872571ef000430

3a.txt. 

November 2006

E&E News, “Idaho Considers Carbon Sequestering Projects.” Idaho is exploring the possibility of 

sequestering carbon dioxide (CO2) in lava flow formations and using the projects to offset carbon 

emissions in the state. In 2002, the Idaho Soil Conservation Commission created an advisory committee 

at the request of the state. Two pilot project areas have been proposed by the committee. The Idaho 

National Laboratories are trying to inject CO2 into lava formation in east-central Idaho. The Soil 

Conservation Commission met with a group of carbon emitters in January, and also with members of the 

National Carbon Offset Coalition, a Montana-based group that helps landowners plan sequestration 

activities. September 27, 2006, http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2006/09/27/17. (Subscription 

may be required.) 

Reuters, “Norway To Build World's Biggest CO Capture Facility.” The Norwegian government will 

help finance carbon capture and storage for the Statoil project in Mongstad, Norway. Statoil is building 

the world’s largest facility for carbon dioxide (CO ) capture and storage, near where Statoil plans to build 

a gas-fired power plant to feed one of its refineries. A technology company will be created of which the 

government will own 80 percent. Norway will spend $594 million on the facility, which will capture 

100,000 tons of CO in 2010, and 1.3 million tons in 2014. October 13, 2006,

2

2

2

http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/38487/story.htm. 

Energy Central, “ALSTOM, EPRI and We Energies To Build Pilot Plant In the US To Demonstrate 

Its Unique CO2 Capture Process.” A five megawatt pilot plant will be built in order to demonstrate a 

carbon dioxide (CO2) capture process, capturing CO2 from a portion of boiler flue gas at the We Energies 

power plant in Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin. This capture process was developed by the engineering firm 

ALSTOM, and uses chilled ammonia to capture the CO2. This specific process has not yet been 

demonstrated in the US. The process reduces the required energy for capture and isolation of the CO2 in 

a highly concentrated, highly pressurized form. In previous laboratory testing, the process was shown to 

be 90 percent efficient at removing CO2, at a much lower cost than other methods. The pilot project will 

be commissioned in mid-2007 at the We Energies Pleasant Prairie Power Plant and operated for 

approximately one year. An engineering/environmental performance and cost analysis will be conducted 

by Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) during the operation. October 3, 2006, 

14
http://www.energycentral.com/centers/news/daily/article.cfm?aid=7226310. (Registration may be 

required.) 

Central Valley Business Times (California), “Central Valley May Be Site for ‘Carbon Repository’ In 

Global Warming Battle,” and San Mateo County Times, “Delta Explored As Place To Stash 

Carbon Dioxide: Global Warming Solution Could Be To Put Gases In Underground Caverns.” The 

West Coast Regional Sequestration Partnership (WestCarb)—comprised of industry and government 

from California, Nevada, Arizona, Oregon, Washington and British Columbia—is planning a 

sequestration project at a site near Thorton, California. Westcarb is part of the National Energy 

Technology Laboratory’s Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnerships program. The project site consists 

of a saline deposit (salt water and sand 3,500 feet underground) which is capped by a thick layer of 

shale, above which is a depleted natural gas deposit also topped by a layer of shale. Plans are to inject 

carbon dioxide (CO2) into both formations. The site will be the first tested, among other potential sites in 

the northern Central Valley of California, for its potential to store carbon dioxide (CO2) from 20 power 

plants from the Bay area. Before pumping the CO2 underground, public hearings will be held and permits 

obtained from the US Environmental Protection Agency, state oil and gas regulators, or both. The 

volume of carbon dioxide injected will be small, roughly amounting to what a coal-fired power plant would 

release in a day. The scientists will then monitor the CO2 in the formations. The injection could begin as 

early as spring 2007. October 12, 2006, 

http://www.centralvalleybusinesstimes.com/stories/001/?ID=3265, and October 1, 2006, 

http://www.insidebayarea.com/sanmateocountytimes/localnews/ci_4426718. 

December 2006

FutureGen Alliance Press Release, “E.ON U.S. Joins FutureGen Alliance News.” E.ON U.S., a 

leading US utility, joined the FutureGen Alliance, the non-profit consortium of global electric and utility 

companies working with the US Department of Energy to develop FutureGen, the near-zero emissions 

power plant. E.ON is a subsidiary of E.ON A.G., the world’s largest investor-owned energy services 

provider. E.ON U.S. owns and operates Louisville Gas and Electric Company, a utility that serves 

321,000 natural gas and 394,000 electric customers in Louisville, Kentucky, and Kentucky Utilities 

Company, a utility based in Lexington, Kentucky that serves 525,000 customers in 77 Kentucky counties 

and 5 counties in Virginia. E.ON U.S. joins 10 other members of the FutureGen Alliance including 

American Electric Power, Anglo American, BHP Billiton, the China Huaneng Group, CONSOL Energy 

Inc., Foundation Coal, Rio Tinto Energy America, Peabody Energy, PPL Corporation, and Southern 

Company. Four sites are candidates for FutureGen, 2 located in Texas and 2 located in Illinois, with a 

National Environmental Policy Act review occurring prior to the site selection scheduled for late summer 

of 2007. October 31, 2006, http://www.futuregenalliance.org/news/releases/pr_10-31-06.pdf. 

Washington Business Journal, “NM Tech Gets $67 Million for Carbon Sequestration Research.” 

Through a cost-share program, the US Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory 

awarded the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology $67 million to conduct carbon sequestration 

(CO2) research. The goal of this project is to sequester hazardous emissions by injecting an estimated 1 

million tons of CO2 into geological formations. The remaining $17 million of the $84 million total cost must 

be provided by New Mexico Tech and could be in the form of loans or through contributions made 

directly to the project. The funding to New Mexico Tech will be distributed over a ten-year period. 

October 30, 2006, http://washington.bizjournals.com/albuquerque/stories/2006/10/30/daily4.html. 

E&E News, “Asia-Pacific Partnership Spawns 98 New Projects, Administration Says.” On October 

31, the Bush Administration revealed plans for 98 new clean energy products as part of the US 

commitment to reduce harmful carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions into the atmosphere. The unveiling 

coincided with the meeting of participant countries at American Electric Power Corporation headquarters 

in Columbus, Ohio. The US will implement these projects through its membership in the Asia-Pacific 

Partnership on Clean Development and Climate, which is comprised of six countries whose common 

15
objective is to address climate change issues through private sector investment and technology 

exchange among the member countries. This public-private initiative involves technology exchange 

visits between the member countries to see firsthand what is being done to provide clean power 

generation and reduced emissions, as well as specific project endorsements. Two such projects include 

a joint Australia-Japan venture to build a 30-megawatt pulverized coal plant that will demonstrate the 

capture and storage of carbon dioxide emissions and use of an Australian-developed solar technology in 

China and the United States. For links to the projects, refer to a list of US Department of State fact 

sheets at http://www.state.gov/g/oes/climate/app/c19376.htm. October 31, 2006, 

http://www.eenews.net/eenewspm/print/2006/10/31/2. (Subscription may be required.) 

ExxonMobil Corporation Press Release, “ExxonMobil Supports European Research Initiative into 

Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions.” Exxon Mobil Corporation, a leader in carbon capture and 

storage (CCS) technology, announced that it will contribute 1 million Euros and provide expert technical 

guidance to participate in a project called CO2ReMoVe. CCS technology removes carbon dioxide from 

flue gases, compresses it to reduce the volume, and then transports it by pipeline to a site for 

sequestering in geologic formations. The purpose of this project is to evaluate a range of technologies to 

monitor the injection and storage of carbon dioxide (CO2) from various sites and then establishing 

guidelines that will be used for the certification of future sites where CO2 will be sequestered. Over the 

next five years, Exxon Mobil will partner with other energy industry partners, including BP, 

ConocoPhillips, Schlumberger, Statoil, Total, Vattenfall and Wintershall in the CO2ReMoVe project, 

which is being sponsored by the European Commission Directorate General for Research. The 

International Energy Agency, DNV (an organization specializing in risk management in the oil and gas 

industry), and other national agencies and academic research organizations will also participate in the 

research. Sites identified for this initiative include the Sleipner and Snohvit fields in the Norwegian North 

Sea, at In Salah in the southern Saharan desert in Algeria, and in the German locality of Ketzin. The 

effort will involve the participation of technical experts from ExxonMobil’s Upstream Research Company, 

which will be important to the success of the project. Successful use of the CCS technology could be 

applied to many other large scale sources of CO2 emissions and play a significant role in reducing 

greenhouse gas emissions. November 2, 2006, 

http://www.csrwire.com/PressRelease.php?id=6715. 

International Herald-Tribune (Asia-Pacific), “Australia Pledges $500 Million Australian ($379 

Million US) to Fight Global Warming.” Australian Prime Minister John Howard announced that the 

country plans to invest $379 million in new technologies aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions. 

Although the package does not elaborate on exactly which technologies will be designated to receive the 

funds, Australia has made previous investments in carbon sequestration projects in recent years. The 

country’s economy relies heavily upon profits from coal exports, a major source of greenhouse gas 

emissions. Rainfall levels have consistently fallen below average over the past several years in 

Australia, and the country is currently plagued by draught. Even with growing concerns of global 

warming, Australia has refused to pledge their participation in the Kyoto Protocol. October 22, 2006, 

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2006/10/22/asia/AS_GEN_Australia_Climate_Change.php. 

January 2007

Reuters, “Clean Coal Power Plant for Norway.” An international group of companies, including

France's Eramet, US Alcan, Norway's Norsk Hydro, and Norwegian family-owned industrial company 

Tinfos are seeking bids from construction firms for a 400-megawatt coal-fired power plant to be built in 

west Norway, utilizing a carbon capture technology developed by the Norwegian clean energy group 

Sargas. The plant itself will cost approximately $700 million. Ninety-five percent of the carbon dioxide, as 

well Reuters, “Clean Coal Power Plant for Norway.” An international group of companies, including

France's Eramet, US Alcan, Norway's Norsk Hydro, and Norwegian family-owned industrial company 

Tinfos are seeking bids from construction firms for a 400-megawatt coal-fired power plant to be built in 

16
west Norway, utilizing a carbon capture technology developed by the Norwegian clean energy group 

Sargas. The plant itself will cost approximately $700 million. Ninety-five percent of the carbon dioxide, as 

well as nitrous oxide, will be captured. The 2.6 million tons of carbon dioxide captured would be piped or 

shipped to offshore oil or gas fields and sequestered deep below the sea floor. The timeline for the 

project is for a bid in 2007, to start the project in 2008, and production to begin in 2011. Power 

generation costs are estimated at $0.047-$0.055 per kilowatt hour, including costs of capture, equivalent 

to about 25 percent above power generation costs without capture. November 26, 2006,

http://www.theage.com.au/news/World/Clean-coal-power-plant-plan-forNorway/2006/11/27/1164476105162.html . 

Agence France-Presse, “Australia Plans Massive Carbon Storage System.” The Australian 

government has committed $46.5 million to the Gorgon gas project, a large carbon capture and storage 

system, located off the West Australian coast. The plan is to sequester 125 million tons of carbon 

dioxide, two-thirds of the total emissions, which is equal to two-thirds of the total CO2 that the plant would 

emit over 20 years of operations. The carbon dioxide removed while processing the natural gas will be 

injected 1.6 miles underground. Australian Environmental Minister Ian Campbell believes that carbon 

sequestration is “one of the key technologies that the world will need if we are to address climate 

change.” The funding is dependant on environmental approval for the development of the massive 

natural gas field on Barrow Island by Chevron Corp and its partners Exxon Mobil and Royal Dutch Shell. 

November 23, 2006, http://www.energydaily.com/reports/Australia_Plans_Massive_Carbon_Storage_System_999.html. 

DOE Techline, “DOE Advances Production of Hydrogen from Coal.” The US Department of Energy 

(DOE) selected six research and development projects for funding, with the aim to promote large-scale 

production of hydrogen from coal. Production of hydrogen from coal will combat climate change by 

allowing for the capture and sequestration of carbon dioxide during hydrogen production. The projects 

chosen support President Bush's Hydrogen Fuel Initiative, which provides research and development 

funding for these types of projects with the aims to minimize America’s growing dependence on foreign 

oil and reduces greenhouse gas emissions. Several technological challenges must be overcome before 

the use of large-scale production of hydrogen from coal can become wide spread. The projects are 

focused in two area of interest including: 1.) Ultra-Pure Hydrogen, which investigates the purity standard 

of hydrogen in a number of end-use applications, including hydrogen turbines, fuel cells, and modified 

internal combustion engines; and 2.) Process Consolidation, which considers strategies for selectively 

removing pure hydrogen, carbon dioxide, and synthesis gas impurities in a single-reactor configuration 

that can operate simultaneously at high temperature and high conversion (of synthesis gas to hydrogen). 

Six projects were chosen to be funded, with $7.4 million to be provided by the DOE and $1.8 to be 

contributed by industry partners. (To view a detailed list of project descriptions, see the link at the end of 

this news item.) December 6, 2006, http://www.fossil.energy.gov/news/techlines/2006/06070-

Hydrogen_from_Coal_Projects.html. 

Reuters, “Clean” Coal Seen in 5-10 Years.” Harry Audus, general manager of the International Energy 

Agency IEA’s Greenhouse Gas Research and Development Program commented that carbon capture 

and sequestration for “clean” coal-fired power plants would be demonstrated technically viable within 5 to 

10 years, but that there are still no commercial incentives to do so. He also remarked that it is up to 

politicians to institute the commercial incentives. Enabling power generators to capture and sequester 

carbon dioxide (CO2) would be a technological step toward “clean coal” worth tens of billions of dollars. A 

2005 United Nations report stated that capture and storage of CO2 could meet 15 to 55 percent of the 

world’s greenhouse gas reduction needs by 2100, making storage the largest contributor to the 

reductions. Carbon storage, according to Mr. Aldus, is only economically feasible to power generators if 

carbon prices trade for $25-$30 per ton. They are currently traded at $24 per ton for 2008 delivery, but 

after 2012 when many emissions targets expire under the Kyoto Protocol, there will be a price vacuum. 

Nations under the Kyoto Protocol are looking at ways to extend the agreement beyond 2012. Many 

companies are working to develop capture and storage technologies including American Electric Power, 

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BP, E.ON, Statoil and Vattenfall. “The fundamental problem is that carbon capture and storage now 

costs around $100 a ton,” said David Garman, US Under Secretary of Energy. “We have to cut that cost 

to $10 a ton or thereabouts in order for it to be widely adopted and available.” The US Department of 

Energy is in the process of choosing between sites in Illinois and Texas for the $1 billion FutureGen 

project. The European Union (EU) is planning to build a near-zero emissions coal-fired plant in China by 

2020, and hopes to commercially operate carbon capture and storage plants as early as 2010 in both the 

United Kingdom and Norway. Norway’s planned gas-fired Mongstad plant will capture 100,000 tons of 

carbon a year in 2010, with full carbon capture from 2014. Carbon taxes in Norway led to CO2 capture 

and storage at Statoil's Sleipner gas field in 1996, and these taxes in 2006 ranged from $255 to $300 per 

ton. In Canada, EnCana is injecting CO2 from a US lignite gasification plant in an enhanced oil recovery 

project in Weyburn, Saskatchewan. BP and Algerian company Sonatrach are injecting carbon dioxide 

from the In Salah natural gas field in Algeria due to a high percentage of CO2 in the gas. December 8, 

2006, http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/articlenews.aspx?type=reutersEdge&storyID=2006-12-

08T122452Z_01_NOA840704_RTRUKOC_0_CLIMATE-COAL.xml&WTmodLoc=Editors+Choice-C1-

Headline-9. 

Illinois Government News Network, “Governor Blagojevich Takes First Step Toward Building 

Innovative and Environmentally Friendly Carbon Dioxide Pipeline; Major Component of His 

Energy Independence Plan.” As part of Illinois Governor Rod R. Blagojevich’s Energy Independence 

Plan, a Request for Information (FRI) was submitted to acquire the necessary information for the 

construction and operation of a carbon dioxide (CO2) pipeline. The pipeline would become part of the 

$775 million investment plan which calls for the construction of ten new coal gasification plants to be 

completed by 2017. The proposed pipeline would run from the coal gasification plants planned for central 

and southern Illinois to Illinois Basin oilfields in southeastern Illinois. The outcome of this initiative is that 

50 percent of Illinois’ oil would be used to meet their energy needs, thus reducing their dependence on 

foreign oil. The 140-mile CO2 pipeline would transport carbon dioxide captured by the coal gasification 

plants and pipe it to oil fields. The pressurized CO2 would be used to extract more oil from existing 

reserves though enhanced oil recovery (EOR). Illinois will also be the second state to join the Chicago 

Climate Exchange. To read a bullet list of the specifics on Illinois' EOR and carbon sequestration 

potential, see the news item link. November 6, 2006, 

http://www100.state.il.us/PressReleases/ShowPressRelease.cfm?SubjectID=18&RecNum=5500. 

St. Petersburg Times, “Carbon Goes Undercover.” Carbon sequestration, along with energy 

efficiency and clean alternative fuels, are part of the three-pronged approach that the US government is 

using to cut greenhouse gases. Several Florida Power companies, as part of the National Energy 

Technology Laboratory’s Southeast Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnership, including Progress 

Energy Inc., TECO Energy Inc., Gulf Power Co. and Florida Power & Light Co. are working to advance 

carbon sequestration technology. TECO anticipates using carbon sequestration at its Polk County Power 

Plant. Gulf Power is currently surveying potential carbon dioxide storage sites, including oil wells located 

throughout northwest Florida. A Gulf Power sister company is participating in a demonstration project to 

pump carbon dioxide (CO2) into a salt formations 9,000 feet underground in South Mississippi. 

Formations for sequestration exist along the Gulf Coast and cover all of Florida south of Citrus County. 

Florida power companies anticipate future regulation of CO2. The biggest challenge has not been 

storage of CO2, but how to capture, condense and transport the gas. The federal government estimates 

that current methods of isolating flue gas from power plants could double the price of electricity. The 

government’s goal is for sequestration to add no more than 10 percent to the cost of power. TECO’s Polk 

County Power Plant fits the bill since the technology used promotes cheaper CO2 capture. Researchers 

estimate that half of all man-made CO2 could be sequestered by 2050. 

December 11, 2006, http://www.sptimes.com/2006/12/11/Business/Carbon_goes_undercove.shtml. 

Reuters, “Carbon Capture Decision to Be Made in 2007,” and Reuters, “BP Seeks Clean Power 

Plant Talks.” United Kingdom’s Chancellor Gordon Brown announced in his pre-budget report that the 

Secretary for Industry will appoint engineers to the first carbon capture and storage (CCS) demonstration 

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plant in the United Kingdom (UK). After this announcement, BP said that it would like to meet with UK for 

discussions. BP is already planning to build the world’s first industrial-scale hydrogen power plant with 

CCS at Peterhead power station, but wants a promise of financial incentives from the UK government 

before proceeding. The $985 million project could be operational by the end of 2009. December 6, 2006, 

http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/articlenews.aspx?type=domesticNews&storyID=2006-12-

06T140237Z_01_L06832895_RTRUKOC_0_UK-BRITAINCARBONCAPTURE.xml&WTmodLoc=NewsLanding-C3-UK-3, and December 6, 2006, 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/north_east/6214490.stm. 

Business Wire, “ADA-ES Announces Greenhouse Gas Mitigation Project.” ADA-ES Inc. and RTI 

(Research Triangle Institute) International will collaborate on a project for the development and 

demonstration of a novel carbon dioxide capture process. RTI is the prime contractor to the US 

Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory on a $4 million cooperative agreement. 

The capture technology is a sorbent injection system technology which can be applied to existing power 

plants. November 13, 2006, 

http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=2006111300

5746&newsLang=en. 

Austin-American Statesman, “TXU Gets Resolutions on New Plant Plans.” TXU Corporation is 

building 11 new coal-burning power generating plants in Texas, at least doubling its carbon dioxide 

emissions. Kimberly Morgan, a TXU spokeswoman stated that they are building their new units to be 

carbon-capture ready by building in space to install the appropriate equipment when it becomes 

available, but that it is not economically feasible to do so yet. December 8, 2006, Link Unavailable. 

February 2007 

Greenwire, “Appropriations Delays Pose Threat to FutureGen.” Plans to utilize $54 million toward 

building FutureGen, a near-zero emissions coal-fueled power plant, may be delayed if Congress fails to 

approve the new budget in fiscal year 2007. The result would be a continuing resolution, whereby federal 

programs would be forced to operate at fiscal 2006 funding levels. That would mean that only $18 million 

would be available for the FutureGen operating budget until Congress passes their annual spending 

legislation. House and Senate Republicans had agreed to give the Bush administration $54 million in 

2007, which would add to the already approved $45 million in funding since President Bush first 

introduced the concept in his 2003 State of the Union address. In total, Congress has been asked to 

supply two thirds of the $1 billion cost for FutureGen, with the remainder of the funding coming from 

private industry and foreign countries. If 2007 funding is not approved, FutureGen will face competition 

from other specialized contractors who are already bidding on other power plant construction projects 

and industrial expansions. The site selection for FutureGen is expected by next September and 

construction is slated to start in 2009. December 8, 2006, 

http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/2006/12/08/archive/4/?terms=greenhouse%20gases. 

Herald Sun, “Carbon Storage Project to Go Ahead.” The Australian government granted $4.8 million 

($6.1 million Australian) to the Co-operative Research Centre for Carbon Dioxide (CRCCO2) to 

undertake a major carbon dioxide (CO2) capture and geological sequestration project in the Otway Basin 

of Victoria, Australia. This grant will add to the $23.5 million ($30 million Australian) already obtained for 

the project scheduled to begin in early 2007. The first stage of the project will involve drilling a well to a 

depth of 2000 meters, followed by separation of CO2 from methane. The CO2 will subsequently be 

compressed and injected into a deep geological formation in western Victoria. Long-term monitoring will 

be conducted. CRCCO2 and its partners have established a new company called CO2CRC Pilot Project. 

Carbon capture and storage technology will allow Australia and other countries to utilize existing energy 

infrastructure and enable the continued use of coal as a viable energy source. December 22, 2006, 

http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,20965269-5005961,00.html. 

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CNW Telbec. “Canada's New Government Launches ecoEnergy Technology Initiative.” In Canada, 

Gary Lunn, Minister of Natural Resources, and John Baird, Minister of the Environment, announced the 

ecoEnergy Technology Initiative on January 17. The initiative is a $197 million ($230 million Canadian) 

investment in research, development and demonstration of clean-energy technologies, including carbon 

dioxide sequestration, clean coal, clean oil sands production and renewable energy. Priorities within the 

program will be further developed with provinces and industry partners through consultations. January 

17, 2006, http://www.cnw.ca/fr/releases/archive/January2007/17/c6537.html. 

Rancher Energy Corporation Press Release, “Rancher Energy Secures CO2 for Enhanced Oil 

Recovery via Supply Agreement with Anadarko Petroleum,” and Rancher Energy Corporation 

Press Release, “Rancher Energy Completes Acquisition of Highly Prospective Big Muddy Oil 

Field.” Rancher Energy Corporation has completed the purchase of the Big Muddy Oil Field in 

Wyoming’s Powder River Basin for $25 million. The oil field acquisition will allow the company to pursue 

enhanced oil recovery (EOR) projects by injecting carbon dioxide (CO2) into the reservoirs to stimulate oil 

production. Prior to the purchase, Rancher Energy Corporation announced that it will obtain the supply of 

CO2 for the EOR project through an agreement with Anadarko Petroleum Corporation. The company 

hopes to generate substantial sequestration credits through its use of carbon sequestration through 

EOR. The newly acquired field covers an area of 8,500 acres and currently produces about 60 barrels of 

oil per day. Rancher Energy Corp. also hopes to acquire Cole Creek South and South Glenrock B fields, 

which also hold excellent potential for EOR using CO2 injection. The Big Muddy field was discovered in 

1916 and has produced approximately 52 million barrels of oil (MMBO) from several producing zones. It 

is also the second most prolific field in the State of Wyoming. Rancher Energy Corp. focuses on the oil 

and gas sector by specializing in evaluating older, historically productive fields in order to determine their 

potential for secondary and tertiary recovery. December 19, 2006, 

http://www.marketwire.com/mw/release_html_b1?release_id=196718, and January 8, 2007, 

http://www.marketwire.com/mw/release_html_b1?release_id=200509. 

March 2007 

The New York Times, “Science Panel Calls Global Warming ‘Unequivocal’.” The Intergovernmental 

Panel on Climate Change released their Fourth Assessment Report on February 2 from Paris, 

concluding for the first time that global warming is “unequivocal” and that carbon dioxide emissions and 

other greenhouse gas releases from human activities are the main cause. The 20-page Summary for 

Policymakers is the work product of a three-year review of hundreds of climate shift studies, observations 

of retreating ice, warming and rising seas, and other scientific observations made about the planet. 

Scientists also used computer modeling to determine the effects of the prolonged presence of 

greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. The consensus of those who contributed to the report is that 

although uncertainty surrounds the extent or timing of impending changes, prompt action is critical in 

delaying the effects of global warming and a shift to alternative energy sources must occur. The main 

findings of the IPCC are that the temperatures could rise by 3.5 to 8 degrees Fahrenheit, which could 

also cause a rise in global sea levels. Those estimates predict sea level rises of 7 to 23 inches by 2100, 

in comparison to 6 to 9 inch increases in the 20th century. Additionally, scientists predict that more 

precipitation will fall at higher latitudes, while semi-arid subtropical regions could see a twenty percent 

drop in rainfall totals. A new finding in the report also describes how the buildup of carbon dioxide will 

adversely impact sea waters by causing an imbalance in pH levels. The panel’s full report, which 

contains thousands of pages of more detailed information, will be released in sections throughout the 

year. (See Highlights section of this newsletter, “Bush Administration Plays Leading Role in 

Studying and Addressing Global Climate Change,” for a link to the report.) February 3, 2007, 

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/03/science/earth/03climate.html?_r=1&th=&oref=slogin&emc=th&page

wanted=print. (Subscription required.) 

DOE News Release, “Another Milestone Reached in Coal Gasification Revenue-Sharing: DOE 

Receives $39.2 Million from Dakota Gasification/Basin Electric.” Dakota Gasification Company 

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recently made a payment of $39.2 million to the US Department of Energy (DOE) under a revenue 

sharing agreement signed in 1988, bringing the total revenue sharing payments to over $285 million. The 

payments are received from the sale of synthetic natural gas from the Great Plains Synfuels Plant near 

Beulah, North Dakota. The Great Plains Synfuels Plant transports its carbon dioxide (CO2) via a 205-mile 

pipeline to the Weyburn Oil Field in southwestern Saskatchewan, Canada where it is used for enhanced 

oil recovery (EOR). A large portion of the CO2 used for EOR remains permanently sequestered. More 

than 10 million tons of CO2 has been captured and transported to the Weyburn Oil Field. Dakota 

Gasification Company is a member of the Plains CO2 Reduction Partnership, one of seven Carbon 

Sequestration Regional Partnerships established by DOE. For more information about the Great Plains 

Coal Gasification Plant, see: 

http://www.fossil.energy.gov/programs/powersystems/gasification/gasificationpioneer.html. For more 

information about the Plains CO2 Reduction Partnership, see: 

http://www.fossil.energy.gov/programs/sequestration/partnerships/2003sel_gplains.html. February 7, 

2007, http://www.fossil.energy.gov/news/techlines/2007/07005-

Dakota_Gasification_Milestone_Reac.html. 

Nature, “India’s Carbon Dioxide Trap.” India’s Deccan Traps, a thick pile of solidified lava from 

volcanic eruptions 65 million years ago, has been identified as a prime candidate for storing carbon 

dioxide (CO2) captured from coal-fired power stations and injecting it into the porous sedimentary rocks 

below the basalt layer. The area in India is also the world’s largest continental flood-basalt province 

outside Siberia. The National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) in New Delhi, the company that builds 

and runs India’s coal-fired power stations, estimates that the Deccan basalts could potentially hold 150 

gigatons of CO2, an amount equal to what the world’s power industry might emit in 15 years. Research 

scientists at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) in Richland, Washington, found that water 

saturated with CO2 reacts rapidly with basalt to form stable carbonate minerals. PNNL’s research 

findings were reported at a conference on CO2 capture and storage held in Hyderabad, India in January 

2007. The US Pacific Northwest is home to the Columbia River basin basalts, which are similar to the 

Deccan Traps, but on a scale one-third the size. PNNL, NTPC and the National Geophysical Research 

Institute will initiate a pilot study to test the storage capability of the Deccan basalt formation. Although 

the porosity of the basalt layer is not optimal, it has a high reactivity to CO2. The initial phase of the 

project will characterize the permeability and porosity of the rock, as well as examine the nature of the 

faults within the rock to determine how CO2 would flow through the rock once injected. The actual test 

would involve pumping supercritical CO2 into porous sedimentary rocks below the basalt layer. The gas 

would move upwards through the rock and react with the basalt above, forming a “cap” that would stop 

any unreacted gas from escaping. India has committed $1.3 million to the Deccan Traps project, which is 

also being endorsed by the Carbon Sequestration Leadership Forum, of which India was a founding 

member. Prior to injection tests of CO2 into the Deccan basalt formations, PNNL will conduct similar tests 

in the Columbia River basin basalts. January 25, 2007, 

http://www.nature.com/news/2007/070122/full/445350a.html. (Subscription required.)

April 2007 

The New York Times, “In a Test of Capturing Carbon Dioxide, Perhaps a Way to Temper Global 

Warming,” and Alstom Press Release, “Alstom and American Electric Power Sign Agreement to 

Bring Carbon Dioxide Capture Technology to Commercial Scale by 2011.” On March 14, an 

announcement was made to conduct a large-scale, post-combustion carbon capture project between 

American Electric Power (AEP) and Alstom, a large manufacturer of generating equipment. The project 

will utilize chilled ammonia to capture the carbon dioxide (CO2) that is emitted from coal-fired power 

plants and will isolate it into a highly concentrated, high-pressure form. The new process, developed by 

Alstom, dramatically reduces the energy required to capture the CO2, which can amount to as much as a 

third of a power plant’s energy output needed to extract the flue gas. Results of testing the technology 

have shown capture rates exceeding 90 percent of CO2 and at a cost significantly lower than other 

capture methods. The technology is also significant in that it can be retrofitted for application in existing 

21
coal-fired power plants. The project will be implemented in two phases. The initial pilot test will take place 

in late 2008 at the company’s Mountaineer plant in New Haven, West Virginia and will capture 100,000 

tons of CO2 per year and then sequester it 9,000 feet underground in saline formations at the site. The 

demonstration is expected to cost $800 million, and the company is expected to request federal money 

to fund the project, as well as passing the cost to customers if state regulators permit it. A much larger 

commercial demonstration, scheduled to begin in late 2011, will follow at AEP’s 450 megawatt plant at 

the Northeastern Station location in Oklahoma. As much as 1.5 million tons of CO2 will be captured for 

this test and subsequently sold for enhanced oil recovery operations. The project is expected to last for 

twelve to eighteen months. This initiative signifies that AEP may be expecting government regulations in 

the form of carbon emission limits, according to some climate policy specialists. March 15, 2007, 

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/15/business/15carbon.html?pagewanted=print, (Subscription required.) 

and March 15, 2007, 

http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=2007031500

5762&newsLang=en. 

Geo-Processors USA, Inc. Press Release, “Geo-Processors Breakthrough in Carbon Capture and 

Storage Technology.” Geo-Processors USA recently announced the development of a unique carbon 

capture and storage (CCS) technology called Carbon Capture and Products Recovery (CCPR). The 

CCPR system differs from traditional capture methods in that it converts the carbon dioxide from ambient 

air or point-sources into mineral products that can be utilized in other industrial applications, recycled, or 

sequestered. Geo-Processors USA, which focuses on the development and commercialization of costeffective sustainable energy technologies, successfully conducted testing of the process in Australia. 

Significant to the development of this technology is that the alkaline-produced water from oil and gas 

industries, coal mining, and coal power stations will now be able to be used as a resource rather than a 

waste stream, and will eliminate the cost associated with the use of synthetic caustic sorbents in other 

CCS processes. February 26, 2007, http://www.geo-processors.com/files/GeoProc-PressRelease26Feb07.pdf. 

Reuters, “Norway Says to Form State Carbon Dioxide Storage Company.” In efforts to contribute to 

technological development and broad use of carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology, the 

government of Norway announced that it will form a state-owned company to manage such projects. The 

new company will be responsible for the government’s CCS projects, including plans to construct two of 

the country’s first gas-fired power plants. The first project, which would be the world’s largest full-scale 

carbon dioxide (CO2) capture and storage project, is a combined heat and power plant at the statecontrolled oil and gas company Statoil’s Mongstad refinery on the west coast. The facility will capture 

partial CO2 emissions from the power plant beginning in 2010, with plans for full-scale capture in 

operation by the end of 2014. Initially, the government will own 80 percent of the project, but hopes to 

bring in more industrial partners in order to eventually decrease the government’s interest in it. Statoil 

has been involved in an offshore carbon sequestration project at the Sleipner gas field since 1996. In a 

second project, the government will be involved in building another gas-fired power plant at the Kaarstoe 

gas-processing plant north of Stavanger. Currently, Norway relies almost exclusively on hydro-powered 

plants for electricity, even though the country is the world’s largest exporter of crude oil and Western 

Europe’s biggest natural gas producer. The government is planning for the new plants to integrate CCS 

into their operations. March 6, 2007, 

http://www.planetark.org/avantgo/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=40664. 

The Age, “Carbon Storage Plan Gains Momentum.” Australia’s Otway Basin is home to the country’s 

first carbon dioxide (CO2) geosequestration project, which has received international attention. The $23.6 

million ($30 million Australian) endeavor has received $3.1 million ($4 million Australian) in funding from 

the Australian government. Plans to sequester the CO2 may begin as early as July 2007. Researchers 

from the Research Centre for Greenhouse Gas Technologies (CO2CRC) will be conducting the tests. 

The local government is currently filing a permit to rezone the site so that non-agricultural development 

can take place on the farmland. According to CO2CRC chief executive Peter Cook, the rezoning 

22
application should not cause delays in launching the project. CO2CRC will carry out a sophisticated 

monitoring program that aims to demonstrate to the community, government regulators and industry that 

the technology is a safe, viable greenhouse gas mitigation option. February 19, 2007, 

http://www.theage.com.au/news/business/carbon-storage-plan-gainsmomentum/2007/02/18/1171733612638.html#. 

Australian Broadcasting Corporation, “New South Wales Government Launches Carbon Capture 

Project.” On March 2, the New South Wales government launched a $17 million ($22 million Australian) 

carbon capture and storage project. The announcement was made by the government’s Mineral 

Resources Minister Ian Macdonald, who also commented on other carbon sequestration projects taking 

place overseas where carbon dioxide (CO2) is safely transported via pipelines. The project will take place 

on the central coast of the country and involves capturing CO2 from regional power plants and 

subsequently storing it underground. Additionally, the government of New South Wales is also 

considering ultra clean coal technology to minimize greenhouse gas emissions. March 2, 2007, 

http://www.abc.net.au/news/items/200703/1861927.htm?midnorthcoast. 

C News (Canada), “Alberta Plans $1.5 Billion Carbon Dioxide Pipeline.” The Canadian province of 

Alberta plans to construct a $1.3 billion ($1.5 billion Canadian) carbon dioxide (CO2) pipeline. Alberta 

Premier Ed Stelmach said that the monies would come from Prime Minister Stephen Harper's EcoFund. 

Alberta plans to capture CO2 emissions from heavy emitters and pump them into mature oil fields in the 

Alberta oil patch for enhanced oil recovery. Additional funds for construction of the pipeline will be 

generated through a provincial technology fund. Emitters will pay into the fund according to how many 

metric tons of emissions they produce over the target level, which will be set by the government in the 

spring. The Alberta government is aiming to reduce emissions by 12 percent, and plans to set the targets 

by July 1, 2007. March 5, 2007, 

http://www.freedominion.ca/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=76911&sid=9ce5d490888b51a6f354fae28b51755f. 

May 2007 

Fossil Energy Techline, “First Utility-Scale Carbon Dioxide Deployment Shows Value of PrivatePublic Joint Ventures.” The first commercial carbon sequestration project will begin at American 

Electric Power (AEP), following a combined ten-year effort between AEP and the US Department of 

Energy’s (DOE) National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL). Carl Bauer, NETL’s Director, was 

commended for his efforts in the success of the joint venture between DOE and AEP. DOE contributed 

$7.2 million and $1.4 million came from industry partners to fund the three initial phases of the project 

leading up to the deployment of the carbon dioxide (CO2) capture phase. AEP will begin demonstration 

of the capture technology using chilled ammonia, followed by sequestration of 100,000 tons of CO2 at its 

Mountaineer Plant in West Virginia. The captured CO2 will be pumped into a saline formation located 

below the site. Success of this demonstration will be followed by a 1.5 million ton capture project at 

AEP’s 450 megawatt plant in Oklahoma, which will be used for enhanced oil recovery efforts in 2011. To 

read more about the Office of Fossil Energy’s Carbon Sequestration Program, go to: 

http://www.fossil.energy.gov/programs/sequestration/index.html. March 20, 2007, 

http://www.fossil.energy.gov/news/techlines/2007/07014-DOE_Commends_AEP_Project.html. 

Fossil Energy Techline, “DOE-Funded Research at Maryland Marsh Aids Climate Change 

Solutions.” Members of the Midwest Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnership (MRCSP), one of the 

seven Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnerships formed by the US Department of Energy (DOE), met 

at the Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge to evaluate the progress made to date to reclaim the 

marshland for carbon sequestration purposes. By maintaining and restoring the wetlands and tidal 

marshes, it will be possible to successfully demonstrate terrestrial carbon sequestration and avoid the 

negative impact on the Blackwater site caused by rising sea waters. The DOE’s National Energy 

Technology Laboratory and the State of Maryland are working to preserve the estuary by replenishing 

23
the 150-400 acres per year lost to sea level rise, sinking, erosion, salt water intrusion, and plant-eating 

invasive species such as nutria (rodents) and Canadian geese. Clean dredged material, which needs to 

be disposed of in order to keep the Port of Baltimore channels open, is transferred to the Blackwater 

Refuge and then planted with grasses to restore the marsh. Researchers from the University of 

Maryland, an MRCSP partner, also hope to identify specific types of wetlands best suited for storing 

carbon. Twenty-seven acres of the marsh have been restored to date, with the goal to rebuild up to 

20,000 acres. March 22, 2007, http://www.fossil.energy.gov/news/techlines/2007/07015-

Marsh_Restoration_Aids_Climate.html. 

Jackson Hole Star Tribune, “State Has Vast Capacity for Carbon Dioxide Sequestration.” 

Wyoming could play an important role in combating the harmful effects of carbon dioxide (CO2) 

emissions because of the potential to store large amounts of CO2 in coal seams and oil reservoirs across 

the state. Sequestering CO2 in coal seams has the added benefit of producing methane gas that 

otherwise might be left behind; additionally, sequestering CO2 in depleted oil fields can be used for 

enhanced oil recovery methods. An estimated 4.15 billion barrels of oil and 19.6 trillion cubic feet of 

methane could be recovered using sequestration technologies. Carl Bauer, Director of the National 

Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL), delivered the keynote address at the Western Research 

Institute-sponsored symposium held at the University of Wyoming’s School of Energy Resources, “CO2 

Sequestration: Opportunities for Wyoming.” There he addressed the importance of Wyoming’s 

sequestration opportunities in fighting global warming. The Big Sky Regional Carbon Sequestration 

Partnership, directed by Susan Capalbo, is involved in sequestration projects in the state of Wyoming. 

April 5, 2007, 

http://www.jacksonholestartrib.com/articles/2007/04/05/news/top_story/7ae7cfcede80d12e872572b4000

37b89.prt. 

Reuters, “US Sees Ample Room to Bury Carbon Dioxide But Costs Unknown.” Underground 

storage capacity for carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions is abundant in the United States and Canada, with 

widespread storage sites capable of storing more than 3,500 billion tons of CO2 in underground saline 

formations alone. Carbon burial costs have yet to be determined, but underground storage of CO2 is an 

emerging technology that could help slow the effects of global warming. Emissions of the gas could be 

captured from power plants that burn fossil fuels, including coal, the largest source of CO2 emissions. 

Dawn Deel, Carbon Sequestration Project Manager at the US Department of Energy’s National Energy 

Technology Laboratory, contributed to the release of the first Carbon Sequestration Atlas of the United 

States and Canada, a comprehensive assessment of carbon capture and storage potential in the United 

States and portions of Canada. Included in the document is an analysis of stationary CO2 sources, 

including 4,000 power plants, to determine whether they lay above potential CO2 storage sites. It was 

determined that the majority of power plants have the underground storage capacity at the site or are 

within close proximity. Currently, the US has not implemented a mandatory emissions reduction policy, 

but leading Presidential contenders from both parties are expressing support for such legislation. (See 

the Publications section of this newsletter for detailed information about the Carbon 

Sequestration Atlas.) March 29, 2007, http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N29192907.htm. 

June 2007 

Fossil Energy Techline, “Carbon Sequestration Field Test Begins in Illinois Basin.” The Midwest 

Geological Sequestration Consortium (MGSC), one of DOE’s seven Regional Partnerships, initiated its 

first validation phase field test, an enhanced oil recovery project in the Louden Field in Illinois. Also 

known as the “huff-n-puff” project, the test will evaluate the potential for geologic sequestration of CO2 in 

mature oil reservoirs in the Illinois Basin, an area underlying most of Illinois, western Indiana, and 

western Kentucky and covering 60,000 square miles. During the testing process CO2 gas is injected into 

a producing well (the “huff” phase) and allowed to penetrate the formation. The well is then placed back 

on production (the “puff” phase) after a short waiting period. Benefits of this test include a potential to 

recover oil that otherwise would remain in the reservoirs, as well as proving the safety and effectiveness 

24
of geologic sequestration of CO2 to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. For more information about the 

MGSC, visit their website at: http://www.sequestration.org/. May 15, 2007, 

http://www.fossil.energy.gov/news/techlines/2007/PrintVersion_1_29149_29149.html?print. 

Fossil Energy Techline, “Regional Partnership Completes 8,000-foot Well for Critical Carbon 

Sequestration Assessment.” On April 24, DOE announced that the Midwest Regional Carbon 

Sequestration Partnership (MRCSP) completed drilling of an 8,000-foot carbon sequestration test well at 

FirstEnergy’s R. E. Burger Plant near Shadyside, Ohio. Researchers will use the well in order to 

determine the geology of the rock strata at the test site, thus determining whether the location is suitable 

for safe and permanent storage of CO2. MRCSP is working to assess the potential for geologic 

sequestration of CO2 in depleting oil and gas wells, unmineable coal seams, and deep saline and other 

geologic formations in the Appalachian Basin. This field test, sponsored by DOE’s National Energy 

Technology Laboratory, is the first of three similar tests that will be conducted by the MRCSP to 

determine the best sequestration options in the partnership’s seven-state region of Indiana, Kentucky, 

Maryland, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. If test results obtained from the Burger plant 

are approved by Ohio regulators, the next step of testing will involve injecting a small amount of CO2 into 

the well, permanently storing it into an underlying saline formation. Powerspan Corporation will conduct a 

pilot demonstration of a CO2 capture technology at the Burger plant, anticipating the use of the captured 

CO2 for the injection phase of the test. MRCSP anticipates conducting large-scale geologic storage of 

CO2 upon completion of the small-scale test at this site. Similar projects are currently being conducted 

across the country by the other Regional Sequestration Partnerships, formed as part of DOE’s Carbon 

Sequestration Program in 1992. April 24, 2007, http://www.fossil.energy.gov/news/techlines/2007/07025-

Sequestration_Well_Completed.html. 

Fossil Energy Techline, “Petroleum Geologists Recognize DOE for Environmental Stewardship.” 

The American Association of Petroleum Geologist’s (AAPG) Division of Environmental Geosciences 

presented a prestigious award to DOE, recognizing them for their accomplishments in advancing carbon 

sequestration technology through research and funding efforts. Specific acknowledgement was given to 

DOE’s Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnerships Program. The AAPG Corporate Award for 

Excellence in Environmental Stewardship Award was accepted at the AAPG Annual Convention in Long 

Beach, California by John Litynski, Regional Carbon Sequestration Program Coordinator at DOE’s 

National Energy Technology Laboratory. DOE has made significant progress, especially in geologic 

sequestration, through the Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnerships Program, started in 2002 to 

research and develop ways to capture and permanently store CO2, a greenhouse gas. To date, the 

Regional Partnerships have completed the characterization phase of their work by evaluating and 

identifying sequestration opportunities in various regions of the country. They will now initiate field tests 

for the injection of carbon dioxide at various sites that have been selected as potential storage locations 

for the geologic storage of CO2. April 26, 2007, http://www.fossil.energy.gov/news/techlines/2007/07026-

DOE_Earns_Environmental_Award.html. 

July 2007

Houston Chronicle, “Going Underground for a Greenhouse Gas Solution.” Geologists from the 

University of Texas and representatives from Praxair are monitoring CO2 injected into an underground 

brine-saturated formation at a depth of 4,000 feet. The carbon sequestration test, called the Frio Brine 

Project, was initiated near Houston two years ago and is being funded by DOE. Sue Hovorka, a geologist 

and principal investigator for the project, is working with her research colleagues to monitor the capacity 

of the brine formation to store the CO2 and determine whether any of the injected CO2 has been 

displaced. The permanent storage of CO2 and other gases in this manner will play a major role in 

reducing the effects of greenhouse gases associated with global warming. Although the researchers 

found traces of CO2 in the soil around the inactive oil wellheads where the injection occurred, it was 

determined that the gas came from a tiny leak in the wellhead and not from the injected formation. 

Hovorka and her team anticipate the start of a large-scale injection test in the fall. The test will inject one 

25
million tons of CO2 into an underground formation in Mississippi. June 11, 2007, 

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/business/4875523.html. 

Bloomberg News, “BP and Rio Tinto Study Clean Power Project.” Hydrogen Energy, a joint venture 

company recently formed by BP and Rio Tinto Group on May 17, has begun looking into the prospect of 

a 500-megawatt coal-fired power plant fitted with carbon capture and storage technology. The project will 

cost an estimated $1.5 billion ($2 billion Australian) and will be capable of generating enough electricity 

to meet 15 percent of the electricity demand in western Australia, while at the same time capturing 

approximately four million metric tons of CO2 emissions. The technology that will be used in operating 

the plant will reduce output of the greenhouse gas CO2 by converting the coal used to fire the plant into 

hydrogen gas, which will then be used to power gas turbines to generate low-carbon electricity. The 

sequestered CO2 will then be injected and permanently stored beneath the seabed of the Perth Basin. 

Hydrogen Energy believes that in order for the project to be successful, government policy regulating 

emissions will need to be in place, and government grants will need to be awarded to supplement the 

cost of the project. A local utility company capable of selling the base-load power may also be necessary 

for the project to be economically viable. Investment decisions are expected to be made by 2011, and 

the project would begin after a three year construction period. Similar projects proposed by BP include a 

500-megawatt plant at the Carson oil refinery in California and a 475-megawatt plant in Scotland. May 

21, 2007, http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/05/21/business/sxclean.php. 

National Coal Council Press Release, “National Coal Council Calls for Increased Funding to 

Accelerate Development of Promising Carbon Dioxide Management Technologies.” Following a 

year-long study at the request of US Secretary of Energy Samuel Bodman, the National Coal Council 

released findings that detail technologies to accelerate carbon dioxide management. The study makes 

recommendations for more efficient and environmentally sound methods for coal use, while maintaining 

the nation’s reliance on it for electricity production. The report details the necessity to develop 

technologies for carbon capture and storage, including development of storage sites and related 

infrastructure within the next ten years. In order to achieve these goals, the report emphasizes the need 

to accelerate public-private partnerships for commercialization of these projects within the next 15 years. 

Additionally, affordability in commercializing these technologies will allow for retrofitting of existing plants. 

To visit the National Coal Council website, go to: http://www.nationalcoalcouncil.org/. 

June 14, 2007, http://sev.prnewswire.com/oil-energy/20070614/AQTH14214062007-1.html. 

August 2007 

Gaylord Herald Times, “Carbon Dioxide Storage?” The Midwest Regional Carbon Sequestration 

Partnership (MRCSP), one of the seven Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnerships funded by DOE, 

will conduct a public meeting to focus on the MRCSP’s proposed geologic field demonstration in Otsego 

County, Michigan of sequestering 10,000 tons of CO2. The purpose of the test is to determine the 

feasibility of sequestration in deep geologic formations, such as those in the Michigan basin. A natural 

gas processing plant owned by DTE Energy will supply the CO2 for the pilot test. Although the Regional 

Partnership is awaiting final Environmental Protection Agency permitting, it hopes to begin injection 

sometime this summer. The public meeting, scheduled for July 18, will allow the public to learn more 

about carbon sequestration technology and provide them with details about the test. MRCSP plans to 

conduct two additional geologic field tests in the near future. To learn more about the MRCSP and to 

view the official notice and public meeting agenda, visit the partnership’s website at: 

http://198.87.0.58/Default.aspx. 

July 14, 2007, 

http://www.gaylordheraldtimes.com/articles/2007/07/15/news/top_stories/doc4697dd33a0f82872157458.

prt.

The Seattle Times, “Power Plant Would Bury Greenhouse Gas.” Wallula Resource Recovery, a 

small Northwest company with financial backing from a division of Edison International, is proposing to 

26
build a coal-fired power plant using carbon capture and sequestration technology. At a cost of $2.2 

billion, the power plant would be located in the vicinity of Wallula, Washington near the banks of the 

Columbia River and would produce enough power to supply one third of Seattle’s power needs. The 

plant would meet a new requirement under Washington State law that requires new coal-fired plants to 

sequester CO2 emissions. In order to reduce its emissions output, the plant would capture CO2 from the 

flue gas, convert it into a liquid, and then pump the CO2 into basalt formations located underground near 

the proposed plant site. Emissions could be reduced by 65 percent using this sequestration technique. 

Scientists at DOE’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) are currently conducting tests to 

sequester CO2 in basalt formations and plan to drill a test well near the proposed plant site. PNNL has 

been able to demonstrate the advantages of storing CO2 in basalt formations through extensive 

laboratory testing. Results show that when injected into the porous rock, the CO2 reacts with it to form 

calcium carbonate, which is a solid. If approved by the state, the company hopes to have the plant in 

operation by 2013. July 5, 2007, http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/cgibin/PrintStory.pl?document_id=2003775192&slug=power05m&date=20070705. 

Greenwire, “Norwegian Refinery to Test CO2-Capture Technology.” Alstom Power Systems has 

selected Statoil’s chilled ammonia facility in Mongstad, Norway for testing their new carbon capture 

technology. The initial small-scale test will use the novel CO2 technology to capture 80,000 tons of 

annual emissions generated by Statoil’s cracker unit or from a combined-cycle heat and power plant that 

is under construction on the site. If successful, Statoil intends to conduct large-scale use of the chilled 

ammonia technology to capture more than 2 million tons of CO2 annually at Mongstad. Preceding this 

announcement, Alstom reached an agreement with power and gas provider E.ON, to launch a 5-

megawatt CO2 capture demonstration plant at the Kalshamn Power Plant in southern Sweden. These 

projects follow two other projects announced by Alstom earlier this year that will take place at two USoperated coal-fired power plants. American Electric Power’s Mountaineer Plant in West Virginia will be 

the location of the first test. The second test will take place at a plant in Oklahoma. June 22, 2007, 

http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2007/06/22/13. 

The Guardian, “Energy Firms Seek One Billion British Pounds for Carbon Capture Projects.”

Companies planning to utilize carbon capture and storage (CCS) in newly proposed facilities are 

pressuring the British government to move forward with plans to invest in the technology. E.ON, RWI, 

and British Gas parent, Centrica, are requesting more than $610 million (£300 million) to build each of 

three state-of-the-art facilities. Power companies E.ON and RWE are both planning “supercritical” clean 

coal power plants utilizing CO2 capture technology, and Centrica is planning to build an 800 megawatt, 

low emission coal-fired plant. Prime Minister Gordon Brown has talked about Britain’s role in adopting 

CCS technologies to reduce emissions levels, and the country’s recently released Energy White Paper 

describes the funding criteria for the projects. However, due to government funding delays, BP has opted 

to forego the construction of a hydrogen plant with CO2 capture capabilities due to government delays for 

funding commitments. July 9, 2007, 

http://environment.guardian.co.uk/energy/story/0,,2121951,00.html?gusrc=rss&feed=29. 

Science 

September 2006

Washington Post, “More Frequent Heat Waves Linked to Global Warming,” Scientists who have 

studied decades of weather records and computer climate models say that recent heat waves that have 

hit the United States and Europe have become more frequent because of global warming. Though one 

single weather event cannot be attributed to climate change, recent studies have suggested that humangenerated emissions are causing both overall higher temperatures and greater weather variability. Paul 

Della-Marta, a researcher at Switzerland's Federal Office of Meteorology and Climatology, presented 

findings that the duration of heat waves since 1880 in Western Europe has doubled and the number of 

27
unusually hot days in the region has nearly tripled. In 2004, researchers at Britain's Hadley Centre for 

Climate Prediction and Research produced computer models that showed that greenhouse gas 

emissions have doubled the likelihood of heat wave events like what occurred in 2003 in Europe, and 

that by 2040 it is likely that such heat waves will take place there every other year. The National Climatic 

Data Center (Data Center) in Asheville, North Carolina reported that nighttime summer temperatures 

across the United States have been unusually high for the past eight years, a record streak. Richard 

Hime of the Data Center stated that only the Dust Bowl Period of the 1930’s rivaled recent summers for 

sustained heat levels. Some researchers say that it is hard to correlate severe heat waves and climate 

change because heat waves occur less often than other weather events and arise from specific weather 

conditions. National Weather Service meteorologist Dennis Feltgen says that the current heat wave is 

caused by "a large persistent area of high pressure in the upper atmosphere" that has drifted from the 

West to the East Coast of the United States. August 4, 2006, http://www.washingtonpost.com/wpdyn/content/article/2006/08/03/AR2006080301489.html

October 2006

BBC News, "Ocean Plankton Absorb Less CO2." According to an article in the journal Nature, the 

amount of carbon dioxide absorbed by plant plankton in the Pacific Ocean is up to 4 percent less than 

the 50 billion tons estimated to be absorbed. Phytoplankton play a key role in the ocean's food web, and 

in the carbon cycle, accounting for around one half of the Earth's photosynthesis. The phytoplankton 

were being monitored via satellite, which could not distinguish a glowing green color, caused by lack of 

iron, from the color of healthy plankton. Data was examined from 12 years of data gathered from 36,000 

miles of ship tracks to establish an indicator of the iron-poor and stressed plankton. The researchers 

identified three large areas of the Pacific where phytoplankton appeared to be suffering from a lack of 

iron: 1.) the southern ocean around Antarctica, 2.) the sub-arctic north below Alaska, and 3.) a vast area 

in the tropical Pacific centered on the equator. September 30, 2006, 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/5298004.stm. 

November 2006

Reuters, “US Northeast Could Warm Drastically by 2100 – Study.” In a two-year study by the 

Northeast Climate Impacts Assessment group, the US Northeast could see a rise in average summer 

temperatures of more than 12 degrees Fahrenheit (F) by 2100 if emissions go unchecked. The Northeast 

region is comprised of nine states and ranks just behind Germany for quantity of emissions, and ahead 

of all of Canada. If 3 percent of the emissions are cut, then the temperatures may only rise to between 

3.5 degrees and 6.5 degrees F by 2100. With the higher emissions projections, cities would see 60 or 

more summer days over 90 degrees, and 14 to 28 days with temperatures over 100 degrees F by 2100. 

With lower emissions projections, cities may see 30 or more days over 90 degrees F and 9 days with 

over 100 degrees F by 2100. Currently, Northeast cities have one or two days each year with 

temperatures over 100 degrees F. October 5, 2006, 

http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/38380/story.htm. 

December 2006

The New York Times “New Culprit in Climate Change? Try Airlines.” The airline industry, under 

recent scrutiny from environmentalists and consumer advocacy groups, is making efforts to address 

concerns that air travel is a major contributor to carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions linked to global warming. 

Public awareness of the problem is being addressed through such “green” initiatives as offering airline 

passengers the option to purchase carbon credits at the time of booking. British Airways operates such a 

program whereby money earned on ticket surcharges for carbon credits are donated to sustainable 

energy programs. The airline industry is expected to raise further awareness of the issue by redirecting 

the focus of their advertising campaigns whereby emissions reduction will take the forefront to lower 

28
fares or other enticements. October 29, 2006, 

http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F70F14FE395B0C738FDDA90994DE404482 

The Independent (UK), “Flat Screen Televisions ‘Will Add to Global Warming’.” Research 

conducted by Britain’s Liberal Democrats reported that the recent increase in the purchase of flat screen 

televisions in Great Britain could result in an increase in carbon emissions by as much as 70 percent. 

Contrary to the Stern report’s (a UK report on the economics of climate change) objective to spur 

changes in consumer behavior, the 700,000 ton per year increase in carbon dioxide (CO2) would only 

hamper the country’s attempts to reduce global warming. November 1, 2006, 

http://news.independent.co.uk/environment/article1945758.ece. 

Reuters, “Californian Greenhouse Emissions Up 14 Percent 1990-2004.” According to a report 

released this week by the California Energy Commission, California’s greenhouse gas emissions rose 

more than 14 percent between 1990 and 2004. Dan Kammen of the energy and resources group at the 

University of California-Berkeley says that an increase is the wrong direction for a state that has made a 

law to cut emissions, the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006, though the level is considerably less 

than the national average (which is about double the rate of California’s increase). The report is 

significant since it is the first time the state has accounted for emissions in such detail. The Global 

Warming Solutions Act of 2006 sets caps on emissions at 25 percent by 2020, and for 2000 levels of 

emissions by 2010. For the 15 years covered by the study, 81 percent of the greenhouse gas emissions 

were due to fossil fuels usage. The emissions percentages were 40.7 percent due to mobile sources, 

22.2 percent due to electricity generation, 20.5 percent due to industrial emissions, 8.3 percent due to 

agriculture and forestry, and 8.3 percent due to other sources. Economic growth does not mean a 

comparable increase in emissions of greenhouse gases. The report entitled “Inventory of California 

Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990 to 2004,” and supporting figures can be seen at: 

http://www.climatechange.ca.gov/policies/greenhouse_gas_inventory/index.htm. November 6, 2006, 

http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=38824&newsdate=06-Nov-2006. 

January 2007

AP, “Forest Fires May Cool Area Climate Rather Than Warm It, Researchers Say.” According to a 

study in the journal Science by James T. Randerson, Associate Professor of Earth System Science at 

the University of California, Irvine, forest fires could have a cooling effect which cancels the impact of the 

greenhouse gases released from the fire. It was long thought that forest fires would worsen global 

warming by adding carbon dioxide to the atmosphere. Fires in northern forests release greenhouse 

gases, but also cause changes in the forest canopy. The result is more sunlight being reflected back into 

space during the spring and summer for many decades after the fire. The net cooling effect is close to 

neutral when averaged globally, and may lead to slightly cooler temperatures in Northern regions. 

November 16, 2006, 

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2006/11/16/america/NA_GEN_US_Cooling_Fires.php. 

Agence France-Presse, “Climate Change Worsening Biodiversity Crisis: UN Report.” According to 

a report by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), climate change is impacting the survival of whales, 

dolphins, turtles, birds, and other rare species that migrate over long distances. Changes in the habitat, 

including changes in temperature and food, are affecting many species. Rising temperatures already are 

having an effect on the species’ food, habitat, health and reproduction. The North Atlantic right whale is 

at risk due to its food supply of plankton declining with a shift in ocean currents. White-beaked dolphins 

cannot adapt to the warmer waters now occupied by its prey. Green turtles have developed tumors due 

to warmer waters, allowing disease to thrive. Also, higher temperatures of nesting beaches result in a 

greater number of female turtles, with ratios of four females to one male soon to threaten the species. 

Lower water tables and more frequent droughts will reduce the habitat of the Baikal teal and aquatic 

warbler birds. November 16, 2006, Link Unavailable. 

29
Reuters, “Arctic May Be Ice-Free by Summer 2040 – Study.” According to the research to be 

published by the journal Geophysical Research Letters on December 12, computer modeling has shown 

that, due to global warming, most of the ice in the Arctic basin may retreat by September of 2040. The 

study was jointly conducted by the US National Center for Atmospheric Research, the University of 

Washington, and Montreal’s McGill University. The modeling showed that if greenhouse gases continue 

to increase at the current rate, the Arctic’s future ice cover will experience periods of relative stability 

followed by an abrupt retreat of the ice cover as the Artic Ocean warms. In one model simulation, the 

September ice shrinks from 2.3 million square miles to 770,000 square miles over a 10-year period; 

winter ice thins from about 12 feet to less than 3 feet. December 12, 2006, 

http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=39423&newsdate=12-Dec-2006. 

“Possible role for dust or other northern forcing of ice-age carbon dioxide changes,” A simple 

impulse-decay model driven by the history of atmospheric dust loading from Greenland can match the 

history of glacial–interglacial changes in atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration rather accurately, if 

model parameters are tuned within physically possible ranges; forcing with the Greenland temperature 

record produces a similarly good match. Calculations using southern forcing do not match as accurately. 

These results leave open the possibility of northern control of glacial–interglacial carbon dioxide 

changes. Quaternary Science Reviews, T.C. Johnston and R.B. Alley, Available online November 27, 

2006, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6VBC-4MFCW7D2/2/4be3232f89d4a91b8ea8aab26cf9a4b4. (Subscription may be required.) 

February 2007 

Reuters, “2007 Predicted to be World’s Warmest Year.” Global warming and El Niño could result in 

temperatures that would mark 2007 as the warmest year on record, surpassing the previous record set in 

1998. Many scientists claim that this increase is due mainly to carbon dioxide emissions from electricity 

generation and mobile sources. The past year is set to be the sixth warmest on record globally, and the 

ten warmest years have all occurred since 1994. Prior to that year, temperature records had not been 

broken in 150 years. Britain’s Meteorological Office has forecast the world’s average temperature to be 

0.54 degrees Celsius above the 1961-1990 long-term average of 14.0 degrees Celsius, or an increase 

from 57.2 to 58.2 degrees Fahrenheit. Scientists also predict that temperatures will rise between two and 

six degrees Celsius in this century. It is hopeful that the G8 summit scheduled for June 2007 will initiate 

discussions for global action beyond the Kyoto Protocol, which is set to expire in 2012. January 4, 2007, 

http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?type=scienceNews&storyID=2007-01-

04T113318Z_01_L03183156_RTRUKOC_0_US-CLIMATE-WARMEST.xml&WTmodLoc=NewsHomeC3-scienceNews-2. 

March 2007 

Popular Science, “Turning Black Coal Green.” FutureGen, a $1 billion project sponsored by The 

Department of Energy (DOE) in partnership with 11 leading energy companies, may become the model 

for future coal-burning power plants. The DOE estimates that 10.6 billion tons of coal will be burned for 

fuel consumption by 2030, almost doubling the amount burned in 2003. Mike Mudd, CEO of FutureGen, 

describes how the near-zero emission coal-fired plant will utilize gasification technologies to dramatically 

reduce emissions and sequester carbon dioxide (CO2) by pumping captured CO2 2,700 to 16,000 feet 

underground into deep saline formations. Typically, when coal is burned it combines with oxygen to 

release energy, while at the same time producing CO2 and other emissions. The FutureGen plant will 

gasify coal to produce a syngas consisting primarily of CO2, carbon monoxide, hydrogen, and water 

(steam). Typical power generation facilities burn the syngas (both the carbon monoxide and hydrogen) to 

fuel the turbines. FutureGen differs from typical coal gasification systems by reacting the carbon 

monoxide in the syngas stream with steam to produce hydrogen and CO2. The hydrogen is separated 

from the CO2 stream and is used to fuel the turbines. The CO2 is pumped underground for sequestration. 

30
The US has the capacity to store up to 2.2 trillion tons of CO2 in geological formations, an amount equal 

to 1,000 years’ worth of US power-plant emissions. Locations in Illinois and Texas are under 

consideration, and site selection for the plant should be decided by the end of the year with the 

completion of environmental impact assessments on four possible sites. To access a diagram of how 

FutureGen technology works, click on the link to this article. February 2007,

http://www.popsci.com/popsci/science/3e2f391531470110vgnvcm1000004eecbccdrcrd.html. 

The Associated Press, “Global Warming May Affect Indonesia Isles,” and France24, “Indonesia 

Could Lose 2,000 Islands with Rise in Sea Level, Finds Study.” Forecasters predict that Indonesia 

could lose as many as 2,000 of the nation’s islands due to a rise in sea levels as a result of global 

warming. Scientific studies, including a report to the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, 

show that by 2030 the Southeast Asian nation could lose many of its lower-lying islands due to sea level 

rises ranging between three and 12 inches (eight and 29 centimeters). Indonesia is an archipelago made 

up of more than 17,000 islands, most of them unpopulated. In the short term, rice shortages are forecast 

for next year because crops were not planted according to schedule due to abnormal weather patterns. 

Farmers are seeing significant increases in temperatures and higher than average rainfall in the wet 

seasons. Indonesia’s Environment Minister, Rachmat Witoelar, made the announcement on January 29 

at a media conference attended by Yvo de Boar, executive secretary of the UN Climate Treaty 

Secretariat. De Boer was in Jakarta to discuss plans for the 13th UN Climate Change Conference, where 

talks are scheduled to begin on global action that will be taken following expiration of the Kyoto Protocol 

in 2012. The conference will be held in Bali, Indonesia in December 2007 and will bring between 7,000 

and 10,000 participants from more than 100 countries. January 29, 2007, 

http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory?id=2830876, and January 29, 2007, Link unavailable. 

Reuters, “13 Percent of Americans Not Heard of Global Warming – Report.” According to a 46-

country survey conducted by ACNielsen of more than 25,000 Internet users, thirteen percent of US 

citizens have never heard or read anything about global warming, even though the US is the top emitter 

of greenhouse gases. Fifty-seven percent of people around the world consider global warming a “very 

serious problem” and a further 34 percent rated it a “serious problem.” Latin Americans were the most 

worried about the issue with 75 percent rating it “very serious,” while US citizens were the least 

concerned with only 42 percent rating global warming “very serious.” Overall, 91 percent of people had 

heard of global warming, with 50 percent attributing it to human activity. People in China and Brazil were 

most convinced of the link to human activities, with Americans the least convinced. January 30, 2007, 

http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/40057/story.htm. 

April 2007 

Greenwire, “Asian Smog Disrupting Northwestern US Weather, Study Shows.” In a study published 

in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, air pollution from Asia is worsening the severity 

of storms in the northwestern United States. Texas A&M University scientist and lead author of the 

report, Renyi Zhang, studied the Pacific United States storms from 1994 to 2005 and concluded that air 

pollution from Asia is increasing the severity of storms by as much as 20 to 50 percent. The reasoning 

behind the data shows that emissions of dust, sulfur, carbon grit, and trace metals from the Asian 

industrial sources are interfering with rain drop formation, causing the creation of deep convective 

clouds. This type of cloud creates more intensive updrafts that result in more severe and more intense 

thunderstorms. March 6, 2007, http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2007/03/06/15. 

The Australian, “Heating Planet ‘Makes Children Sick’.” Findings from a two-year study completed at 

the University of Sydney have found a link between rise in temperature and childhood illness. Increased 

instances of fever and gastroenteritis in children under six years of age were sited, and more specifically 

the study showed that for every five-degree rise in temperature, two more children in that age group were 

admitted with fever to the hospital. The study’s lead researcher and pediatric specialist, Dr. Lawrence 

31
Lam, collected data from the Bureau of Meteorology in 2001 and 2002 and analyzed several different 

climate factors for his study. They included UV index, rainfall and humidity. Dr. Lam admits that further 

studies may be needed to ascertain whether illnesses were triggered as a direct result of the increased 

temperatures or whether problems stemming from the heat, like pollution, were the cause. Dr. Lam does 

contend, however, it is clear that children are not able to regulate their bodies to overheating as well as 

adults, since their brains’ thermal regulation mechanisms are not as well developed. Furthermore, they 

are particularly at risk of extreme changes, more so than adults. (See Publications section of this 

newsletter, “The association between climatic factors and childhood illnesses presented to 

hospital emergency among young children,” for an abstract and link to the full study.) February 

22, 2007, http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,21268910-1702,00.html. 

“Regional patterns of radiocarbon and fossil fuel-derived CO2 in surface air across North 

America.” Radiocarbon levels in annual plants provide a means to map out regional and continentalscale fossil fuel plumes in surface air. The authors collected corn (Zea mays) across North America 

during the summer of 2004. Plants from mountain regions of western North America showed the smallest 

influence of fossil fuel-derived carbon dioxide (CO2) with a mean delta carbon 14 (Δ14C) of 66.3 parts per 

thousand ±1.7 parts per thousand. Plants from eastern North America and from the Ohio-Maryland 

region showed a larger fossil fuel influence with a mean Δ14C of 58.8 parts per thousand. ± 3.9 parts per 

thousand and 55.2 parts per thousand ± 2.3 parts per thousand respectively, corresponding to 2.7 parts 

per million (ppm) ± 1.5 ppm and 4.3 ppm ± 1.0 ppm of added fossil fuel CO2 relative to the mountain 

west. A model–data comparison suggests that surveys of annual plant Δ14C can provide a useful test of 

atmospheric mixing in transport models that are used to estimate the spatial distribution of carbon 

sources and sinks. Diana Y. Hsueh, Nir Y. Krakauer, James T. Randerson, Xiaomei Xu, Susan E. 

Trumbore, and John R. Southon. Geophysical Research Letters, Volume 34, L02816, doi: 

10.1029/2006GL027032, January 23, 2007, 

http://www.agu.org/pubs/crossref/2007/2006GL027032.shtml. (Subscription required.) See the related 

University of California, Irvine press release, “Scientists Map Air Pollution Using Corn Grown in US 

Fields” at: http://today.uci.edu/news/release_detail.asp?key=1564. Also, view a color-coded US Fossil 

Fuel Carbon Dioxide map (Note the key: red equals most polluted, blue equals least polluted) at this link: 

http://today.uci.edu/news/images/carbon_display_head.jpg. 

May 2007

ABC News, “Panel: Global Warming a Threat to Earth.” On April 6, the Intergovernmental Panel on 

Climate Change (IPCC) released the second of four reports from the IPCC this year. The February report 

laid out the scientific case for how global warming is happening. This report, drawn up by the IPCC 

Working Group II, assesses the latest scientific knowledge on the current impacts of climate change and 

what the effects of global warming will be. It also presents a breakdown according to regions as to how 

climate change will affect billions of people. Representatives from more than 120 nations attended the 

meeting. Disagreement on final editing occurred between the climate scientists who wrote the report and 

government negotiators. Several scientists disputed with government delegates attempting to tone down 

the language of the report and diminish the evidence of already apparent climate changes. At the end of 

the negotiating, the final 21-page Summary for Policyholders was approved, which drew on information 

from the full 1,500-page technical document. The summary will be presented at the G8 Summit in June 

2007, and it is expected that the European Union will again urge the United States to set mandatory 

regulations to control greenhouse gas emissions. (See the Recent Publications section of this 

newsletter, “Working Group II Contribution to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change 

Fourth Assessment Report, ‘Climate Change 2007: Climate Change Impacts, Adaptation and 

Vulnerability’,” for a reference and link to download the report.) April 10, 2007, 

http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory?id=3014590. 

Greenwire, “Tree Planting May Add to Warming, Says DOE-Funded Study.” Contrary to the belief 

that tree planting halts the effects of global warming by absorbing carbon dioxide gases that contribute to 

32
it, a US Department of Energy-funded study demonstrates the opposite under certain conditions. The 

findings suggest that trees planted at higher latitudes cause a phenomenon to occur called the “albedo 

effect” that occurs when dark surface masses, such as dense forests, absorb more heat from the sun 

than they reflect, causing a warming effect. The authors of the study point out that they are not 

condoning the logging of northern forests, but instead are confirming the importance of preserving and 

restoring tropical forests. The trees at lower, tropical latitudes serve a two-fold importance because they 

promote the formation of convective clouds that help to cool the planet, in addition to absorbing carbon 

dioxide. The data was first introduced at the American Geophysical Union meeting in San Francisco in 

December 2006. (See the Terrestrial/Ocean section of this newsletter, “Combined climate and 

carbon-cycle effects of large-scale deforestation,” to read an abstract of the study.) April 10, 2007, 

http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2007/04/10/13. (Subscription may be required.) 

June 2007 

The New York Times, “Climate Panel Reaches Consensus on the Need to Reduce Harmful 

Emissions.” On May 4, the Working Group III contribution to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate 

Change (IPCC) Fourth Assessment Report was released in Bangkok. While the preceding report 

released by the Working Group II in April 2007 concluded that CO2 emissions are causing apparent and 

measurable changes in weather patterns, this report described a number of actions that will need to be 

taken in the near future. The report describes how individuals, industry, and governments can slow and 

eventually reverse greenhouse gas (GHG) levels by implementing current and emerging technologies 

and adopting more aggressive climate change policies. The report underscores the need for immediate 

action, as GHG emission levels have risen 70 percent since 1970, and claims that inactivity by 

individuals and countries will only worsen the problem. The report states that countries will need to 

adhere to emissions targets described in the Kyoto Protocol, either by the implementation of fuel taxes, 

or by pursuing alternative energy sources. Although the cost to the global economy is not clear, 

agreement exists that inactivity is no longer a viable option, given the current situation. It is expected that 

findings from the three IPCC reports released to date will be discussed at the June Group of Eight 

Summit and at talks to be held in Bali, Indonesia concerning post-Kyoto emissions restrictions. May 4, 

2007, http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/04/science/04climate.html?ref=environment&pagewanted=print. 

(Subscription required.) (See “Working Group III Contribution to the Intergovernmental Panel on 

Climate Change (IPCC) Fourth Assessment Report, “Mitigation of Climate Change” in the Recent 

Publications Section of this newsletter for a link to the report.) 

International Herald Tribune, “Recruiting Plankton to Fight Global Warming.” A California-based 

company has started a commercial project involving the massive growth of plankton to absorb CO2 and 

then sequester it into the ocean floor. Russ George, chief executive of Planktos, the company pursuing 

the project, sees profitability in commercializing the science behind this global warming solution. The 

process is analogous to the terrestrial sequestration solution of planting trees to offset CO2, in that both 

processes involve accelerating the absorption of CO2 from the atmosphere. The commercial project is 

expected to start in May 2007 and will involve scattering large quantities of iron into the ocean over an 

area equivalent to 2.47 million acres of land. The project acquired its name “WeatherBird II” from the 

115-foot research vessel that will be used to transport and dissolve the iron in the Galapagos and South 

Pacific. Planktos hopes to bring in $5 a ton for capturing the CO2, an amount that would make the 

venture a profitable one. The company is confident that the price of carbon offsets will rise as limits set 

by the Kyoto Protocol approach their deadline. Controversy over the iron fertilization solution has been 

raised because some scientists have expressed doubts as to whether long-term absorption of CO2 from 

the atmosphere will occur with the process. Also, some feel that an increase in greenhouse gases may 

actually result by creating plankton blooms, as methane and nitrous oxide could be released into the 

atmosphere. A conference has been scheduled for the fall to discuss whether iron fertilization is a valid 

carbon sequestration option. April 30, 2007, 

http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/04/30/business/0430plankton.php. 

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July 2007

Reuters, “Thunder? It’s the Sound of Greenland Melting.” Greenland, the world’s largest island, is 

melting at an accelerated rate. Blamed on a five degree Fahrenheit temperature rise in the spring and 

fall, causing a longer melting period of the ice cap in those seasons, the total melt area over the last 30 

years has increased by 30 percent. Consensus points to human activity, namely the burning of fossil 

fuels, as the culprit in the upward shift in temperatures and altering of Greenland’s characteristic 

makeup. The ice cap covering Greenland measures 624,000 cubic miles (2.6 million cubic kilometers), 

but is diminishing by 24 to 36 cubic miles (100 to 150 cubic kilometers) of ice each year. The amount of 

fresh water which forms this ice cap comprises ten percent of all the earth’s fresh water supply, and a 

complete meltdown of the ice cap would cause a 23 foot (7 meter) rise in sea levels. The accelerated 

melting of Greenland’s ice cap is having the ironic benefit of attracting tourists who are now able to enjoy 

the warmer temperatures in an area that did not historically attract many visitors. Likewise, it is also 

benefiting local fishermen, as warmer waters are drawing certain varieties of fish not usually found in 

Greenland’s waters. June 7, 2007, 

http://www.planetark.com/avantgo/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=42460. 

Science Daily, “Human Activities Increasing Carbon Sequestration in Forests.” Researchers from 

the United States, Canada and Europe completed a terrestrial sequestration study on nitrogen deposition 

by humans. Conclusions show that humans are influencing the carbon balance of forests across the 

Northern Hemisphere through the nitrogen produced by automobile engines, factories, and intensive 

agriculture. This study is unique in that the effects of low levels of nitrogen deposition were examined for 

the first time, proving that carbon sequestration by temperate and boreal forests is directly effected by 

nitrogen inputs. Nitrogen is often used as a plant nutrient found in fertilizers. When pumped into the 

environment by human activities, plant and tree growth is accelerated which, in turn, increases the ability 

of the trees to absorb CO2. Researchers will need to continue their studies to determine what proportion 

of CO2 emissions are being offset by the anthropogenic release of nitrogen, because too much could 

have adverse ecological effects. (See Terrestrial/Ocean section of this newsletter for the abstract 

and link to this study.) June 13, 2007, 

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/06/070613131909.htm. 

August 2007 

Science Daily, “Antarctic Icebergs: Hotspots of Ocean Life.” Researchers at the University of 

California in San Diego are studying the effects of global climate change on Antarctic ice shelves broken 

apart into thousands of icebergs by rising temperatures. They have found that the floating islands of ice 

have a major impact on the ecology of the ocean around them, with large numbers of seabirds above 

them and phytoplankton, krill, and fish present below the surface. As the icebergs melt, the terrestrial 

material which was trapped within them is dispersed out to a radius of more than two miles, producing a 

“halo effect.” Research results produced from extensive study of the icebergs suggests that they may 

influence global climate change by serving as a route for CO2 drawdown and sequestration of particulate 

carbon as it sinks into the deep sea as a result of increased biological productivity. The new findings may 

have implications for global climate models that have, to date, considered only the variables of the 

melting Antarctic ice shelves and their contribution to rising sea levels and other climate change 

dynamics. June 22, 2007, http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/06/070621140754.htm. 

Policy 

September 2006 

34
E&E News PM, “Interior Shelves Rulemaking on CO Sequestration Incentives.” The US 

Department of the Interior has decided against crafting royalty incentives to promote using carbon 

dioxide (CO ) injection for enhanced oil recovery (EOR) and carbon sequestration. The Energy Policy 

Act of 2005 requested that the Department’s Bureau of Land Management and Minerals Management 

Service explore the use of royalty waivers for oil and gas produced via EOR for both on shore and off 

shore applications, provided the incentive would increase the use of the technique. Several memos 

outlined reasons why rulemaking will be shelved. One memo stated that current EOR production areas 

and new target areas are on state and private lands, not federal lands, and that a limit cited regarding the 

use of EOR is the availability and cost of sufficient volumes of CO . Another point made is that CO is not 

fully sequestered using most EOR technologies, though the Department of Energy is currently studying 

the amounts of CO that can be sequestered using EOR. Also, the memo stated that there are already 

existing federal and state tax incentives in place that provide sufficient incentive for EOR projects. 

Another memo states that the deferred rulemaking does not prevent the Department’s Bureau of Land 

Management from providing royalty reductions for specific EOR projects under regulations currently in 

place. Regarding using the technology on the outer continental shelf, a separate memo stated that more 

must be know about the technology and economics that apply with respect to offshore applications, 

therefore rulemaking would be premature. August 23, 2006,

2 

2

2 2 

2

http://www.eenews.net/eenewspm/2006/08/23/archive/1/?terms=CO2. 

Reuters, “EU CO2 Plans For 2008-12 "Ambitious Enough" – Piebalgs.” European Union Energy 

Commissioner Andris Piebalgs responded to a question regarding the possibility of the carbon price 

collapsing in the EU carbon trading scheme, given a market concern that the Phase II National Allocation 

Plans to be submitted to the European Commission would be too lenient. Piebalgs feels that the plans 

that have been submitted thus far have proposed ambitious emission cuts. Estonia, Poland, Latvia and 

Luxembourg have all proposed large increases in carbon credit quotas reflecting their desire to cut 

greenhouse gases. Germany, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania and Britain have also submitted their plans thus 

far. August 24, 2006, http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=37819&newsdate=24-Aug2006.

October 2006

AP, "Emission Targets Set at Helsinki Summit." At ASEM 6, a forum that promotes various levels of 

cooperation among Asian and European countries that was held September 10-11 in Helsinki, Finland, 

European and Asian leader pledged to set new carbon dioxide emissions target that go beyond those set 

under the Kyoto Protocol for 2012. In a joint declaration, the 25 EU and 13 Asian leaders said they were 

determined to cooperate on an international level in response to climate change. No targets were set, but 

each side pledged to do its best, which was considered a setback for the Europeans who had hoped for 

tougher action by their Asian counterparts, notably China. Europe and Asia promised to share low 

carbon "cleaner and climate-friendly" technologies, both existing and new technologies. Both agreed that 

long term answers will be through technological breakthroughs. For more information, visit the ASEM 

website at: http://www.asem6.fi/. September 11, 2006, 

http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=2419679&CMP=OTC-RSSFeeds0312.

EurActiv.com, "EU in Attempt to Link Car Taxes to CO2 Pollution." On September 5, the European 

Parliament backed a proposal to introduce a European Union (EU) wide car tax based on CO2

emissions, that that would subsequently abolish the car registration tax. Any approval on car taxation at 

the EU level would require unanimity backing from all the 25 Member States. Unanimity voting in Council 

means the proposal is likely to be vetoed. The European Parliament is consulted on an advisory basis. 

Proposed in July of last year by the European Commission, the carbon dioxide (CO2) based tax is meant 

to allow citizens to avoid being doubly taxed when moving around Europe and create level tax conditions 

for automakers on the European car market. September 5, 2006, 

http://www.wbcsd.org/plugins/DocSearch/details.asp?type=DocDet&ObjectId=MjAzMTQ. 

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November 2006

Reuters, “Branson Commits US$3 Billion to Fight Global Warming.” British billionaire Richard 

Branson has committed to spending all the profits from his airline and rail businesses on combating 

global warming, approximately $3 billion over the next 10 years. One venture already in existence, Virgin 

Fuels, will invest $400 million over three years in renewable energy initiatives. Profits from the transport 

business which comprises one half of the company, will be invested in biofuels research, development, 

production and distribution, and also used to fund projects to combat emissions though a planned 

Environmental Trust. September 22, 2006, 

http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=38212&newsdate=22-Sep-2006.

EPA Press Release, “Companies Set Aggressive Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction Goals.”

Through the US Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Climate Leaders program, 13 companies are 

setting new emission reduction targets and 21 new companies are joining the program. The greenhouse 

gas emissions reduction targets for the 13 companies range from 9 percent to net zero emissions. The 

Climate Leaders represent a broad range of industry sectors and more than $1 trillion in revenue. Over 

100 companies take part, and represent more than 8 percent of the total annual US greenhouse gas 

emissions. Reduction efforts by the group are estimated to prevent greenhouse gas emissions equivalent 

to those from 7 million cars. See the news link at the end of this paragraph to view a list of the companies 

and their reduction goals. For more information on the EPA’s Climate Leaders program, see: 

http://epa.gov/climateleaders/. October 12, 2006, 

http://yosemite.epa.gov/opa/admpress.nsf/4d84d5d9a719de8c85257018005467c2/abaf76a31c93d2e68

5257205006305cb!OpenDocument. 

“Geographically explicit global modeling of land-use change, carbon sequestration, and biomass 

supply.” This study aims to determine whether carbon sequestration policies could present a significant 

contribution to the global portfolio of climate change mitigation options. The objective is to model the 

effects of policies designed to induce landowners to change land use and management patterns with a 

view to sequester carbon or to reduce deforestation. The approach uses the spatially explicit Dynamic 

Integrated Model of Forestry and Alternative Land Use (DIMA) to quantify the economic potential of 

global forests. The model chooses which of the land-use processes (afforestation, reforestation, 

deforestation, or conservation and management options) would be applied in a specific location, based 

on land prices, cost of forest production and harvesting, site productivity, population density, and 

estimates of economic growth. The approach is relevant in that it (1) couples a revised and updated 

version of the Special Report on Emissions Scenarios with the dynamic development of climate policy 

implications through integration with the Model for Energy Supply Strategy Alternatives and their General 

Environmental Impact (MESSAGE); (2) is spatially explicit on a 0.5 degree grid; and (3) is constrained by 

guaranteeing food security and land for urban development. As outputs, DIMA produces 100-year 

forecasts of land-use change, carbon sequestration, impacts of carbon incentives (e.g., avoided 

deforestation), biomass for bioenergy, and climate policy impacts. The modeling results indicate that 

carbon sequestration policies could contribute to a significant part of the global portfolio of efficient 

climate mitigation policies, dependent upon carbon prices. Dmitry Rokityanskiy, Pablo C. Benítez, 

Florian Kraxner, Ian McCallum, Michael Obersteiner, Ewald Rametsteiner and Yoshiki Yamagata,

Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Available online October 4, 2006. 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6V71-4M1TSSW1/2/47317f4790cb9904c5823656b6af0d6e. (Subscription may be required.) 

December 2006

E&E News, “U.N. Conference Opens in Kenya.” The 12th UN Framework Convention on Climate 

Change (UNFCCC) meeting opened on November 6 in Nairobi, Kenya. More than 6,000 participants 

from 189 counties are meeting to discuss climate change and the urgent actions needed to combat the 

36
consequences of global warming. Attendees are planning to pressure the US and Australia, two 

countries that have not ratified the Kyoto Protocol, to pledge to reduce their emissions. For more 

information on the November 6-17 conference, see the UNFCC website at: 

http://unfccc.int/meetings/cop_12/items/3754.php, November 11, 2006, 

http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2006/11/06/10.

Reuters, “Verification Problems May Delay '07 Kyoto Projects.” Project evaluations aimed at 

decreasing global warming and redirecting funds to poorer nations in 2007 are being delayed due to 

delays in the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) review process. The CDM is an arrangement under 

the Kyoto Protocol allowing industrialized countries to invest in global warming reduction projects in 

developing nations, rather than making reduction in their own countries, which are often more costly. 

However, determining whether projects meet CDM rules, a more than 50 percent increase in the number 

of projects up for review, complaints of bureaucratic delays, and a lack of uniform review guidelines are 

only some of the recurring problems causing backlogs in the system. Additionally, applications that are 

rejected are often not accompanied by suggestions for corrective measures, making it difficult for the 

applicants to amend their applications to fit proper guidelines. The current CDM arrangement is due to 

expire in 2012, which is forcing many project developers to push for validation of their applications before 

then. October 30, 2006, http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/38719/newsDate/30-Oct2006/story.htm. 

Reuters, “US, EU Hold Climate Talks Despite Kyoto Rift.” and Finland EU Presidency Press 

Release, “EU and U.S. Will Continue Dialogue on Climate Change, Clean Energy and Sustainable 

Development.” The US and the European Union met in Helsinki, Finland on October 24-25 for a twoday dialogue on climate change, clean energy and sustainable development, despite the lack of 

participation in the Kyoto Protocol by the US. Carbon capture and storage was also among the topics 

discussed, including capturing CO2 from power plants. The meeting was hosted by Finnish Environment 

Minister Jan-Erik Enestam, who holds the current presidency of the European Union. The US delegation 

was headed by Paula Dobriansky, US Under Secretary of State for Democracy and Global Affairs. An 

outcome of the meeting was that the EU and US delegations agreed to strengthen bilateral cooperation 

in several areas including promoting the “commercial deployment of clean coal and carbon sequestration 

technologies, including through the Carbon Sequestration Leadership Forum.” October 24, 2006, 

http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/38622/story.htm, and October 25, 2006, 

http://www.eu2006.fi/news_and_documents/press_releases/vko43/en_GB/172262/. 

Reuters, “Rare Russian CO2 Data Shows 11 Percent Rise Since 1999,” According to an official 

document submitted by the Russian environmental monitoring agency, Roshydromet, to the United 

Nations on Oct 23, Russia’s emissions of greenhouse gases rose about 11 percent between 1999 and 

2004, from 1.873 billion tons in 1999 to 2.074 billion tons in 2004. This is the first time in 5 years that 

Russia has submitted its greenhouse gas emissions data. Russia is the world’s third largest polluter, and 

had previously submitted data in 1998 and 1999. After the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia’s 

emissions levels have dropped nearly 40 percent. Though it is still awaiting official UN verification, 

Russia’s document to the UNFCC is available online in Russian, at: 

http://unfccc.int/essential_background/library/items/3599.php?rec=j&priref=5698&suchen=n. See the 

news item link for a small table of emissions data. October 24, 2006, 

http://www.planetark.com/avantgo/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=38618. 

January 2007

Reuters, “U.N. Climate Talks Make Progress on Kyoto Overhaul,” and Earth Negotiations Bulletin, 

“Summary Of The Twelfth Conference Of The Parties To The UN Framework Convention On 

Climate Change And Second Meeting Of The Parties To The Kyoto Protocol: November 6-17, 

2006.” From November 6-17, 2006, climate change meetings were held in Nairobi, Kenya. The “UN 

37
Climate Change Conference – Nairobi 2006” included the twelfth Conference of the Parties (COP12) to 

the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the second Conference of the Parties 

serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (COP/MOP 2). Over 5,900 people attended. 

At COP/MOP2, the Clean Development Mechanism and Joint Implementation were discussed, as were 

parties’ compliance with the Protocol and a proposed amendment to the Protocol. At COP12, the 

adverse effect of climate change on developing and least developed countries was discussed, as was 

the response measures and needs of the least developed countries. Both COP/MOP 2 and COP 12 

focused on long-term action regarding climate change, and for developing a framework for action once 

the Kyoto Protocol’s “first commitment period” ends in 2012. A review of the Protocol will be completed 

by 2008. For a detailed reporting on the meetings, see: http://www.iisd.ca/vol12/enb12318e.html. 

November 17, 2006, http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?type=worldNews&storyID=2006-11-

17T162443Z_01_L1343825_RTRUKOC_0_US-ENVIRONMENTCLIMATE.xml&pageNumber=1&imageid=&cap=&sz=13&WTModLoc=NewsArt-C1-ArticlePage1, and 

November 20, 2006, http://www.iisd.ca/vol12/enb12318e.html. 

Reuters, “Calls for Climate Change Action at Asia-Pacific Summit.” Plans to examine the issue of 

global warming were in the forefront at the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit, held on 

November 16-19, 2006 in Hanoi, Vietnam. APEC is comprised of 21 nations, including the US and 

China, and accounts for half of the world’s global trade market. Member countries were encouraged to 

pledge their efforts in transitioning to low-carbon energy systems and promote the transfer of similar 

technologies to less developed countries. Commitments to address clean energy initiatives and climate 

change were also discussed. During his attendance at the summit, President Bush voiced his support to 

Australia’s Prime Minister John Howard, who is taking proactive steps to address climate change issues, 

despite his country’s refusal to sign the Kyoto Protocol. Howard is pushing for Asia-wide emissions 

trading and has set up a task force to examine a possible role for Australia to address global warming 

issues. He has also proposed a joint alliance with the US, China, India, South Korea, and Japan to 

address the same issues. Australia, the world’s biggest exporter of coal, will also establish a joint working 

group on clean coal technology with China. November 18, 2006,

http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/articlenews.aspx?type=scienceNews&storyID=2006-11-

18T225544Z_01_BKK212827_RTRIDST_0_SCIENCE-APEC-ENVIRONMENTDC.XML&WTmodLoc=NewsArt-C2-NextArticle-1. 

Reuters, “Four States Set to Join EU Carbon Market – UK.” and Reuters, “Norway To Join EU CO2 

Scheme In 2008 – EU Source.” 

On December 6, Britain’s Finance Minister Gordon Brown announced that Iceland, Liechtenstein, 

Norway and Switzerland have agreed in principle to join the European Union’s emissions trading 

scheme. Norway will submit their plan to the executive European Commission, which will outline the 

limits that Norwegian industries will have regarding carbon dioxide emissions. Norway would become the 

twenty-eighth country to join the EU’s carbon market. In November, Australia and Canada were 

investigating their own domestic carbon markets, which could join the European scheme. The various 

independent carbon markets could make way for competitive pricing of emissions permits. 

December 7, 2006, http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/39366/story.htm, and 

November 28, 2006, http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/39176/story.htm. 

Reuters, “London Targets Gas-Guzzlers with Congestion Charge.” London’s mayor, Ken 

Livingstone, has proposed to charge the more polluting cars, which emit more than 225 grams of CO2

per kilometer 25 pounds (about $47) per day to enter the central London traffic congestion zone. Ecofriendly cars would travel free. Other vehicles would continue to pay the current rate of 8 pounds, about 

$16, when entering the congestion zone between 6:30 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. Only one in 20 Londoners 

overall drives the more polluting cars, but the rate increases to 1 in 5 for cars in the congestion zone. A 

poll in August found that over two-thirds of Londoners backed the mayor’s plan to discourage the use of 

4x4 vehicles. November 15, 2006, 

http://www.planetark.com/avantgo/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=38981. 

38
February 2007 

Reuters, “EU Environment Chief Seeks 30 Percent Emissions Cut.” European Union (EU) 

Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas announced that he will set a target for a 30 percent reduction 

in EU greenhouse gas emissions by 2020. Originally, EU heads of state and government called for a 15-

30 percent reduction by 2020. This announcement comes in anticipation of the series of energy and 

environmental proposals for fighting global warming that will be announced by the Commission on 

January 10. These proposals will provide additional options for international climate change initiatives 

after the Kyoto Protocol expires in 2012. December 19, 2006, 

http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/39548/story.htm. 

Greenwire, “EU Dismisses Carbon Tax on Kyoto Dissidents.” A proposal by French Prime Minister 

Dominique de Villepin to tax the carbon emissions of countries that do not participate in the Kyoto 

Protocol has been dismissed. Peter Mandelson, the European Union Trade Commissioner, pointed out 

that nonparticipation is not illegal and would be very difficult to put into practice. Furthermore, 

implementing such a tax would violate World Trade Organization rules. December 18, 2006, 

http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2006/12/18/9. (Subscription may be required.) 

Reuters, “Schwarzenegger Signs California Carbon Emissions Cut.” California Governor Arnold 

Schwarzenegger signed an executive order on January 18, the first of its kind in the US to cut carbon 

levels in vehicle fuels by at least 10 percent by 2020. The order will also implement the law adopted last 

summer mandating state emissions caps to reduce greenhouse gas levels 25 percent by 2020. The 

order is also intended to encourage the development and use of alternative vehicle fuels. The new fuel 

regulations will go into effect no later than December 2008. The Air Resources Board, the California 

Environmental Protection Agency and the California Energy Commission will work out the details of the 

new regulations. January 19, 2007,

http://www.planetark.com/avantgo/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=39911.

March 2007 

Reuters, “China Preparing National Plan for Climate Change.” The Chinese government is 

developing the country’s first national program to address global warming. Approval of the 

comprehensive document on climate change is awaiting official endorsement from China’s cabinet, or 

State Council, and could be released this year. It is expected to outline a broad set of goals for emissions 

reductions and how the country will cope with abnormal weather patterns. China’s President Hu Jintao is 

faced with the challenge of presenting the idea of continued economic growth and future prosperity, 

while at the same time advocating a reduction in the use of fossil fuels and greenhouse gas emissions. 

With China expected to become the world’s third-largest economic power by 2008 and forecasts that it 

may overtake the United States in greenhouse gas emissions, many Chinese officials are confronted 

with the reality that global warming is an issue that must be addressed with urgency. In particular, 

environmental threats to China’s northwest could have detrimental effects to the nation’s economic 

development. Climate experts estimate that China’s current reduction in yearly GDP by nearly 2 percent 

will only be exacerbated as a result of floods, droughts, hurricanes and other climate disasters brought 

about by further climate changes. February 6, 2007, 

http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/40197/story.htm.

 Reuters, “EU Commission Approves Slovenia's Carbon Plan.” The European Commission approved 

Slovenia’s Emissions Trading Scheme CO2 plan for the second phase (2008-2012) of the Kyoto 

Protocol, allowing for a carbon quota of 8.3 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions, and representing a 

9 percent cut in allowances from the first phase (2005-2007). Though the European Commission has 

reviewed 13 plans of European Union (EU) nations thus far for the 2005-2007 trading phase, only 

39
Slovenia and Britain have had their quota approved. The other EU nations are required to lower their 

carbon quotas and resubmit. Slovenia with its population of 2 million people, accounted for less than one 

percent of the EU’s emissions under the scheme in 2005. Brussels is being pressured to create scarcity 

in the market for emissions permits after 2005 data revealed that EU states had given more allowances 

to industry than needed, leading to a crash in carbon prices for the 2005-2007 trading phase. Denmark 

and Cyprus have not yet submitted their 2008-2012 plans, which, though due in June, were turned in late 

by many member states. February 6, 2007, 

http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=40200&newsdate=06-Feb-2007.

“Social acceptance of carbon dioxide storage.” This article discusses public acceptance of carbon 

capture and storage (CCS). Responses by citizens are described in relation to responses by 

professionally involved actors. Interviews with members of the government, industry and environmental 

non-government organizations (NGOs) showed that these professional actors are interested in starting 

up storage projects, based on thorough evaluation processes, including discussions on multi-actor 

working groups. As appeared from a survey among citizens living near a potential storage site (N=103), 

public attitudes in general were slightly positive, but attitudes toward storage nearby were slightly 

negative. The general public appeared to have little knowledge about carbon dioxide storage, and have 

little desire for more information. Under these circumstances, trust in the professional actors is 

particularly important. NGOs were found to be trusted most, and industry least by the general public. 

Trust in each of the three actors appeared to depend on perceived competence and intentions, which in 

turn were found to be related to perceived similarity of goals and thinking between trustee and trustor. 

Implications for communication about CCS are discussed. Nicole M.A. Huijts, Cees J.H. Midden and 

Anneloes L. Meijnders, Energy Policy, Published online February 1, 2007, 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6V2W-4MYFG16-

1/2/674d5590b3027c2acd4184908aa5d8c0. (Subscription may be required.) 

April 2007 

E&E News PM, “Global Lawmakers Urge G8 to Set Emissions Goal.” A group of international 

legislators, including members of the US Congress and parliamentary representatives of 20 industrialized 

countries, urged their countries’ leaders to set a long-term goal for stabilizing greenhouse gas emissions. 

The formal, although nonbinding statement, is being released in advance of the upcoming G8 summit 

scheduled for June 2007 in Heiligendamm, Germany, a seaside resort in the Baltic Sea. Lawmakers 

noted that in order to meet the aggressive goals being proposed to stabilize greenhouse gases, the 

world’s largest economies need to combine a binding United Nations framework signed by all major 

nations, along with bilateral and multilateral partnerships. One of the initiatives set forth by German 

Chancellor Angela Merkel in anticipation of the G8 summit is to add post-Kyoto talks to the agenda. The 

lawmakers also highlighted the necessity to establish a global carbon market as an incentive to pursue 

technologies aimed at energy efficiency. Although each country faces varying degrees of economic 

development, the statement underscores the importance of each country to take action in line with their 

capabilities and “historic responsibilities.” February 15, 2007, 

http://www.eenews.net/eenewspm/print/2007/02/15/2. (Subscription may be required.) 

Greenwire, “Small Cost Would Bring Canada into Kyoto Compliance, Study Says.” A recent study 

conducted in Canada indicates that adding a tax of $1 Canadian to the current cost of producing a barrel 

of oil would be sufficient enough for Canadian compliance to the Kyoto Protocol. Research pointing in 

this direction provides one option available for the country to meet the target of a six percent reduction in 

emissions below 1990 levels by 2012. Oil industry leaders feel the necessity to combine that approach 

with intensity-based targets, which calculate reductions as a percentage of production, coupled with a 

cap-and-trade system. They also advocate government funding of carbon capture and storage 

technologies, which could be funded by the tax. The current cost to produce a barrel of oil from oil sands 

is about $21 ($25 Canadian). Raising the price by $1 would raise $640 million ($750 Canadian) per year. 

40
February 22, 2007, http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2007/02/22/13. (Subscription may be 

required.) 

May 2007 

Reuters, “Japan, China to Take Part in Post-Kyoto Talks,” and Reuters, “China to Unveil Climate 

Plan Next Month.” Following a summit meeting held on April 11 between Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao 

and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, the two leaders pledged their willingness to take part in postKyoto negotiations to limit global warming in their countries. The Kyoto Protocol, set to expire in 2012, is 

supported by thirty-five developed nations, but participation by the highest polluters, such as China and 

the United States, has not ensued. According to Gao Guangsheng, head of the Chinese Office of the 

National Coordination Committee for Climate Change, China will define what policies for reducing 

emissions should be developed and in which areas the country plans to reduce greenhouse gas 

emissions, but declined China’s commitment to reveal an overall national target or establishment of an 

emissions trading exchange. China and Japan also agreed to other bilateral environmental initiatives 

during the summit, including technical assistance by Japan on desulphurization of Chinese coal-fired 

thermal power plants. April 11, 2007, http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/T231974.htm, and 

March 30, 2007, http://www.planetark.com/avantgo/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=41173. 

“Regulatory challenges to the implementation of carbon capture and geological storage within 

the European Union under EU and international law.” Carbon dioxide capture and storage (CCS) is a 

relatively new technology in the context of climate change mitigation strategies, and its legal and 

regulatory implications are not yet broadly understood. This paper takes a brief look at international 

environmental law principles relevant to CCS, identifies key environmental and safety risks associated 

with the technology, and highlights significant legal frameworks that pose challenges to the 

implementation of CCS within the European Union (EU) under EU and international law. It then notes 

continuing regulatory gaps that will need to be addressed for large-scale CCS to take place. The paper 

concludes that the clear inclusion or exclusion of CCS activities from the range of relevant legal 

frameworks will increase transparency, provide regulatory certainty and ultimately facilitate CCS in 

appropriate contexts. M.J. Mace, Chris Hendriks and Rogier Coenraads, International Journal of 

Greenhouse Gas Control, Available online March 30, 2007. doi:10.1016/S1750-5836(07)00028-X,

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B83WP-4NCKK7W1/2/422f865f315b3e8985e23296b8787795. (Subscription may be required.)

June 2007 

News Blaze, “U.S. Energy Agency Leads Effort to Cut Carbon Dioxide Emissions.” On May 7 and 

May 10, the Carbon Sequestration Leadership Forum (CSLF) conducted a “Capacity Building in 

Emerging Economies Workshop,” held in conjunction with the Sixth Annual Conference on Carbon 

Capture and Sequestration (CCS) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Fifty-five delegates from the six emerging 

nation countries, including Brazil, China, Columbia, India, Mexico, and South Africa, attended the 

workshop. Discussions focused on international efforts in developing improved cost-effective 

technologies related to the separation, capture, transport, and long-term storage of CO2. International 

delegates presented concerns they face in advancing CCS development and deployment in their 

countries, citing that technology transfer will play a major role in building CCS capacity. The delegates 

also discussed the importance of implementation, regulatory aspects, environmental issues, and public 

perception in building capacity for CCS. The CSLF workshop concluded with a visit to NETL in 

Pittsburgh. More information about this recent CSLF workshop is available at the organization’s web site: 

http://www.cslforum.org/may072007.htm, which includes links to download the complete agenda, 

introductory remarks, and presentations. May 12, 2007, 

http://newsblaze.com/story/20070512073935leon.nb/newsblaze/TOPSTORY/Top-Stories.html.

41
The Australian, “On Track to Meet Kyoto Targets.” Australian Environmental Minister Malcolm 

Turnbull announced that the country is on track to meet their commitment under the Kyoto Protocol. The 

Australian Greenhouse Office compiled the data which shows that CO2 emission levels decreased 

slightly between 2004 and 2005 from 564 million metric tons to 559 million metric tons (102 percent of 

1990 levels). More significant is the fact that the country’s economy has grown 61 percent while 

sustaining growth in greenhouse gas emissions to only two percentage points above 1990 levels. At this 

pace, predictions indicate that the country will be able to meet its Kyoto targets to within one percentage 

point for 2008 through 2012, the dates established under the agreement. Although Australia has not 

ratified the Kyoto Protocol, the country has voluntarily tried to keep to its commitments. May 2, 2007, Link 

unavailable. 

“A synopsis of land use, land-use change and forestry (LULUCF) under the Kyoto Protocol and 

Marrakech Accords.” The complexities inherent in land use, land-use change and forestry (LULUCF) 

activities have led to contentious and prolonged debates about the merits of their inclusion in the 2008–

2012 first commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol. Yet the inclusion of these activities played a key role 

in agreement on the general framework of the Kyoto Protocol, and LULUCF will likely continue to play a 

substantial part in negotiations on national commitments post-2012. The Marrakech Accords dictate 

which LULUCF activities are to be included under the Kyoto Protocol and provide rules on how they are 

to be accounted in the first commitment period. However, these rules have limitations and drawbacks 

that may be avoided in the structure of future commitments beyond 2012. Through adherence to the 

objectives of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), and the 

incorporation of several critical features, a future framework can more effectively address the mitigation 

challenges and opportunities of this sector. B. Schlamadinger, N. Bird, T. Johns, S. Brown, J. 

Canadell, L. Ciccarese, M. Dutschke, J. Fiedler, A. Fischlin, P. Fearnside, C. Forner, A. Freibauer, 

P. Frumhoff, N. Hoehne, M.U.F. Kirschbaum, A. Labat, G. Marland, A. Michaelowa, L. 

Montanarella, P. Moutinho, D. Murdiyarso, N. Pena, K. Pingoud, Z. Rakonczay, E. Rametsteiner, J. 

Rock, M.J. Sanz, U.A. Schneider, A. Shvidenko, M. Skutsch, P. Smith, Z. Somogyi, E. Trines, M. 

Ward and Y. Yamagata, Environmental Science and Policy, Published online March 26, 2007, 

doi:10.1016/j.envsci.2006.11.002, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6VP6-4NBR47S2/2/50d2307857e7d9307e7cbd1ff74368a8#FCANote. (Subscription may be required.) 

July 2007 

Greenwire, “G8 Agreement Helps Shape Post-Kyoto Debate.” Despite the absence of concrete 

commitments, the Group of Eight (G8) summit has succeeded in making advances towards a post-Kyoto 

climate agreement. For the first time, the United States has agreed to participate and work with other 

countries on a new international agreement that will take place after the protocol’s expiry in 2012. Before 

leaving the G8 summit, President George Bush discussed plans to host his own global warming summit 

in the United States, but a specific venue or timeframe has yet to be established. He also proposed his 

own set of goals separate from the United Nations’ Framework Convention on Climate Change, which 

initially sparked concern among the European nations. The President’s plan will force Congress to move 

forward to enact legislation concerning emissions targets, although it appears unlikely that the President 

would sign such legislation. Nonetheless, efforts to address global warming will continue with several 

events scheduled to occur in the coming months, including the annual United Nations Climate Change 

Conference in Bali, Indonesia in December. Concern over China and India’s active participation in those 

talks remains a concern. June 12, 2007, http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2007/6/12/12. 

(Subscription may be required.) 

“Societal acceptance of carbon capture and storage technologies.” For the actual implementation 

of carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies, societal support is a crucial precondition. This paper 

describes an extensive study on the acceptance of CCS by stakeholders in the Netherlands and explores 

one of the determining factors in the acceptance of CCS by the lay public, [that is] the way the Dutch 

42
press perceives and portrays CCS. The stakeholder analysis shows that there is a positive attitude 

towards CCS by industry, government, and environmental [non-governmental organizations], provided 

that the conditions they pose on the deployment of CCS are met. The content analysis of Dutch news 

articles conveys that the media portrayal of CCS is—to a certain extent—a balanced reflection of the way 

CCS is perceived by the stakeholders. Both analyses show that the concerns about CCS have not 

overshadowed the main promise that CCS is part of the solution to climate change. However, the current 

negative aspects of CCS as raised by different stakeholders and the media will remain if no action is 

taken. Therefore, the conditions posed on the use of CCS, as well as the actions required to meet these 

conditions, could function as a proxy for the ‘societal voice’, articulating the most important issues 

concerning the future acceptance of CCS technology. Klaas van Alphen, Quirine van Voorst tot 

Voorst, Marko P. Hekkert and Ruud E.H.M. Smits, Energy Policy, Published online April 20, 2007,

doi:10.1016/j.enpol.2007.03.006, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6V2W-4NJ26S3-

6/2/e539e492dbe4e1738533b28d7c1259eb. (Subscription may be required.) 

August 2007 

San Francisco Chronicle, “US is Pressured to Help China Curb Emissions.” The United States is 

being urged to assist China in reducing emissions generated from the country’s coal-fired power plants. 

With China overtaking the United States in CO2 emissions, there is growing concern that China’s 

emissions output will cancel out current and future global efforts to curb global warming. Recent data 

suggests that China’s coal-fired power plants are releasing annual emissions quantities twice as great as 

the amount emitted by all of the word’s industrialized economies combined. In 2006, China released 6.2 

billion tons of CO2 emissions, which is an increase of 8.4 percent from the prior year. Democratic 

representative Steve Israel of New York is proposing legislation to create a $20 million program that 

would fund US research and development assistance with Chinese universities for low-emissions energy 

technology. Mr. Israel is urging US policymakers to seize this opportunity. The US-China Economic and 

Security Review Commission, a bipartisan congressional advisory panel, conducted hearings last month 

to discuss the issues facing the two nations and offer support for the formation of a US emergency 

program to assist China to reduce emissions from coal-fired power plants and improve their efficiency. 

The US currently spends approximately $1 million per year in energy cooperation with China. July 5, 

2007, http://www.sfgate.com/cgibin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2007/07/05/MNG1QQR9RO1.DTL&type=printable. 

Oilvoice Press Release, “Carbon on the Agenda in Oslo.” On June 22, the International Energy 

Agency (IEA) and the Carbon Sequestration Leadership Forum (CSLF) conducted a workshop in Oslo, 

Norway for G8 summit participants to discuss CO2 capture and sequestration opportunities. Statoil 

served as the seminar’s co-organizer. The goal of the seminar was to provide the attendees with national 

and international policy-making suggestions on the subject of carbon capture and storage, in addition to 

incentives, regulations and legislation that must be in place for the successful implementation of the 

technology. Possible considerations for the next G8 summit in 2008 were also discussed. To view the 

keynote speech presented at the IEA-CSLF Workshop for the G8, “Early Opportunities for Carbon 

Capture and Storage – Global Assessment,” see: http://www.iea.org/CSLF_Workshop.pdf. June 22, 

2007, http://www.oilvoice.com/Carbon_on_the_Agenda_in_Oslo/9949.htm. 

Geology 

September 2006 

“CO2 storage and gas diffusivity properties of coals from Sydney Basin, Australia.” Measurements 

of carbon dioxide (CO2) adsorption and diffusion properties of coals are reported for various coalfields 

within Sydney Basin, New South Wales (NSW), Australia. Adsorption measurements were undertaken 

43
using a gravimetric method. Measurements carried out on 27 coals show that Sydney Basin coals at CO2

sub-critical conditions, namely gas pressures below 6 mega pascals (MPa) and temperatures below 

39 degrees Celsius (C), can adsorb a maximum volume (Langmuir volume) of 40 to 80 cubic meters (m3

) 

of CO2 per ton of coal on a dry ash free (daf) basis. The coals used in this study are of sub-bituminous to 

bituminous rank, ranging from 0.66 to 1.45 percent mean maximum vitrinite reflectance, and are from 

depths ranging from about 27 meters to 723 meters. The highest adsorption capacity applies to the 

highest rank coal, which is also the deepest coal. The standard deviation between Langmuir modeled 

and measured values is less than 1.5 cubic meters per ton (m3

/t), corresponding to a relative error of less 

than 2.7 percent for all except one coal. Based on adsorption isotherms, the CO2 storage capacity for insitu seam pressure conditions range from about 6 to 51 m3

/t. CO2 diffusion properties of 15 of these 

coals, determined using a newly developed system capable of accurately measuring diffusivity of gases 

in solid coal indicate that CO2 diffusivity (diffusion coefficient) in the Sydney Basin coals varies from 

1.2 × 10− 6 to 10.2 × 10− 6 centimeters squared per second (cm2

/s). The diffusivity does not show any 

discernable trend with the variation in depth and rank. Porosity measured by a mercury injection method 

varies from 4 to 10 percent and decreases with increase in coal depth and rank. For some of the coal 

samples adsorption measurements for pure methane (CH4), CO2 and nitrogen (N2) indicate that the 

Sydney Basin coals can store twice as much CO2 as CH4 and six times more CO2 than N2 (volume 

basis). Also, measurement of diffusivity in solid coal samples shows that CO2 diffuses twice as quickly as 

CH4. The data obtained from this study and the estimated coal resources in the state of New South 

Wales, allow CO2 sequestration potentials to be calculated. A. Saghafi, M. Faiz and D. Roberts,

International Journal of Coal Geology, Available online July 7, 2006, 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6V8C-4KBVV1S-4/2/f5ff10ec703fe2e2c400eb9ad292f9b6. 

(Subscription may be required.)

October 2006 

"Detailed compositional analysis of gas seepage at the National Carbon Storage Test Site, Teapot 

Dome, Wyoming, USA." A baseline determination of carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) fluxes 

and soil gas concentrations of CO2 and CH4 was made over the Teapot Dome oil field in the Naval 

Petroleum Reserve No. 3 (NPR-3) in Wyoming, USA. This was done in anticipation of experimentation 

with CO2 sequestration in the Pennsylvanian Tensleep Sandstone underlying the field at a depth of 

1680 meters. The baseline data were collected during the winter 2004, in order to minimize near-surface 

biological activity in the soil profile. The baseline data were used to select anomalous locations that may 

be the result of seeping thermogenic gas, along with background locations. Five 10-meter holes were 

drilled, 3 of which had anomalous gas microseepage, and 2 were characterized as "background." These 

were equipped for nested gas sampling at depths of 10-, 5-, 3-, 2-, and 1-meter depths. Methane 

concentrations as high as 170,000 parts per million by volume (ppmv) (17 percent) were found, along 

with high concentrations of ethane (C2H6), propane (C3H8), n-butane (n-C4H10), and isobutene (i-C4H10). 

Much smaller concentrations of ethylene (C2H4) and propene (C3H6) were observed indicating the 

beginning of hydrocarbon oxidation in the anomalous holes. The anomalous 10-meter holes also had 

high concentrations of isotopically enriched CO2, indicating the oxidation of hydrocarbons. 

Concentrations of the gases decreased upward, as expected, indicating oxidation and transport into the 

atmosphere. The ancient source of the gases was confirmed by carbon 14 (14C ) determinations on CO2, 

with radiocarbon ages approaching 38 radio carbon years (ka) within 5 meters of the surface. Modeling 

was used to analyze the distribution of hydrocarbons in the anomalous and background 10-meter holes. 

Diffusion alone was not sufficient to account for the hydrocarbon concentration distributions, however the 

data could be fit with the addition of a consumptive reaction. First-order rate constants for 

methanotrophic oxidation were obtained by inverse modeling. High rates of oxidation were found, 

particularly near the surface in the anomalous 10-meter holes, demonstrating the effectiveness of the 

process in the attenuation of CH4 microseepage. The results also demonstrate the importance of CH4

measurements in the planning of a monitoring and verification program for geological CO2 sequestration 

in sites with significant remaining hydrocarbons (i.e. spent oil reservoirs). Ronald W. Klusman, Applied 

Geochemistry, Volume 21, Issue 9, September 2006, Pages 1498-1521. Available online September 26, 

44
2006, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6VDG-4KPX8T1-

3/2/686b4a45f405af8ecf48bbd58ed1838c. (Subscription may be required.) 

November 2006 

“Enhanced geothermal systems (EGS) using CO2 as working fluid—A novel approach for 

generating renewable energy with simultaneous sequestration of carbon.” Responding to the need 

to reduce atmospheric emissions of carbon dioxide, Brown [Brown, D., 2000. A Hot Dry Rock geothermal 

energy concept utilizing supercritical CO2 instead of water. In: Proceedings of the Twenty-Fifth Workshop 

on Geothermal Reservoir Engineering, Stanford University, pp. 233–238] proposed a novel enhanced 

geothermal systems (EGS) concept that would use carbon dioxide (CO2) instead of water as heat 

transmission fluid, and would achieve geologic sequestration of CO2 as an ancillary benefit. Following up 

on his suggestion, the authors have evaluated thermophysical properties and performed numerical 

simulations to explore the fluid dynamics and heat transfer issues in an engineered geothermal reservoir 

that would be operated with CO2. The authors find that CO2 is superior to water in its ability to mine heat 

from hot fractured rock. Carbon dioxide also offers certain advantages with respect to wellbore 

hydraulics, in that its larger compressibility and expansivity as compared to water would increase 

buoyancy forces and would reduce the parasitic power consumption of the fluid circulation system. While 

the thermal and hydraulic aspects of a CO2-EGS system look promising, major uncertainties remain with 

regard to chemical interactions between fluids and rocks. An EGS system running on CO2 has 

sufficiently attractive features to warrant further investigation. Karsten Pruess, Geothermics, Volume 35, 

Issue 4, August 2006, Pages 351-367. Available online September 27, 2006. 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6VCN-4M0BHBT1/2/37fce8fddfd341ff8190583b6c62e25c. (Subscription may be required.)

January 2007

“Opportunities for low-cost CO2 storage demonstration projects in China,” Several carbon dioxide 

(CO2) storage demonstration projects are needed in a variety of geological formations worldwide to prove 

the viability of CO2 capture and storage as a major option for climate change mitigation. China has 

several low-cost CO2 sources at sites that produce NH3 from coal via gasification. At these plants, CO2

generated in excess of the amount needed for other purposes (e.g., urea synthesis) is vented as a 

relatively pure stream. These CO2 sources would potentially be economically interesting candidates for 

storage demonstration projects if there are suitable storage sites nearby. In this study a survey was 

conducted to estimate CO2 availability at modern Chinese coal-fed ammonia plants. Results indicate that 

annual quantities of available, relatively pure CO2 per site range from 0.6 to 1.1 million tons. The CO2

source assessment was complemented by analysis of possible nearby opportunities for CO2 storage. 

CO2 sources were mapped in relation to China's petroliferous sedimentary basins where prospective 

CO2 storage reservoirs possibly exist. Four promising pairs of sources and sinks were identified. Project 

costs for storage in deep saline aquifers were estimated for each pairing ranging from $15–21 per ton of 

CO2. Potential enhanced oil recovery and enhanced coal bed methane recovery opportunities near each 

prospective source were also considered. Kyle C. Meng, Robert H. Williams and Michael A. Celia,

Energy Policy, Available online October 27, 2006, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6V2W4M6SG95-1/2/99822ea843b49648303a7cdfdcd64102. (Subscription may be required.) 

“Heterogeneous saline formations for carbon dioxide disposal: Impact of varying heterogeneity 

on containment and trapping,” Natural gas fields often contain carbon dioxide in their reservoir fluids. 

Exploitation of these resources requires the removal of carbon dioxide (CO2) from produced fluids to 

meet quality standards for sale into a domestic market or for the processing of the gas into liquefied 

natural gas (LNG). To limit the atmospheric emissions of carbon dioxide, a major greenhouse gas, it has 

been proposed that one method of abatement could be to inject the CO2 into deep saline formations. 

This study shows that the selection process for identifying appropriate saline formations should not only 

45
consider their size and permeability but should also consider their degree of heterogeneity. To this end, 

notional yet realistic geological marine sand models were constructed, on an areal scale of 50 square 

kilometers (km2

), to examine the effects of reservoir heterogeneity on the migration and storage of a 

50 million tonne plume over a time scale of 1000 years. The models were identical in geometry and in 

their distribution of porosity and permeability but were individually populated with facies realizations for 

different net-to-gross ratios. Standard geostatistical techniques were used to generate the various 

distributions. With regard to the shale content, the ratio of sand to shale was varied from 100:0 (i.e. 

homogeneous) to 40:60. A radial shale variogram, with a length of 300 meters was used. The models 

were up-scaled, using flow-based methods, to make the computation feasible. A set of metrics were 

developed and used to compare plume migration (both vertically and laterally) and containment (through 

dissolution and residual phase trapping) between the various scenarios. The study showed that 

heterogeneity had a significant impact on the subsurface behavior of the carbon dioxide. Increasing the 

shale content, corresponding to a gradual decrease in reservoir quality, progressively inhibited vertical 

flow of the plume whilst promoting its lateral flow. This increase in the tortuosity of the carbon dioxide 

migration pathways resulted in a reduction in the rate of residual gas trapping through hysteresis effects. 

Ultimately, however, less carbon dioxide is likely to collect under the seal, thereby reducing the risk of 

seepage to overlying formations. It is evident that for the time scales of containment being considered 

here simulation periods of the order of tens of thousands of years, or even longer, will be required to 

demonstrate the onset of an equilibrium state. Matthew Flett, Randal Gurton and Geoff Weir, Journal 

of Petroleum Science and Engineering, Available online November 30, 2006. 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6VDW-4MG1P1G2/2/68b42f95e1b0ee6b2891f76a44049a1b. (Subscription may be required.) 

“Reducing energy-related CO2 emissions using accelerated weathering of limestone.” The use 

and impacts of accelerated weathering of limestone (AWL; reaction: CO2+H2O+CaCO3→Ca2++2(HCO3

−

) 

is explored as a carbon dioxide (CO2) capture and sequestration method. It is shown that significant 

limestone resources are relatively close to a majority of CO2-emitting power plants along the coastal US, 

a favored siting location for AWL. Waste fines, representing more than 20 percent of current US crushed 

limestone production (>109

 tons per yr), could provide an inexpensive or free source of AWL carbonate. 

With limestone transportation then as the dominant cost variable, CO2 mitigation costs of $3-$4/ton 

appear to be possible in certain locations. Perhaps 10–20 percent of US point–source CO2 emissions 

could be mitigated in this fashion. It is experimentally shown that CO2 sequestration rates of 10−6

 to 

10−5

 moles per second per square meter (moles/sec per m2) of limestone surface area are achievable, 

with reaction densities on the order of 10−2

 tons CO2 cubic meters per day (m−3day−1), highly dependent 

on limestone particle size, solution turbulence and flow, and CO2 concentration. Modeling shows that 

AWL would allow carbon storage in the ocean with significantly reduced impacts to seawater pH relative 

to direct CO2 disposal into the atmosphere or sea. The addition of AWL-derived alkalinity to the ocean 

may itself be beneficial for marine biota. Greg H. Rau, Kevin G. Knauss, William H. Langer and Ken 

Caldeira, Energy, Available online November 29, 2006, 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6V2S-4MFTVGD1/2/f4b9dd99d12f90f6b4814a789ab1fcde. (Subscription may be required.) 

February 2007 

“Specific Storage Volumes: A Useful Tool for CO2 Storage Capacity Assessment.” Subsurface 

geologic strata have the potential to store billions of tons of anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO2); 

therefore, geologic carbon sequestration can be an effective mitigation tool used to slow the rate at which 

levels of atmospheric CO2 are increasing. Oil and gas reservoirs, coal beds, and saline reservoirs can be 

used for CO2 storage; however, it is difficult to assess and compare the relative storage capacities of 

these different settings. Typically, CO2 emissions are reported in units of mass, which are not directly 

applicable to comparing the CO2 storage capacities of the various storage targets. However, if the 

emission values are recalculated to volumes per unit mass (specific volume) then the volumes of 

geologic reservoirs necessary to store CO2 emissions from large point sources can be estimated. The 

46
factors necessary to convert the mass of CO2 emissions to geologic storage volume (referred to here as 

Specific Storage Volume or ‘SSV’) can be reported in units of cubic meters, cubic feet, and petroleum 

barrels. The SSVs can be used to estimate the reservoir volume needed to store CO2 produced over the 

lifetime of an individual point source, and to identify CO2 storage targets of sufficient size to meet the 

demand from that given point source. These storage volumes also can then be projected onto the land 

surface to outline a representative “footprint,” which marks the areal extent of storage. This footprint can 

be compared with the terrestrial carbon sequestration capacity of the same land area. The overall utility 

of this application is that the total storage capacity of any given parcel of land (from surface to basement) 

can be determined, and may assist in making land management decisions. Sean T. Brennan and 

Robert C. Burruss, Natural Resources Research, Published online December 15, 2006, 

http://www.springerlink.com/content/n1g6686n60v621p0/?p=4bf567fe1bf74862a44bbdd969af73d1&pi=2

7. (Subscription required.) 

“Thermo-hydro-mechanical Modeling of CO2 Sequestration System Around Fault Environment.”

Geological sequestration of carbon dioxide (CO2) shows great potential to reduce greenhouse gas 

emissions. However, CO2 injection into geological formations may give rise to a variety of coupled 

chemical and physical processes. The thermo-hydro-mechanical (THM) impact of CO2 injection can 

induce fault instability, even possibly lead to seismic activities in and around the disposal reservoir. A 

sequential coupling approach under some assumptions was proposed in the numerical study to 

investigate the THM behavior of the CO2 sequestration system concerning the temperature, initial 

geological stress, injection pressure and CO2 buoyancy. The fault was treated as a flexible contact 

model. The effects of CO2 injection on the mechanical behavior of the faults were investigated. The 

Drucker-Prager model and the cap model were used to model the constitutive relationship of formations. 

The numerical results show that injection pressure sensitively affects the relative slip change of the fault. 

At the initial stage of the sequestration process, the injection pressure plays a key role in affecting the 

pore pressure of the formations. However, as time continues, the influence of CO2-induced buoyancy 

becomes obvious on the pore pressure of the formations. In general, The THM effects of CO2

geosequestration do not affect the mechanical stability of formations and faults. Qi Li, Zhishen Wu, 

Yilong Bai, Xiangchu Yin and Xiaochun Li, Pure and Applied Geophysics, Published online December 

20, 2007, 

http://www.springerlink.com/content/b24t48566625775t/?p=edfad81ea2624efb8a5571342c9904b2&pi=1. 

(Subscription required.) 

March 2007 

“Geologic Carbon Sequestration: CO2 Transport in Depleted Gas Reservoirs.” Chapter on geologic 

carbon sequestration from book entitled Gas Transport in Porous Media in the series, Theory and 

Applications of Transport in Porous Media. The book presents a compilation of state-of-the-art studies on 

gas and vapor transport processes in porous and fractured media. A broad set of models and processes 

is presented, including advection/diffusion, the Dusty Gas Model, enhanced vapor diffusion, phase 

change, coupled processes, solid/vapor sorption and vapor-pressure lowering. Numerous applications 

are also presented that illustrate these processes and models in current problems facing the scientific 

community. This book fills a gap in the general area of transport in porous and fractured media – an area 

that has historically been dominated by studies of liquid-phase flow and transport. This book identifies 

gas and vapor transport processes that may be important or dominant in various applications, and it 

exploits recent advances in computational modeling and experimental methods to present studies that 

distinguish the relative importance of various mechanisms of transport in complex media. Pages 419-

426, Edited by Clifford K. Ho and Stephen W. Webb, Published by Springer Netherlands, ISBN 978-1-

4020-3961-4 (Print), ISNB 978-1-4020-3962-1 (Online), Copyright 2006, 

http://www.springerlink.com/content/w75675370226h538/?p=c2d10807ce06412caa5a09f81ceb13cf&pi=

0. (Subscription required.) 

47
April 2007

“Joule-Thomson cooling due to carbon dioxide injection into natural gas reservoirs.” Depleted 

natural gas reservoirs are a promising target for Carbon Sequestration with Enhanced Gas Recovery 

(CSEGR). The focus of this study is on evaluating the importance of Joule-Thomson cooling during 

carbon dioxide (CO2) injection into depleted natural gas reservoirs. Joule-Thomson cooling is the 

adiabatic cooling or heating that accompanies the expansion of a real gas. During CO2 injection into a 

natural gas reservoir, the pressure near the injection well declines rapidly as gas expands into the 

reservoir. If Joule-Thomson cooling during this expansion were large, injectivity and formation 

permeability could be altered by formation of hydrates, freezing of residual water, and fracturing due to 

thermal stresses. The TOUGH2/EOS7C module for carbon dioxide-methane-water (CO2–CH4–H2O) 

mixtures is used as the simulation analysis tool. For verification of EOS7C, the classic Joule-Thomson 

expansion experiment is modeled for pure CO2 resulting in Joule-Thomson coefficients in agreement 

with standard references to within five to seven percent. For demonstration purposes, a case with a large 

pressure drop ( 50 bars) is presented in order to show that temperature can drop by more than 

20 degrees Celsius by this effect. Lower permeability increases Joule-Thomson cooling while lower 

porosity decreases it for a system with constant-rate injection. Two additional constant-rate injection 

cases show that for typical systems in the Sacramento Valley, California, with much smaller pressure 

drops (<10 bars), the Joule-Thomson cooling effect is minimal. This simulation study shows that for 

constant-rate injections into high-permeability reservoirs, the Joule-Thomson cooling effect is not 

expected to create significant problems for CSEGR. Curtis M. Oldenburg, Energy Conversion and 

Management, Published online February 27, 2007, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6V2P4N4S61G-5/2/82f0fa35656cfbb4de31141b098d5370. (Subscription may be required.) 

“Black carbon sequestration as an alternative to bioenergy.” Most policy and much research 

concerning the application of biomass to reduce global warming gas emissions has concentrated either 

on increasing the Earth's reservoir of biomass or on substituting biomass for fossil fuels, with or without 

carbon dioxide (CO2) sequestration. Suggested approaches entail varied risks of impermanence, delay, 

high costs, and unknowable side-effects. An under-researched alternative approach is to extract from 

biomass black (elemental) carbon, which can be permanently sequestered as mineral geomass and may 

be relatively advantageous in terms of those risks. This paper reviews salient features of black carbon 

sequestration and uses a high-level quantitative model to compare the approach with the alternative use 

of biomass to displace fossil fuels. Black carbon has been demonstrated to produce significant benefits 

when sequestered in agricultural soil, apparently without bad side-effects. Black carbon sequestration 

appears to be more efficient in general than energy generation, in terms of atmospheric carbon saved 

per unit of biomass; an exception is where biomass can efficiently displace coal-fired generation. Black 

carbon sequestration can reasonably be expected to be relatively quick and cheap to apply due to its 

short value chain and known technology. However, the model is sensitive to several input variables, 

whose values depend heavily on local conditions. Because characteristics of black carbon sequestration 

are only known from limited geographical contexts, its worldwide potential will not be known without 

multiple streams of research, replicated in other contexts. Malcolm Fowles, Biomass and Bioenergy,

Published online March 6, 2007, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6V22-4N6FNT8-

3/2/fa54c2bc1f5892234cd290d0b1877f70. (Subscription may be required.) 

May 2007 

“CO2 storage capacity estimation: Issues and development of standards.” Associated with the 

endeavors of geoscientists to pursue the promise that geological storage of carbon dioxide (CO2) has of 

potentially making deep cuts into greenhouse gas emissions, Governments around the world are 

dependent on reliable estimates of CO2 storage capacity and insightful indications of the viability of 

geological storage in their respective jurisdictions. Similarly, industry needs reliable estimates for 

business decisions regarding site selection and development. If such estimates are unreliable, and 

48
decisions are made based on poor advice, then valuable resources and time could be wasted. Policies 

that have been put in place to address CO2 emissions could be jeopardized. Estimates need to clearly 

state the limitations that existed (data, time, knowledge) at the time of making the assessment and 

indicate the purpose and future use to which the estimates should be applied. A set of guidelines for 

estimation of storage capacity will greatly assist future deliberations by government and industry on the 

appropriateness of geological storage of CO2 in different geological settings and political jurisdictions. 

This work has been initiated under the auspices of the Carbon Sequestration Leadership Forum 

(www.cslforum.org), and it is intended that it will be an ongoing taskforce to further examine issues 

associated with storage capacity estimation. John Bradshaw, Stefan Bachu, Didier Bonijoly, Robert 

Burruss, Sam Holloway, Niels Peter Christensen and Odd Magne Mathiassen, International Journal 

of Greenhouse Gas Control, Available online March 26, 2007, doi:10.1016/S1750-5836(07)00027-8, 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B83WP-4NBRG1R1/2/8e64629160f1a76f9c3353b047a207a9. (Subscription may be required.) 

“Permitting issues for CO2 capture, transport and geological storage: A review of Europe, USA, 

Canada and Australia.” The paper reviews the environmental, health and safety permitting/regulatory 

issues presented by carbon capture and storage (CCS) operations across the full project cycle, and 

reviews existing regulations in the European Union, North America and Australia to assess their 

applicability to CCS, and identify regulatory gaps. Paul Zakkour and Mike Haines, International Journal 

of Greenhouse Gas Control, Available online January 30, 2007, doi:10.1016/S1750-5836(06)00008-9, 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B83WP-4MY11CV1/2/223c2999e3c747374981c8b15a89169a. (Subscription may be required.) 

“System-level modeling for economic evaluation of geological CO2 storage in gas reservoirs.” 

One way to reduce the effects of anthropogenic greenhouse gases on climate is to inject carbon dioxide 

(CO2) from industrial sources into deep geological formations such as brine aquifers or depleted oil or 

gas reservoirs. Research is being conducted to improve understanding of factors affecting particular 

aspects of geological CO2 storage (such as storage performance, storage capacity, and health, safety 

and environmental (HSE) issues) as well as to lower the cost of CO2 capture and related processes. 

However, there has been less emphasis to date on system-level analyses of geological CO2 storage that 

consider geological, economic, and environmental issues by linking detailed process models to 

representations of engineering components and associated economic models. The objective of this study 

is to develop a system-level model for geological CO2 storage, including CO2 capture and separation, 

compression, pipeline transportation to the storage site, and CO2 injection. Within [their] system model 

[the authors] are incorporating detailed reservoir simulations of CO2 injection into a gas reservoir and 

related enhanced production of methane. Potential leakage and associated environmental impacts are 

also considered. The platform for the system-level model is GoldSim [GoldSim User’s Guide. GoldSim 

Technology Group; 2006, http://www.goldsim.com]. The application of the system model focuses on 

evaluating the feasibility of carbon sequestration with enhanced gas recovery (CSEGR) in the Rio Vista 

region of California. The reservoir simulations are performed using a special module of the TOUGH2 

simulator, EOS7C, for multicomponent gas mixtures of methane and CO2. Using a system-level 

modeling approach, the economic benefits of enhanced gas recovery can be directly weighed against 

the costs and benefits of CO2 injection. Yingqi Zhang, Curtis M. Oldenburg, Stefan Finsterle and 

Gudmundur S. Bodvarsson, Energy Conversion and Management, Available online March 6, 2007. 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6V2P-4N6FYTY2/2/5b48cc6388ca8eef4a2bac6621376ee7. (Subscription may be required.) 

June 2007 

“Coupling of geochemical reactions and convective mixing in the long-term geological storage of 

carbon dioxide.” The effect of coupling of geochemical reactions with convective mixing of dissolved 

49
carbon dioxide during geological storage is investigated by both analytical and numerical techniques. In 

the limit of fast reactions, scaling arguments and stability analysis show that the time for the onset of 

convection could be increased by up to an order of magnitude due to consumption of the dissolved CO2

in mineralization. Numerical simulations are then used to investigate the effect of general reaction rates 

in two contrasting mineralogies, including overall dissolution and the distribution of ion and mineral 

concentrations. Jonathan Ennis-King and Lincoln Paterson, International Journal of Greenhouse Gas 

Control, Published online March 26, 2007, doi:10.1016/S1750-5836(07)00034-5, 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B83WP-4NBR48X1/2/74b4cb407c2a187ceaa90b29ade7b7f3. (Subscription may be required.) 

“Evaluating geological sequestration of CO2 in bituminous coals: The southern Sydney Basin, 

Australia as a natural analogue.” Carbon dioxide contents of coals in the Sydney Basin vary both 

aerially and stratigraphically. In places, the coal seam gas is almost pure CO2 that was introduced from 

deep magmatic sources via faults and replaced pre-existing CH4 [methane]. In some respects this 

process is analogous to sequestration of anthropogenic CO2. Laboratory studies indicate that CO2:CH4 

storage capacity ratios for Sydney Basin coals are up to 2 and gas diffusivity is greater for CO2 by a 

factor of up to 1.5. Present-day distribution of CO2 in the coals is controlled by geological structure, depth 

and a combination of hydrostatic and capillary pressures. Under present-day P–T conditions, most of the 

CO2 occurs in solution at depths greater than about 650 meters; at shallower depths, larger volumes of 

CO2 occur in gaseous form and as adsorbed molecules in the coal due to rapidly decreasing CO2

solubility. The CO2 has apparently migrated up to structural highs and is concentrated in anticlines and in 

up-dip sections of monoclines and sealing faults. CO2 sequestered in coal measure sequences similar to 

those of the Sydney Basin may behave in a similar way and, in the long term, equilibrate according to the 

prevailing P–T conditions. In situ CO2 contents of Sydney Basin coals range up to 20 m3

/t [cubic meters 

per ton]. Comparisons of adsorption isotherm data measured on ground coal particles with in situ gas 

contents of Sydney Basin coals indicate that the volumes of CO2 stored do not exceed 60 [percent] of 

the total CO2 storage capacity. Therefore, the maximum CO2 saturation that may be achieved during 

sequestration in analogous coals is likely to be considerably lower than the theoretical values indicated 

by adsorption isotherms. M.M. Faiz, A. Saghafi, S.A. Barclay, L. Stalker, N.R. Sherwood, D.J. 

Whitford and Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) Energy 

Transformed Flagship, International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control, Available online March 28, 

2007, doi:10.1016/S1750-5836(07)00026-6, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B83WP4NC5VCG-1/2/588443b7a8c6883f0ad06e51b8ca614d. (Subscription may be required.) 

July 2007

“The mechanical behaviour of coal with respect to CO2 sequestration in deep coal seams.” 

Carbon dioxide displays a strong affinity for coal due to its propensity to adsorb to the coal surface. The 

process of CO2 adsorption on coal causes lowering of surface energy and, it is hypothesised that an 

associated decrease in surface film confinement results in a decrease in material tensile resistance. 

Following the results of work carried out on the mechanical influence of CO2 on brown coal under in situ 

conditions [Viete DR, Ranjith PG. The effect of CO2 on the geomechanical and permeability behaviour of 

brown coal: implications for coal seam CO2 sequestration. Int J Coal Geol 2006;66(3):204–16], a 

theoretical explanation is proposed for the perceived lack of a weakening effect with the adsorption of 

CO2 to coal at significant confining pressures. [The authors] propose that at significant hydrostatic 

stresses, resistance to failure is otherwise provided (by external confinement) and the effects of 

adsorptive weakening are concealed. [The authors’] model predicts that adsorptive weakening, fracturing 

under in situ stresses, and associated permeability increases are not an issue for coal seam CO2

sequestration for sufficiently deep target seams. Lowering of the elastic modulus of coal upon 

introduction of CO2 may proceed by means other than surface energy lowering and could well occur 

irrespective of the depth of sequestration. The effect of elastic modulus lowering under in situ conditions 

would be beneficial for the long-term retention of sequestered gases. D.R. Viete and P.G. Ranjith, Fuel,

50
Published online April 9, 2007, doi:10.1016/j.fuel.2007.03.020, 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6V3B-4NFS18V5/2/e09fc1140c45d8ca1c142766881c9d42. (Subscription may be required.)

August 2007 

“Time-lapse carbon dioxide monitoring with pulsed neutron logging.” Elevated levels of CO2 in the 

atmosphere have been linked to the rise in land and sea temperature [Climate Change, 2001. In: 

Houghton, J.T., Ding, Y., Griggs, D.J., Noguer, M., van der Linden, P.J., Xiaosu, D. (Eds.), The Scientific 

Basis Contribution of Working Group I to the Third Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on 

Climate Change (IPCC). Cambridge University Press, UK, p. 944]. To demonstrate geological [CO2] 

sequestration as a mitigation technique, a carbon dioxide injection experiment was conducted in East 

Texas. The target – Frio formation – is a highly porous, permeable and unconsolidated sandstone. The 

specific interval is the Frio C [carbon] sand, which originally was saturated with saline formation water. At 

the injection location, the Frio C sand dips 18 [degrees] to the south. To monitor the injected CO2

spreading in the formation, an old well from 1956 drilled into the deeper Yegua formation was selected 

as the observation well. The injection well was drilled at a distance of 100 [feet] downdip from the 

monitoring well. Several borehole measurement methods were available to monitor the CO2 injection, but 

the most suitable technology was thought to be the pulsed neutron logging. This logging is used widely in 

cased hole, and the measured macroscopic thermal absorption cross-section (Σ) is sensitive to CO2

saturation in high porosity saline water environments. Several log examples are given demonstrating 

successful the monitoring of the CO2 plume moving through the two boreholes and the resulting 

saturation changes. Nadja Müller, T.S. Ramakrishnan, Austin Boyd and Shinichi Sakruai, 

International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control, Published online June 18, 2007, doi:10.1016/S1750-

5836(07)00071-0, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B83WP-4P0N2C8-

1/2/0e586e1881861b0383d03b849ca088c9. (Subscription may be required.) 

“Numerical simulation of multicomponent gas diffusion and flow in coals for CO2 enhanced 

coalbed methane recovery.” This paper presents an alternative model of multicomponent gas diffusion 

and flow in bulk coals, focusing on CH4 [methane]–CO2 counter-diffusion associated with CO2-

sequestration enhanced coalbed methane (CO2-ECBM) recovery. The model was developed based on 

the bidisperse diffusion mechanism and the Maxwell–Stefan (MS) diffusion theory, which provides an 

improved simulation of multicomponent gas diffusion dynamics. The model was firstly validated under the 

condition of pure gas diffusion by comparing with the analytical solutions of a bidisperse diffusion model 

and the experimental data obtained from pure-gas sorption kinetic tests. Then it was numerically solved 

by considering CH4–CO2 counter-diffusion and flow in a large coal sample to simulate a laboratory CO2-

injection core flush experiment. The simulation shows an excellent agreement with the CO2 flush 

experiment. A quantitative description of the relationship between micropore diffusivity and concentration 

has been achieved, which is a deficiency in currently available CBM/ECBM models. The concentrationdependent diffusivities need to be taken into account in modeling the coalbed methane (CBM) recovery, 

in particular for simulation of ECBM production from and CO2 sequestration in coal seams. X.R. Wei, 

G.X. Wang, P. Massarotto, S.D. Golding and V. Rudolph, Chemical Engineering Science, Published 

online May 10, 2007, doi:10.1016/j.ces.2007.04.032, 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6TFK-4NPG0FN2/2/ce7a7b7fd5415a8ad48dcf9804e47617. (Subscription may be required.)

“Numerical modeling of injection and mineral trapping of CO2 with H2S and SO2 in a sandstone 

formation.” Carbon dioxide (CO2) injection into deep geologic formations could decrease the 

atmospheric accumulation of this gas from anthropogenic sources. Furthermore, by co-injecting H2S 

[hydrogen sulfide] or SO2 [sulfur dioxide], the products respectively of coal gasification or combustion, 

with captured CO2, problems associated with surface disposal would be mitigated. [The authors] 

developed models that simulate the co-injection of H2S or SO2 with CO2 into an arkose formation at a 

51
depth of about 2 [kilometers] and 75 [degrees Celsius]. The hydrogeology and mineralogy of the injected 

formation are typical of those encountered in Gulf Coast aquifers of the United States. Six numerical 

simulations of a simplified 1-D radial region surrounding the injection well were performed. The injection 

of CO2 alone or co-injection with SO2 or H2S results in a concentrically zoned distribution of secondary 

minerals surrounding a leached and acidified region adjacent to the injection well. Co-injection of SO2

with CO2 results in a larger and more strongly acidified zone, and alteration differs substantially from that 

caused by the co-injection of H2S or injection of CO2 alone. Precipitation of carbonates occurs within a 

higher pH (pH > 5) peripheral zone. Significant quantities of CO2 are sequestered by ankerite, dawsonite, 

and lesser siderite. The CO2 mineral-trapping capacity of the formation can attain 40–50 kg/m3

[kilograms per cubic meter] medium for the selected arkose. In contrast, secondary sulfates precipitate at 

lower pH (pH < 5) within the acidified zone. Most of the injected SO2 is transformed and immobilized 

through alunite precipitation with lesser amounts of anhydrite and minor quantities of pyrite. The 

dissolved CO2 increases with time (enhanced solubility trapping). The mineral alteration induced by 

injection of CO2 with either SO2 or H2S leads to corresponding changes in porosity. Significant increases 

in porosity occur in the acidified zones where mineral dissolution dominates. With co-injection of SO2, the 

porosity increases from an initial 0.3 to 0.43 after 100 years. However, within the CO2 mineral-trapping 

zone, the porosity decreases to about 0.28 for both cases, because of the addition of CO2 mass as 

secondary carbonates to the rock matrix. Precipitation of sulfates at the acidification front causes porosity 

to decrease to 0.23. The limited information currently available on the mineralogy of naturally occurring 

high-pressure CO2 reservoirs is generally consistent with [the authors’] simulations. Tianfu Xu, John A. 

Apps, Karsten Pruess and Hajime Yamamoto, Chemical Geology, Published online May 4, 2007, 

doi:10.1016/j.chemgeo.2007.03.022, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6V5Y-4NN0WDJ2/2/5111183747c7e74b3f5133ed24a6dc29. (Subscription may be required.)

Technology 

September 2006 

“Process evaluation of an 865 MWe lignite fired O2/CO2 power plant” In order to reduce emissions of 

carbon dioxide from large point sources, new technologies can be used in capture plants for combustion 

of fossil fuel for subsequent capture and storage of carbon dioxide (CO2). One such technology is the 

O2/CO2 combustion process (also termed oxy-fuel combustion) that combines a conventional combustion 

process with a cryogenic air separation process so that the fuel is burned in oxygen and recycled flue 

gas, yielding a high concentration of CO2 in the flue gas, which reduces the cost for its capture. In this 

work, the O2/CO2 process is applied using commercial data from an 865 MWe (mega watt net electricity 

output) lignite fired reference power plant and large air separation units (ASU). A detailed design of the 

flue gas treatment pass, integrated in the overall process layout, is proposed. The essential components 

and energy streams of the two processes have been investigated in order to evaluate the possibilities for 

process integration and to determine the net efficiency of the capture plant. The electricity generation 

cost and the associated avoidance cost for the capture plant have been determined and compared to the 

reference plant with investment costs obtained directly from industry. Although an existing reference 

power plant forms the basis of the work, the study is directed towards a new state of the art lignite fired 

O2/CO2 power plant. The boiler power of the O2/CO2 plant has been increased to keep the net output of 

the capture and the reference plant similar. With the integration possibilities identified, the net efficiency 

becomes 33.5 percent, which should be compared to 42.6 percent in the reference plant. With a lignite 

price of 5.2 dollars per megawatt hours ($/MW h) and an interest rate of 10 percent, the electricity 

generation cost increases from 42.1 to 64.3 $/MW h, which corresponds to a CO2 avoidance cost of 

26 dollars per ton ($/ton) CO2. Klas Andersson and Filip Johnsson, Energy Conversion and 

Management, Volume 47, Issues 18-19, November 2006, Pages 3487-3498, 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6V2P-4KD5BK1-

1/2/2fe89144fb001cbcde411a6a87791801. (Subscription may be required.)

52
“Incorporating carbon capture and storage technologies in integrated assessment models.” Lowcarbon emitting technologies are a key component of technical change in integrated assessment models. 

The authors develop a methodology for incorporating technologies into computable general equilibrium 

economic models and demonstrate this methodology by implementing carbon capture and storage 

technologies in the MIT Emissions Prediction and Policy Analysis (EPPA) model. Three primary 

implementation issues are discussed: characterization of the technical system, translation of bottom-up 

engineering information into an economic model, and the depiction of realistic technology adoption rates. 

The specification of input substitution, relative costs, and plant dispatch are the most critical factors in 

technology representation. Technology adoption rates in economic models are governed by exogenous 

and endogenous constraints. A comparison of the current approaches used in economic models with the 

theoretical and empirical factors affecting adoption rates highlights opportunities for refining the current 

methods. James R. McFarland and Howard J. Herzog, Energy Economics, Available online July 7, 

2006, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6V7G-4KBVVDM2/2/14ae1e8dbe56dba7b6457d36a69dd7f3. (Subscription may be required.) 

“Techno-economic modeling and cost functions of CO2 capture processes.” The paper presents 

the techno-economic modeling of CO2 capture process in coal-fired power plants. An overall model is 

being developed to compare carbon capture and sequestration options at locations within the United 

Kingdom, and for studies of the sensitivity of the cost of disposal to changes in the major parameters of 

the most promising solutions identified. Technological options of CO2 capture have been studied and 

cost estimation relationships (CERs) for the chosen options calculated. Created models are related to the 

capital, operation and maintenance cost. A total annualized cost of plant electricity output and amount of 

CO2 avoided have been developed. The influence of interest rates and plant life has been analyzed as 

well. The CERs are included as an integral part of the overall model. Jirí Klemes, Igor Bulatov and Tim 

Cockerill, Computers & Chemical Engineering, Available online July 20, 2006, 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6TFT-4KFMMC2-

1/2/5911705c2cc0f639878e9881b0b59b1b. (Subscription may be required.)

October 2006 

"Can Advances in Science and Technology Prevent Global Warming?: A Critical Review of 

Limitations and Challenges." The most stringent emission scenarios published by the 

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) would result in the stabilization of atmospheric 

carbon dioxide (CO2) at concentrations of approximately 550 parts per million (ppm) which would 

produce a global temperature increase of at least 2 degrees Celsius by 2100. Given the large 

uncertainties regarding the potential risks associated with this degree of global warming, it would be 

more prudent to stabilize atmospheric CO2 concentrations at or below current levels which, in turn, would 

require more than 20-fold reduction (i.e., greater than or equal to 95 percent) in per capita carbon 

emissions in industrialized nations within the next 50-100 years. Using the Kaya equation as a 

conceptual framework, this paper examines whether CO2 mitigation approaches such as energy 

efficiency improvements, carbon sequestration, and the development of carbon-free energy sources 

would be sufficient to bring about the required reduction in per capita carbon emissions without creating 

unforeseen negative impacts elsewhere. In terms of energy efficiency, large improvements (greater than 

or equal to 5-fold) are in principle possible through aggressive investments in research and development 

and the removal of market imperfections such as corporate subsidies. However, energy efficiency 

improvements per se will not result in a reduction in carbon emissions if, as predicted by the IPCC, the 

size of the global economy expands 12-26-fold by 2100. Terrestrial carbon sequestration via 

reforestation and improved agricultural soil management has many environmental advantages, but has 

only limited CO2 mitigation potential because the global terrestrial carbon sink (ca. 200 gigatons of 

carbon) is small relative to the size of fossil fuel deposits (greater than or equal to 4000 gigatons of 

carbon). By contrast, very large amounts of CO2 can potentially be removed from the atmosphere via 

sequestration in geologic formations and oceans, but carbon storage is not permanent and is likely to 

53
create many unpredictable environmental consequences. Renewable energy can in theory provide large 

amounts of carbon-free power. However, biomass and hydroelectric energy can only be marginally 

expanded, and large-scale solar energy installations (i.e., wind, photovoltaics, and direct thermal) are 

likely to have significant negative environmental impacts. Expansion of nuclear energy is highly unlikely 

due to concerns over reactor safety, radioactive waste management, weapons proliferation, and cost. In 

view of the serious limitations and liabilities of many proposed CO2 mitigation approaches, it appears that 

there remain only few no-regrets options such as drastic energy efficiency improvements, extensive 

terrestrial carbon sequestration, and cautious expansion of renewable energy generation. These 

promising CO2 mitigation technologies have the potential to bring about the required 20-fold reduction in 

per capita carbon emission only if population and economic growth are halted without delay. Therefore, 

addressing the problem of global warming requires not only technological research and development but 

also a reexamination of core values that equate material consumption and economic growth with 

happiness and wellbeing. Michael H. Husemann, Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global 

Change, 2006, Volume 11, Pages 539-577, DOI: 10.1007/s11027-006-2166-0. 

http://www.springerlink.com/content/9024t888tr0m778r/. (Fee or subscription may be required.) 

 

"CCS: A future CO2 mitigation option for Germany?--A bottom-up approach." The role that carbon 

capture and storage (CCS) technologies could play within the framework of an overall CO2 mitigation 

strategy is examined in the form of scenarios up to 2030 with the example of Germany. As the 

calculations show, the use of CCS can represent an interesting mitigation option in view of stringent CO2

reduction goals. The scenarios, performed with the aid of the IKARUS optimization model, however, also 

show that according to cost-efficiency criteria a large number of measures would have to be taken 

covering all energy sectors. CCS can at best represent one element in an overall strategy. The model 

results show that a mitigation goal for 2030 corresponding to a 35 percent reduction of CO2 as compared 

to 1990 is necessary to trigger a significant contribution of CCS. As an alternative to a CO2 restriction, we 

also calculated reduction scenarios based on CO2 penalties. These scenarios showed that a penalty 

price of approximately $38/tCO2 dollars per ton of CO2 is necessary before CCS can be included in the 

model. Dag Martinsen, Jochen Linssen, Peter Markewitz and Stefan Vögele, Energy Policy,

Available online September 1, 2006. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6V2W-4KSSWHP1/2/57a869c18475437bb0bb0cffa5dc4708. (Subscription may be required.) 

November 2006 

“Characterization and selectivity for methane and carbon dioxide adsorption on the all-silica 

DD3R zeolite.” Clathrasil Deca-dodecasil 3R (DD3R) zeolite was synthesized in this study. Then, 

adsorption properties of carbon dioxide and methane were examined on the all-silica DD3R zeolite. Pure 

component adsorption isotherms are reported at temperatures of 273–348 Kelvin (K) and pressures as 

high as 3 megapascals (MPa). The isotherms follow a typical Type-I shape according to the Brunauer 

classification. They are well described using Langmuir and multi-site Langmuir models. Isosteric heats of 

adsorption and Henry’s Law constants of all adsorbates were determined. High selectivity of adsorption 

for carbon dioxide over methane suggests that the all-silica DD3R is an effective adsorbent or zeolite 

membrane material that can separate carbon dioxide and methane gaseous mixtures. Shuji Himeno, 

Toshihiro Tomita, Kenji Suzuki and Shuichi Yoshida, Microporous and Mesoporous Materials,

Available online October 2, 2006, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6TH4-4M1D0HR3/2/1333505f2fe51b588a8072b3fa0d2fb5. (Subscription may be required.)

“Production of hydrogen through the carbonation-calcination reaction applied to CH4/CO2

mixtures.” The production of hydrogen combined with carbon capture represents a possible option for 

reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in atmosphere and anthropogenic greenhouse effect. 

Nowadays the worldwide hydrogen production is based mainly on natural gas reforming, but the attention 

of the scientific community is focused also on other gas mixtures with significant methane (CH4) content. 

In particular mixtures constituted mainly by methane and carbon dioxide are extensively used in energy 

54
conversion applications, as they include land-fill gas, digester gas and natural gas. The present paper 

addresses the development of an innovative system for hydrogen production and CO2 capture starting 

from these mixtures. The plant is based on steam methane reforming, coupled with the carbonation and 

calcination reactions for CO2 absorption and desorption, respectively. A thermodynamic approach is 

proposed to investigate the plant performance in relation to the methane content in the feeding gas. The 

results suggest that, in order to optimize the hydrogen purity and the efficiency, two different 

methodologies can be adopted involving both the system layout and operating parameters. In particular 

such methodologies are suitable for a methane content, respectively, higher and lower than 65 percent. 

L. Barelli, G. Bidini, A. Corradetti and U. Desideri, Energy, Available online September 12, 2006. 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6V2S-4KW5W8H1/2/73d3abb827e7617976c93284610c69ea. (Subscription may be required.)

December 2006

“Layered Double Hydroxides for CO2 Capture: Structure Evolution and Regeneration.” Mg-Al-CO3

layered double hydroxide (LDH) was synthesized, and its thermal evolution was investigated using X-ray 

diffraction, FTIR (Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy) spectroscopy, and thermogravimetric 

analysis (TGA). The resultant LDH derivatives showed excellent carbon dioxide (CO2) adsorption 

capabilities, especially suitable for high-temperature CO2 separation from flue gases. Calcination of 

crystalline LDHs at 400 degrees Celsius led to phase transformation yielding amorphous Mg-Al mixed 

oxides having a CO2 sorption capacity of 0.49 micromoles per gram (mmole/g) at 200 degrees Celsius. 

Reversible and irreversible CO2 sorption was determined to be approximately 88 percent and 

approximately 12 percent of the total CO2 sorption, respectively. Regeneration restored the Mg-Al mixed 

oxide to 98 percent of its initial CO2 sorption after several cycles of CO2 adsorption testing. This clearly 

indicates the desirable properties of Mg-Al mixed oxide for CO2 capture from flue gases at high 

temperatures (up to 200 degrees Celsius). M. K. Ram Reddy, Z. P. Xu, G. Q. (Max) Lu, and J. C. Diniz 

da Costa, Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Research, 45 (22), 7504 -7509, 2006, 

10.1021/ie060757k S0888-5885(06)00757-3, Web release date, October 4, 2006. 

http://pubs.acs.org/cgi-bin/abstract.cgi/iecred/2006/45/i22/abs/ie060757k.html. (Subscription required.) 

“Characterization and Activity of K, CeO2, and Mn Promoted Ni/Al2O3 Catalysts for Carbon 

Dioxide Reforming of Methane.” Reforming of methane with carbon dioxide into syngas over Ni/ -Al2O3

catalysts modified by potassium, MnO, and CeO2 was studied. The catalysts were prepared by 

impregnation technique and were characterized by BET surface area, pore volume, X-ray diffraction, 

scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, temperature-programmed studies, and 

pulse chemisorption. The performance of these catalysts was evaluated by conducting the reforming 

reaction in a fixed-bed reactor. Results of the investigation suggested that stable Ni/Al2O3 catalysts for 

the carbon dioxide reforming of methane can be prepared by the addition of both potassium and CeO2

(or MnO) as promoters. The results of the various characterization techniques were used to relate the 

observed catalytic activity and stability to the catalyst property. The stability and lower amounts of coking 

on promoted catalysts were attributed to partial coverage of the surface of nickel by patches of 

promoters, strong metal-support interaction (TPR, H2 pulse chemisorption, H2-TPD), and their increased 

CO2 adsorption (CO2-TPD). For the stable 13.5Ni-2K/10CeO2-Al2O3 catalyst, the effect of reaction 

temperature and contact time on conversion and product yield was studied. It was found that the 

conversion and product yield increased with increasing reaction temperature and W/FCH4,0 and reached 

equilibrium at W/FCH4,0 = 1.7 kg-cat·h/kgmethane. The mechanism of the CH4/CO2 reaction has been 

proposed, based on which a kinetic model was developed to estimate the kinetic parameters. The 

estimated kinetic parameters predicted the product yields satisfactorily. CH4 activation to form CHx and 

CHxO decomposition are suggested to be the rate-determining steps of the CH4/CO2 reaction over the 

13.5Ni-2K/10CeO2-Al2O3 catalyst. The activation energy for methane adsorption and dissociation (Ek1L), 

CHxO decomposition (Ek7L), and reverse water gas shift reaction (Ekr) were estimated to be 113.8 ± 5.5, 

119.3 ± 4.7, and 155.3 ± 7.0 kilojoules per mole (kJ/mol), respectively. Nandini A. Pechimuthu, Kamal 

K. Pant, Subhash C. Dhingra, and Rohit Bhalla, Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Research, 45

55
(22), 7435 -7443, 2006. 10.1021/ie060661q S0888-5885(06)00661-0, Web release date, September 29, 

2006, http://pubs.acs.org/cgi-bin/abstract.cgi/iecred/2006/45/i22/abs/ie060661q.html. (Subscription 

required.) 

“Feasibility Assessment of Microalgal Carbon Dioxide Sequestration Technology with 

Photobioreactor and Solar Collector.” The aim of this study was to develop a feasibility model for 

microalgal carbon dioxide (CO2) biofixation using photobioreactors equipped with solar collectors, which 

would evaluate the unit net cost of CO2 mitigation as a function of the target total CO2 mitigation cost, the 

available solar radiation, and the biological conversion efficiency, among others. The results showed 

that, to achieve the target CO2 mitigation price of 30 $ t−1

 [CO2] at 40 percent biological conversion 

efficiency, the allowable net cost should be less than $252 m−2

 yr−1 at low-light intensity (average US 

location), and should be less than $3.24 m−2

 yr−1 at high light intensity (sunbelt region). The model made 

evident the importance of using microalgae with commercially valuable byproducts (e.g. biofuel), 

especially in achieving the smaller allowable unit net costs corresponding to more stringent CO2

mitigation costs. E. Ono and J.L. Cuello, Biosystems Engineering,

doi:10.1016/j.biosystemseng.2006.08.005, Available online October 16, 2006, 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6WXV-4M4CN5S1/2/2515673106115b3686f3d15355322e82. (Subscription may be required.) 

“High efficiency electric power generation: The environmental role.” Electric power generation 

system development is reviewed with special attention to plant efficiency. It is generally understood that 

efficiency improvement that is consistent with high plant reliability and low cost of electricity is 

economically beneficial, but its effect upon reduction of all plant emissions without installation of 

additional environmental equipment, is less well appreciated. As carbon dioxide (CO2) emission control is 

gaining increasing acceptance, efficiency improvement, as the only practical tool capable of reducing 

CO2 emission from fossil fuel plant in the short term, has become a key concept for the choice of 

technology for new plant and upgrades of existing plant. Efficiency is also important for longer-term 

solutions of reducing CO2 emission by carbon capture and sequestration (CCS); it is essential for the 

underlying plants to be highly efficient so as to mitigate the energy penalty of CCS technology 

application. Power generating options, including coal-fired Rankine cycle steam plants with advanced 

steam parameters, natural gas-fired gas turbine-steam, and coal gasification combined cycle plants are 

discussed and compared for their efficiency, cost and operational availability. Special attention is paid to 

the timeline of the various technologies for their development, demonstration and commercial availability 

for deployment. János M. Beér, Progress in Energy and Combustion Science, Available online October 

17, 2006, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6V3W-4M4KK3C1/2/7d6d3f50dc78ea92b377cfe4a860409f. 

“Combustion processes for carbon capture,” A review of the technologies for coal-based power 

generation closest to commercial application involving carbon capture is presented. Carbon capture and 

storage (CCS) developments are primarily adaptations of conventional combustion systems, with 

additional unit operations such as bulk oxygen supply, CO2 capture by sorbents, CO2 compression, and 

storage. They use pulverized coal combustion in entrained flow—the dominant current technology for 

coal-based power, or gasification in entrained flow, although similar concepts apply to other solid–gas 

contacting systems such as fluidized beds. Currently, the technologies have similar generation 

efficiencies and are associated with efficiency penalties and electricity cost increases due to operations 

required for carbon capture. The R&D challenges identified for the combustion scientist and engineer, 

with current understanding being detailed, are those of design, optimization and operational aspects of 

new combustion and gasification plant, controlling the gas quality required by CCS related units and 

associated emission compliance, and gas separations. Fundamental research needs include fuel 

reactions at pressure, and in O2/CO2 atmospheres, as few studies have been made in this area. 

Laboratory results interpreted and then included in CFD models of combustion operations are necessary. 

Also identified, but not detailed, are combustion issues in gas turbines for IGCC and IGCC-CCS. 

Fundamental studies should be a component of pilot-plant and demonstrations at practical scale being 

56
planned. Concepts for new designs of combustion equipment are also necessary for the next generation 

of technologies. The challenges involved with the design and operation of these integrated systems, 

while supplying electricity on demand, are considerable. Terry F. Wall, Proceedings of the Combustion 

Institute, Available online October 2, 2006, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B7GWS4M1DBB6-4/2/7e801408e48d6a0a6cc8b09aa9bbb02d. 

“Narrow fluidized beds arranged to exchange heat between a combustion chamber and a CO2

sorbent regenerator.” Experiments in a cold model have been conducted to determine lateral solid 

diffusion coefficients in a narrow fluidized bed. The experimental data have been obtained using an 

image analysis technique that traces the dispersion of phosphor coated particles in the bed. A diffusion 

model has been used to describe lateral solids mixing in the configuration proposed for the narrow 

fluidized bed. The equation proposed by Shi and Fan [1984. Lateral mixing of solids in batch gas–solids 

fluidized beds. Industrial and Engineering Chemistry, Process Design and Development 23, 337–341] to 

calculate the diffusion coefficient in the radial direction fits well the available experimental data. The solid 

diffusion coefficients obtained have been used to solve a heat transfer problem and discuss the feasibility 

of a fluidized bed system that makes use of narrow fluidized beds arranged to transfer heat from bed to 

bed through a separating wall between them. This novel configuration of fluidized bed reactors could find 

application in some emerging systems that make use of solid regenerable sorbents to capture CO2. G.S. 

Grasa and J.C. Abanades, Chemical Engineering Science, Available online September 15, 2006, 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6TFK-4KWT6D5-

5/2/d1ed9eecc5f6d3e7e456942e8a5d4ce0. 

January 2007

“Adoption of carbon dioxide efficient technologies and practices: An analysis of sector-specific 

convergence trends among 12 nations,” Carbon dioxide intensities in economic terms (gross 

domestic product in Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) terms) in industrialized and developing countries 

have been shown to converge, and it has been argued that technology diffusion, leading to the use of 

similar technologies in all countries, is an important reason for this convergence. Indicators based on 

carbon dioxide (CO2) per output in PPP terms, however, give in comparison to physical indicators limited 

understanding of the process of technology diffusion. In order to analyze the technology diffusion 

hypothesis in more detail, the authors therefore study the trend in carbon dioxide emissions in relation to 

the production output in four separate sectors: iron and steel; paper, board and pulp; coal fueled power 

plants; and natural gas fueled power plants, in each of 12 countries, between 1980 and 1998. The 

indicators converge in each sector, indicating that across countries, technologies with more similar 

carbon dioxide efficiencies are used today than 25 years ago. The authors also find that at least some 

developing countries with high energy prices use more efficient technologies than industrialized countries 

with low energy prices. Tobias A. Persson, Ulrika Claeson Colpier and Christian Azar, Energy Policy,

Available online November 28, 2006, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6V2W-4MFJTKJ1/2/e3e88b9d6c9d3ff7fb52a3aff970e3df. (Subscription may be required.) 

“Modeling and simulation of fixed bed adsorbers (FBAs) for multi-component gaseous 

separations.” A rigorous model for multi-component adsorbers is developed. This considers nonisothermal effects, pressure variations, axial dispersion of components inside the gas (macro-void) phase 

as well as the diffusion of components inside the particles (micro-void). The partial differential equations 

(PDEs) for the gas phase are converted into ordinary differential equations (ODEs) or algebraic 

equations, using the finite difference technique in the axial direction. The method of orthogonal 

collocation (OC) is used to convert the PDEs for the diffusion inside the particles into ODEs. The 

complete set of differential-algebraic equations (DAEs) is solved using the Petzold-Gear technique. Data 

on two systems [O2–N2 on Zeolite 5A (Jee et al., 2002 [Jee, J. G., Park, M. K., Yoo, H. K., Lee, K.,& Lee, 

C. H. (2002). Adsorption and desorption characteristics of air on zeolite 5A, 10X, and 13X fixed beds, 

Separation Science and Technology, 37, 3465–3490]), and CO2–C2H6–N2 on Linde 5A molecular sieves 

(Basmadjian and Wright, 1981 [Basmadjian, D., & Wright, D.W. (1981). Non-isothermal sorption of 

57
ethane-carbon dioxide mixtures in beds of 5A molecular sieves. Chemical Engineering Science, 36, 937–

940])] are taken from the literature for validation of this model. The optimal values of the model 

parameters are obtained using one set of experimental data for each of these systems. Genetic 

algorithm is used for this purpose. Excellent agreement is observed between the predictions of the tuned 

model and the experimental data used. In addition, it was observed that the predictions of the tuned 

model agree quite well with several other sets of experimental data (under different operating conditions). 

The more popular multi-component LDF model is also tuned on the same data, but the model predictions 

do not match experimental data as well. Since the computational time is almost the same for the two 

models, the rigorous model is recommended for use. B. Sankararao and Santosh K. Gupta, 

Computers & Chemical Engineering, Available online November 28, 2006, 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6TFT-4MFKD7V1/2/8a964bb6c149573351d407500b6f58e4. (Subscription may be required.) 

February 2007 

“Making carbon sequestration a paying proposition.” Atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) has 

increased from a pre-industrial concentration of about 280 parts per million (ppm) to about 367 ppm at 

present. The increase has closely followed the increase in CO2 emissions from the use of fossil fuels. 

Global warming caused by increasing amounts of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is the major 

environmental challenge for the 21st century. Reducing worldwide emissions of CO2 requires multiple 

mitigation pathways, including reductions in energy consumption, more efficient use of available energy, 

the application of renewable energy sources, and sequestration. Sequestration is a major tool for 

managing carbon emissions. In a majority of cases CO2 is viewed as waste to be disposed; however, 

with advanced technology, carbon sequestration can become a value-added proposition. There are a 

number of potential opportunities that render sequestration economically viable. In this study, the authors 

review these most economically promising opportunities and pathways of carbon sequestration, including 

reforestation, best agricultural production, housing and furniture, enhanced oil recovery, coalbed 

methane (CBM), and CO2 hydrates. Many of these terrestrial and geological sequestration opportunities 

are expected to provide a direct economic benefit over that obtained by merely reducing the atmospheric 

CO2 loading. Sequestration opportunities in 11 states of the Southeast and South Central United States 

are discussed. Among the most promising methods for the region include reforestation and CBM. The 

annual forest carbon sink in this region is estimated to be 76 teragrams of carbon per year (Tg C/year), 

which would amount to an expenditure of $11.1–13.9 billion/year. Best management practices could 

enhance carbon sequestration by 53.9 Tg C/year, accounting for 9.3 percent of current total annual 

regional greenhouse gas emission in the next 20 years. Annual carbon storage in housing, furniture, and 

other wood products in 1998 was estimated to be 13.9 Tg C in the region. Other sequestration options, 

including the direct injection of CO2 in deep saline aquifers, mineralization, and biomineralization, are not 

expected to lead to direct economic gain. More detailed studies are needed for assessing the ultimate 

changes to the environment and the associated indirect cost savings for carbon sequestration. 

Fengxiang X. Han, Jeff S. Lindner and Chuji Wang, Naturwissenschaften, Published online November 

14, 2006, 

http://www.springerlink.com/content/h1t0115881365472/?p=68bebc293219422d8a059349b4f5889d&pi=

9. (Subscription required.) 

March 2007 

“Use of a vehicle-modeling tool for predicting CO2 emissions in the framework of European 

regulations for light goods vehicles.” The reduction of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and fuel 

consumption from road transportation constitutes an important pillar of the EU commitment for 

implementing the Kyoto Protocol. Efforts to monitor and limit CO2 emissions from vehicles can effectively 

be supported by the use of vehicle modeling tools. This paper presents the application of such a tool for 

predicting CO2 emissions of vehicles under different operating conditions and shows how the results 

58
from simulations can be used for supporting policy analysis and design aiming at further reductions of the 

CO2 emissions. For this purpose, the case of light duty goods (N1 category) vehicle CO2 emissions 

control measures adopted by the EU is analyzed. In order to understand how certain design and 

operating aspects affect fuel consumption, a number of N1 vehicles were simulated with ADVISOR for 

various operating conditions and the numerical results were validated against chassis dynamometer 

tests. The model was then employed for analyzing and evaluating the new EU legislative framework that 

addresses CO2 emissions from this vehicle class. The results of this analysis have shown the 

weaknesses of the current regulations and revealed new potential in CO2 emissions control. Finally, the 

TREMOVE model was used for simulating a possible scenario for reducing CO2 emissions at fleet level. 

Georgios Fontaras, Hariton Kouridis, Zissis Samaras, Daniel Elst and Raymond Gense, 

Atmospheric Environment, Published online January 22, 2007. 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6VH3-4MW95P7-

2/2/efd45e603c94132287cb82f4714e8bb5. (Subscription may be required.) 

April 2007

“Sustainable clean coal power generation within a European context – The view in 2006.” The 

future use of coal will require strict environmental compliance with an increasing need to minimize 

emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2), particularly from power plants. A pan-European approach is being 

established to ensure that European Union industry can have available, by 2020, fossil fuel power plants 

that are either capable of capturing almost all their CO2 emissions in an economically viable manner, or 

are designed to include CO2 capture systems (“capture-ready”). The overall aim is to provide a significant 

impetus to research, development, demonstration and deployment activities such that coal and other 

fossil fuels can be used in a sustainable manner. A.J. Minchener and J.T. McMullan, Fuel, Published 

online February 21, 2007, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6V3B-4N3PY24-

1/2/422d8192cdba1092d30a7dd2a5680ca9. (Subscription may be required.)

“Initial evaluation of the impact of post-combustion capture of carbon dioxide on supercritical 

pulverized coal power plant part load performance.” Pulverized coal-fired plants often play an 

important role in electricity grids as mid-merit plants that can operate flexibly in response to changes in 

supply and demand. As a consequence, these plants are required to operate over a wide output range. 

This paper presents an initial evaluation of some potential impacts of adding post-combustion carbon 

dioxide (CO2) capture on the part load performance of pulverized coal-fired plants. Preliminary results for 

ideal cases analyzed using a simple high-level model indicate that post-combustion CO2 capture could 

increase the options available to power plant operators. In particular, solvent storage could allow higher 

effective plant load factors to be achieved to assist with capital recovery while still permitting flexible 

operation for grid support. A number of areas for more detailed analysis are identified. Hannah 

Chalmers and Jon Gibbins, Fuel, Published online February 27, 2007. 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6V3B-4N4YTKP3/2/19c2ddb9877481d5ae36679ac9831b2d. (Subscription may be required.) 

May 2007 

“Capture-ready coal plants – Options, technologies and economics.” This paper summarizes the 

spectrum of options that can be employed during the initial design and construction of pulverized coal 

(PC), and integrated gasification and combined cycle (IGCC) plants to reduce the capital costs and 

energy losses associated with retrofitting for carbon dioxide (CO2) capture at some later time in the 

future. It also estimates lifetime (40 year) net present value (NPV) costs of plants with differing levels of 

pre-investment for CO2 capture under a wide range of CO2 price scenarios. Three scenarios are 

evaluated—a baseline supercritical PC plant, a baseline IGCC plant and an IGCC plant with preinvestment for capture. This analysis evaluates each technology option under a range of CO2 price 

scenarios and determines the optimum year of retrofit, if any. The results of the analysis show that a 

59
baseline PC plant is the most economical choice under low CO2 prices, and IGCC plants are preferable 

at higher CO2 prices (e.g., an initial price of about $22/ton CO2 starting in 2015 and growing at 2 percent 

per year). Little difference is seen in the lifetime NPV costs between the IGCC plants with and without 

pre-investment for CO2 capture. This paper also examines the impact of technology choice on lifetime 

CO2 emissions. The difference in lifetime emissions becomes significant only under mid-estimate CO2

price scenarios (roughly between $20 and 40/ton CO2) where IGCC plants will retrofit sooner than a PC 

plant. Mark C. Bohm, Howard J. Herzog, John E. Parsons and Ram C. Sekar, International Journal of 

Greenhouse Gas Control, Available online March 23, 2007, doi:10.1016/S1750-5836(07)00033-3, 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B83WP-4NB38PW1/2/0f9786693be185b20c0f97df15232f80. (Subscription may be required.)

“Use of experience curves to estimate the future cost of power plants with CO2 capture.” Given 

the dominance of power plant emissions of greenhouse gases, and the growing worldwide interest in 

carbon dioxide (CO2) capture and storage (CCS) as a potential climate change mitigation option, the 

expected future cost of power plants with CO2 capture is of significant interest. Reductions in the cost of 

technologies as a result of learning-by-doing, R&D investments and other factors have been observed 

over many decades. This study uses historical experience curves as the basis for estimating future cost 

trends for four types of electric power plants equipped with CO2 capture systems: pulverized coal (PC) 

and natural gas combined cycle (NGCC) plants with post-combustion CO2 capture; coal-based 

integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) plants with pre-combustion capture; and coal-fired oxyfuel 

combustion for new PC plants. [The authors] first assess the rates of cost reductions achieved by other 

energy and environmental process technologies in the past. Then, by analogy with leading capture plant 

designs, [the authors] estimate future cost reductions that might be achieved by power plants employing 

CO2 capture. Effects of uncertainties in key parameters on projected cost reductions also are evaluated 

via sensitivity analysis. Edward S. Rubin, Sonia Yeh, Matt Antes, Michael Berkenpas and John 

Davison, Available Online February 26, 2007, International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control, 

doi:10.1016/S1750-5836(07)00016-3, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B83WP-4N4S69V1/2/0a29f2daa919c8f774445b761eef6404. (Subscription may be required.)

“Modeling the impacts of climate policy on the deployment of carbon dioxide capture and 

geologic storage across electric power regions in the United States.” This paper summarizes the 

results of a first-of-its-kind holistic, integrated economic analysis of the potential role of carbon dioxide 

(CO2) capture and storage (CCS) technologies across the regional segments of the United States (US) 

electric power sector, over the time frame 2005–2045, in response to two hypothetical emissions control 

policies analyzed against two potential energy supply futures that include updated and substantially 

higher projected prices for natural gas. This paper's detailed analysis is made possible by combining two 

specialized models developed at Battelle: the Battelle CO2-GIS to determine the regional capacity and 

cost of CO2 transport and geologic storage; and the Battelle Carbon Management Electricity Model, an 

electric system optimal capacity expansion and dispatch model, to examine the investment and operation 

of electric power technologies with CCS against the background of other options. A key feature of this 

paper's analysis is an attempt to explicitly model the inherent heterogeneities that exist in both the 

nation's current and future electricity generation infrastructure and in its candidate deep geologic CO2

storage formations. Overall, between 180 and 580 gigawatts (GW) of coal-fired integrated gasification 

combined cycle with CCS (IGCC + CCS) capacity is built by 2045 in these four scenarios, requiring 

between 12 and 41 gigatonnes of CO2 storage in regional deep geologic reservoirs across the US. 

Nearly all of this CO2 is from new IGCC + CCS systems, which start to deploy after 2025. Relatively little 

IGCC + CCS capacity is built before that time, primarily under unique niche opportunities. For the most 

part, CO2 emissions prices will likely need to be sustained at over $20/tonne CO2 before CCS begins to 

deploy on a large scale within the electric power sector. Within these broad national trends, a highly 

nuanced picture of CCS deployment across the US emerges. Across the four scenarios studied here, 

power plant builders and operators within some North American Electric Reliability Council (NERC) 

regions do not employ any CCS while other regions build more than 100 GW of CCS-enabled generation 

capacity. One region sees as much as 50 percent of its geologic CO2 storage reservoirs’ total theoretical 

60
capacity consumed by 2045, while most of the regions still have more than 90 percent of their potential 

storage capacity available to meet storage needs in the second half of the century and beyond. A 

detailed presentation of the results for power plant builds and operation in two key regions: East Central 

Area Reliability Coordination Agreement (ECAR) in the Midwest and Electric Reliability Council of Texas 

(ERCOT) in Texas, provides further insight into the diverse set of economic decisions that generate the 

national and aggregate regional results. Marshall Wise, James Dooley, Robert Dahowski and Casie 

Davidson, International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control, Available online February 26, 2007, 

doi:10.1016/S1750-5836(07)00017-5, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B83WP-4N4S13R2/2/422118edf280434f7c4c1df360c45400. (Subscription may be required.)

June 2007 

“A novel process integration, optimization and design approach for large-scale implementation of 

oxy-fired coal power plants with CO2 capture.” The widespread use of fossil fuels within the current 

energy infrastructure is considered as the largest source of anthropogenic emissions of carbon dioxide 

[CO2], which is largely blamed for global warming and climate change. At the current state of 

development, the risks and costs of non-fossil energy alternatives, such as nuclear, biomass, solar, and 

wind energy, are so high that they cannot replace the entire share of fossil fuels in the near future 

timeframe. Additionally, any rapid change towards non-fossil energy sources, even if possible, would 

result in large disruptions to the existing energy supply infrastructure. As an alternative, the existing and 

new fossil fuel-based plants can be modified or designed to be either “capture” or “capture-ready” plants 

in order to reduce their emission intensity through the capture and permanent storage of carbon dioxide 

in geological formations. This would give the coal-fired power generation units the option to sustain their 

operations for longer time, while meeting the stringent environmental regulations on air pollutants and 

carbon emissions in years to come. Currently, there are three main approaches to capturing CO2 from 

the combustion of fossil fuels, namely, pre-combustion capture, post-combustion capture, and oxy-fuel 

combustion. Among these technology options, oxy-fuel combustion provides an elegant approach to CO2

capture. In this approach, by replacing air with oxygen in the combustion process, a CO2-rich flue gas 

stream is produced that can be readily compressed for pipeline transport and storage. In this paper, [the 

authors] propose a new approach that allows air to be partially used in the oxy-fired coal power plants. In 

this novel approach, the air can be used to carry the coal from the mills to the boiler (similar to the 

conventional air-fired coal power plants), while O2 is added to the secondary recycle flow as well as 

directly to the combustion zone (if needed). From a practical point of view, this approach eliminates 

problems with the primary recycle and also lessens concerns about the air leakage into the system. At 

the same time, it allows the boiler and its back-end piping to operate under slight suction; this avoids the 

potential danger to the plant operators and equipment due to possible exposure to hot combustion 

gases, CO2 and particulates. As well, by integrating oxy-fuel system components and optimizing the 

overall process over a wide range of operating conditions, an optimum or near-optimum design can be 

achieved that is both cost-effective and practical for large-scale implementation of oxy-fired coal power 

plants. Kourosh E. Zanganeh and Ahmed Shafeen, International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control, 

Published online March 26, 2007, doi:10.1016/S1750-5836(07)00035-7, 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B83WP-4NBR48X2/2/0c4c28f2bfb47d74035258ee5115e87c. (Subscription may be required.) 

July 2007

“Trade-off in emissions of acid gas pollutants and of carbon dioxide in fossil fuel power plants 

with carbon capture.” This paper investigates the impact of capture of [CO2] from fossil fuel power 

plants on the emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOX) and sulphur oxides (SOX), which are acid gas 

pollutants. This was done by estimating the emissions of these chemical compounds from natural gas 

combined cycle and pulverized coal plants, equipped with post-combustion carbon capture technology 

for the removal of CO2 from their flue gases, and comparing them with the emissions of similar plants 

61
without CO2 capture. The capture of CO2 is not likely to increase the emissions of acid gas pollutants 

from individual power plants; on the contrary, some NOX and SOX will also be removed during the 

capture of CO2. The large-scale implementation of carbon capture is however likely to increase the 

emission levels of NOX from the power sector due to the reduced efficiency of power plants equipped 

with capture technologies. Furthermore, SOX emissions from coal plants should be decreased to avoid 

significant losses of the chemicals that are used to capture CO2. The increase in the quantity of NOX

emissions will be however low, estimated at 5 [percent] for the natural gas power plant park and 24 

[percent] for the coal plants, while the emissions of SOX from coal fired plants will be reduced by as much 

as 99 [percent] when at least 80 [percent] of the CO2 generated will be captured. Evangelos Tzimas, 

Arnaud Mercier, Calin-Cristian Cormos and Stathis D. Peteves, Energy Policy, Published online 

March 26, 2007, doi:10.1016/j.enpol.2007.01.027, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6V2W4NBRFXP-1/2/102cce4148093cece5fa1da5e933eed0. (Subscription may be required.) 

August 2007 

“CO2 capture by adsorption with nitrogen enriched carbons.” The success of CO2 capture with solid 

sorbents is dependent on the development of a low cost sorbent with high CO2 selectivity and adsorption 

capacity. Immobilised amines are expected to offer the benefits of liquid amines in the typical absorption 

process, with the added advantages that solids are easy to handle and that they do not give rise to 

corrosion problems. In this work, different alkylamines were evaluated as a potential source of basic sites 

for CO2 capture, and a commercial activated carbon was used as a preliminary support in order to study 

the effect of the impregnation. The amine coating increased the basicity and nitrogen content of the 

carbon. However, it drastically reduced the microporous volume of the activated carbon, which is chiefly 

responsible for CO2 physisorption, thus decreasing the capacity of raw carbon at room temperature. 

M.G. Plaza, C. Pevida, A. Arenillas, F. Rubiera and J.J. Pis, Fuel, Published online July 2, 2007, 

doi:10.1016/j.fuel.2007.06.001, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6V3B-4P3KYKW1/2/8ae9e8eecebc889199c179357f27b505. (Subscription may be required.) 

“Novel Regenerable Sodium-Based Sorbents for CO2 Capture at Warm Gas Temperatures.” A 

novel sorbent consisting of NaOH/CaO [sodium hydroxide/calcium oxide] was developed for CO2 capture 

at 315° C [degrees Celsius] suitable for high-temperature CO2-capture applications, such as coal 

gasification systems. The sorbent is regenerable at 700° C, and steam does not affect the sorbent 

performance. A multicycle test conducted in the atmospheric reactor at 315° C indicated that the sorbent 

improved the performance with an increased number of cycles. The sorbent can also capture CO2 at a 

wide range of temperatures from ambient to 500° C. However, the mechanism of CO2 capture is different 

at ambient temperature. The sorbent is unique because it has a high CO2-capture capacity of more than 

3 mol/kg at 315° C and is regenerable at 700° C. Ranjani V. Siriwardane, Clark Robinson, Ming Shen, 

and Tom Simonyi, Energy Fuels, Published online June 9, 2007, doi: 10.1021/ef070008v, Link 

unavailable. 

Terrestrial/Ocean 

September 2006 

“Policy and technological constraints to implementation of greenhouse gas mitigation options in 

agriculture.” A recent assessment of agricultural greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions has demonstrated 

significant potential for mitigation, but suggests that the full mitigation will not be realized due to 

significant barriers to implementation. In this paper, the authors explore the constraints and barriers to 

implementation important for GHG mitigation in agriculture. The authors also examine how climate and 

non-climate policy in different regions of the world has affected agricultural GHG emissions in the recent 

past, and how it may affect emissions and mitigation implementation in the future. The authors examine 

62
the links between mitigation and adaptation and drives for sustainable development and the potential for 

agricultural GHG mitigation in the future. The authors describe how some countries have initiated climate 

and non-climate policies believed to have direct effects or synergistic effects on mitigating GHG 

emissions from agriculture. Global sharing of innovative technologies for efficient use of land resources 

and agricultural chemicals, to eliminate poverty and malnutrition, will significantly mitigate GHG 

emissions from agriculture. Previous studies have shown that as less than 30 percent of the total 

biophysical potential for agricultural GHG mitigation might be achieved by 2030, due to price- and nonprice-related barriers to implementation. The challenge for successful agricultural GHG mitigation will be 

to remove these barriers by implementing creative policies. Identifying policies that provide benefits for 

climate, as well as for aspects of economic, social and environmental sustainability, will be critical for 

ensuring that effective GHG mitigation options are widely implemented in the future. Pete Smith, Daniel 

Martino, Zucong Cai, Daniel Gwary, Henry Janzen, Pushpam Kumar, Bruce McCarl, Stephen Ogle, 

Frank O'Mara, Charles Rice et al, Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, Available online July 18, 

2006, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6T3Y-4KF6BK4-

1/2/91b9e64a0c7ec66d438899c86dc09c3d. (Subscription may be required.) 

October 2006 

"Soil Properties and Carbon Sequestration of Afforested Pastures in Reclaimed Minesoils of 

Ohio." Land-use change affects many soil properties, including soil organic carbon (SOC) pool, and the 

transfer of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) to terrestrial landscapes. The objective of this study was to

evaluate the effects of converting pastureland to Australian pine (Casuarina spp) and black locust 

(Robinia pseudoacacia L) forest on selected soil physical and chemical properties and SOC 

sequestration in reclaimed minesoils (RMS) of southeastern Ohio. The study sites were surface mined 

for coal, reclaimed and managed as pasture, and then converted into woodland 10 years before the 

present study. Soil pH and electrical conductivity (EC) were higher in the RMS than in a nearby 

undisturbed hardwood forest. Conversion to Australian pine decreased soil pH and EC in the top 20 

centimeters (cm). Bulk densities of the RMS ranged from 1.24 to 1.82 megagrams per cubic meter (Mg 

m-3 ), and only minor changes were observed in soil bulk density after land-use conversion. Mean weight 

diameter (MWD) and root biomass increased significantly (P < 0.05) with conversion of pasture to 

Australian pine or black locust. In addition, aggregate stability was greater in RMS under hardwood forest 

than under pasture. Conversion to the Australian pine forest increased the SOC pool in the top 50 cm by 

6 megagrams per hectare (Mg ha-1 ) (11 percent) in 10 yr. However, the nitrogen pool in the top 50 cm 

was not affected by the land-use conversion from pasture to Australian pine. Conversion to black locust 

increased the SOC pool in the top 50 cm by 24 Mg ha-1 (42 percent), while the nitrogen pool increased by 

10 percent under Black locust in year 10. The increase in the SOC pool was accompanied by an 

increase in the carbon/nitrogen (C/N) ratios and root biomass in both Australian pine and black locust 

sites in the 20- to 50-cm depth. Establishment of tree plantation has a greater potential for SOC 

sequestration than pastures in the RMS. D. A. N. Ussiri, R. Lal and P. A. Jacinthe, Soil Science 

Society of America Journal, 70:1797-1806 (2006), Published online August 22, 2006. DOI: 

10.2136/sssaj2005.0352. http://soil.scijournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/70/5/1797. (Subscription may be 

required.) 

"Methodological issues in developing a community forestry greenhouse gas emissions 

mitigation project in Mancherial forest division of Andhra Pradesh, India." There are several 

contentious issues related to forestry mitigation projects. The special report of the IPCC and literature 

published so far have shown that permanence, leakage, baseline establishment, measurement, 

monitoring, etc., could be addressed satisfactorily using existing scientific methods and accounting rules. 

To understand the methodological issues of developing community forestry projects, a case study was 

conducted in Mancherial forest division of Adilabad district in Andhra Pradesh, India. This paper 

addresses: the setting of project boundaries, baseline selection, establishment of additionality and the 

calculation of carbon sequestration as a result of the project, prior to project implementation. The steps 

63
involved in development of the project and the different methods used for establishing baseline, 

estimating leakage and transaction cost of developing a community forestry project are presented. The 

stock is projected to increase by 1480 × 103

 tons of Carbon (t C) during 2000-2012 over the baseline 

scenario under the modeling approach and the cost of establishing a baseline and project formulation for 

a project extending over 32,956 hectare (ha) is estimated to be US $1.25 per hectare (ha?1 ) and $4 per 

ton of carbon (t C?1). I.K. Murthy, G.T. Hegde, P. Sudha and N.H. Ravindranath, Environmental 

Science & Policy, Volume 9, Issue 6, , October 2006, Pages 525-537, 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6VP6-4KKNNJ9-

1/2/efa0201faa473eefe72d4f0c330bbcbd. (Subscription may be required.)

"Storage and forms of organic carbon in a no-tillage under cover crops system on clayey Oxisol 

in dryland rice production (Cerrados, Brazil)." The management and enhancement of soil organic 

carbon (SOC) is very important for agriculture (fertility) as well as for the environment (carbon 

sequestration). Consequently, changes in soil management may alter SOC content. No-tillage (NT) 

practices are potential ways to increase SOC. We studied the SOC from agricultural soils in the Cerrados 

in Central Brazil. We compared two different tillage systems: conservation agriculture with no-tillage 

under cover crops (NT) and disc tillage (DT) for 5 years in a context of rainfed rice production. The soil is 

a dark red Oxisol with high clay content (about 40 percent). The objectives of the study were: (i) to 

evaluate the short-term (5 years) impact of tillage systems on SOC stocks in an Oxisol and (ii) to better 

understand the dynamics of SOC in different fractions of this soil. The authors first studied the initial 

situation in 1998, and compared it to the 2003 situation. NT with cover crop (Crotalaria) was found to 

increase the storage of carbon in the topsoil layer (0-10 centimeters (cm)) compared to DT. The 

difference observed for the 0-10 cm layer under NT in comparison with DT represented carbon 

enrichment under no-tillage amounting to 0.35 megagrams of carbon per hectare per year (Mg C 

ha-1 year-1) and corresponding to less than 10 percent of cover crops residues returned to the soil. A 

particle-size fractionation of soil organic matter (SOM) showed that differences in total SOC between NT 

and DT mainly affected the 0-2 microgram (μm) fraction and, to a smaller extent the 2-20 μm fraction. 

This specific enrichment of SOC in the silt and clay fraction was attributed to (i) the storage of a water 

soluble carbon in the field and (ii) the effect of soil biota and especially fauna activity. The mean 

residence time of carbon associated with the fine fractions being rather long, it might be assumed that 

the preferential storage in fine fractions resulted in a long-term carbon storage. This study suggests a 

positive short-term effect of a no-tillage system on carbon sequestration in an Oxisol. Aurélie Metay, 

José Aloisio Alves Moreira, Martial Bernoux, Thomas Boyer, Jean-Marie Douzet, Brigitte Feigl, 

Christian Feller, Florent Maraux, Robert Oliver and Eric Scopel, Soil and Tillage Research, Available 

online September 7, 2006. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6TC6-4KV2R9B1/2/54bc59a525bac6678ef0afc1bc9c4d63. (Subscription may be required.)

November 2006 

“Management Practice Effects on Surface Total Carbon, Differences in Spatial Variability 

Patterns.” Lack of information about the spatial variability of soil carbon in different management 

systems limits accurate extrapolation of carbon sequestration findings to large scales. The objectives of 

this study were to: (i) describe and quantify variability of total carbon in three management systems, 

chisel-plow (CT) and no-till (NT) with conventional chemical inputs and a chisel-plow organic 

management practice with cover crops (CT-cover) 15 years after conversion from conventional 

management; (ii) assess the strengths of spatial correlation in the three studied systems; and (iii) 

evaluate contributions of topography and texture to the overall total carbon variability and its spatial 

components. The data were collected at 12 60 by 60 meter plots at the Long Term Ecological Research 

site, Kellogg Biological Station, MI. The data consisted of elevation measurements taken on a 2 by 5 

meter grid and a total of 1160 measurements of total carbon, sand, silt, and clay contents taken from the 

0- to 5-centimeter depth. Overall variability of total carbon in NT was more than four times greater than in 

CT, and in CT-cover the variability was more than two times greater than CT. Spatial correlation of total 

64
carbon was the strongest in NT, followed by CT-cover, and then by CT. Stronger spatial structures in NT 

and CT-cover were found to form in response to topographical and texture gradients. Effects of texture 

were largely associated with topographical effects; however, even when topography was controlled for, 

texture still substantially contributed to explaining total carbon variability. A. N. Kravchenko, G. P. 

Robertson, X. Hao and D. G. Bullock, Agronomy Journal, 98:1559-1568 (2006), Published online 

October 3, 2006. http://agron.scijournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/98/6/1559. (Subscription required.) 

December 2006

“How strongly can forest management influence soil carbon sequestration?” The authors reviewed 

the experimental evidence for long-term carbon (C) sequestration in soils as consequence of specific 

forest management strategies. Utilization of terrestrial C sinks alleviates the burden of countries which 

are committed to reducing their greenhouse gas emissions. Land-use changes such as those which 

result from afforestation and management of fast-growing tree species, have an immediate effect on the 

regional rate of C sequestration by incorporating carbon dioxide (CO2) in plant biomass. The potential for 

such practices is limited in Europe by environmental and political constraints. The management of 

existing forests can also increase C sequestration, but earlier reviews found conflicting evidence 

regarding the effects of forest management on soil C pools. The authors analyzed the effects of 

harvesting, thinning, fertilization application, drainage, tree species selection, and control of natural 

disturbances on soil C dynamics. The authors focused on factors that affect the C input to the soil and 

the C release via decomposition of soil organic matter (SOM). The differentiation of SOM into labile and 

stable soil C fractions is important. There is ample evidence about the effects of management on the 

amount of C in the organic layers of the forest floor, but much less information about measurable effects 

of management on stable C pools in the mineral soil. The C storage capacity of the stable pool can be 

enhanced by increasing the productivity of the forest and thereby increasing the C input to the soil. 

Minimizing the disturbances in the stand structure and soil reduces the risk of unintended C losses. The 

establishment of mixed species forests increases the stability of the forest and can avoid high rates of 

SOM decomposition. The rate of C accumulation and its distribution within the soil profile differs between 

tree species. Differences in the stability of SOM as a direct species effect have not yet been reported. 

Robert Jandl, Marcus Lindner, Lars Vesterdal, Bram Bauwens, Rainer Baritz, Frank Hagedorn, 

Dale W. Johnson, Kari Minkkinen and Kenneth A. Byrne, Geoderma, Available online October 31, 

2006, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6V67-4M7KB1B1/2/417832004a3fec643e32303a400054a9. 

January 2007

“Carbon and nitrogen in a temperate agroforestry system: Using stable isotopes as a tool to 

understand soil dynamics,” Natural exchanges of carbon (C) between the atmosphere, the oceans, 

and terrestrial ecosystems are currently being modified through human activities as a result of fossil fuel 

burning and the conversion of tropical forests to agricultural land. These activities have led to a steady 

increase of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) over the last two Centuries. The goal of this study was to 

determine the potential of temperate agroforestry systems to sequester C in soil. Therefore, changes in 

the soil organic C (SOC) and nitrogen (N) pools were quantified and the δ13C and δ15N stable isotope 

technique was applied to assess soil C and N dynamics in a 13-year old hybrid poplar alley cropping 

system in Southern Canada. Results from this study showed that after 13 years of alley cropping the 

SOC and N pools did not differ significantly (p = 0.01) with distance from the tree row, although a trend of 

a larger SOC and N pool near the tree row could be observed. Soil organic C after 13 years of alley 

cropping, was 19 milligrams of carbon per gram (mg C g−1

) compared to 11 mg C g−1 upon initiation of 

agroforestry. Soil organic C and N were not evenly distributed throughout the plow layer. The largest C 

and N pool occurred in the top 20 centimeters (cm), which is due to the accumulation of organic material 

in the upper horizons as a result of no-till cultivation. The entire soil, to a 40 cm depth, showed a δ13C 

shift to that of C3 residue. This shift reflects the greater input of residues from C3 plants such as that 

65
derived from beans, wheat, and hybrid poplar leaf litterfall. The proportion of C derived from a C3 source 

ranged from 64 to 69 percent to a 40 cm depth. The soil δ15N signature of this study is similar to that of 

mineral soil, and reflect values characteristic of N mineralization processes. However, the entire soil 

shows a positive shift in δ15N as a result of historical additions of manure and current use of mineral 

fertilizers, and ongoing processes of denitrification and nitrate leaching, which leads to an enrichment of 

the soil. Maren Oelbermann and R. Paul Voroney, Ecological Engineering, Available online November 

16, 2006, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6VFB-4MC0TCD1/2/d1fca1c73964fc964af77c14f2d79ca6. (Subscription may be required.) 

“Carbon sequestration in wood products: a method for attribution to multiple parties,” When 

forest is harvested some of the forest carbon ends up in wood products. If the forest is managed so that 

the standing stock of the forest remains constant over time, and the stock of wood products is increasing, 

then carbon dioxide is being removed from the atmosphere in net and this should be reflected in 

accounting for greenhouse gas emissions. The authors suggest that carbon sequestration in wood 

products requires cooperation of multiple parties; from the forest owner to the product manufacturer to 

the product user, and perhaps others. Credit for sequestering carbon away from the atmosphere could 

acknowledge the contributions of these multiple parties. Accounting under a cap-and-trade or tax system 

is not necessarily an inventory system, it is a system designed to motivate and/or reward an 

environmental objective. The authors describe a system of attribution whereby credits for carbon 

sequestration would be shared among multiple, contributing parties. It is hoped that the methodology 

outlined herein proves attractive enough to parties concerned to spur them to address the details of such 

a system. The system of incentives one would choose for limiting or controlling greenhouse gas 

emissions could be quite different, depending on how the attribution for emissions and sequestration is 

chosen. Bruce Tonn and Gregg Marland, Environmental Science & Policy, November 22, 2006, 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6VP6-4MD95F2-

1/2/5075797d87a730d253657a051877a7b3. (Subscription may be required.) 

“Some perspectives on carbon sequestration in agriculture,” One of the main options for 

greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation identified by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) 

is the sequestration of carbon in soils. Since the breaking of agricultural land in most regions, the carbon 

stocks have been depleted to such an extent, that they now represent a potential sink for carbon dioxide 

(CO2) removal from the atmosphere. Improved management will however, be required to increase the 

inputs of organic matter in the top soil and/or decrease decomposition rates. In this paper the authors 

use data from selected regions to explore the global potential for carbon sequestration in arable soils. 

While realizing that carbon sequestration is not limited to the selected regions, the authors have, 

however, focused their review on two regions: (i) Canadian Prairies and (ii) The Tropics. In temperate 

regions, management changes for an increase in carbon involve increase in cropping frequency 

(reducing bare fallow), increasing use of forages in crop rotations, reducing tillage intensity and 

frequency, better crop residue management, and adopting agroforestry. In the tropics, agroforestry 

remains the primary method by which sequestration rates may be significantly increased. Increases in 

soil carbon may be achieved through improved fertility of cropland/pasture; on extensive systems with 

shifting cultivation cropped fallows and cover crops may be beneficial, and adopting agro forestry or 

foresting marginal cropland is also an alternative. In addition, in the tropics it is imperative to reduce the 

clearing of forests for conversion to cropland. Some regional analyses of soil carbon sequestration and 

sequestration potential have been performed, mainly for temperate industrialized North America where 

the majority of research pertaining to carbon sequestration has been carried out. More research is 

needed, especially for the Tropics, to more accurately capture the impact of region-specific interactions 

between climate, soil, and management of resources on carbon sequestration, which are lost in global 

level assessments. By itself, carbon sequestration in agricultural soils can make only modest 

contributions (3–6 percent of fossil fuel contributions) to mitigation of overall greenhouse gas emissions. 

However, effective mitigation policies will not be based on any single ‘magic bullet’ solutions, but rather 

on many modest reductions which are economically efficient and which confer additional benefits to 

society. In this context, soil carbon sequestration is a significant mitigation option. J.J. Hutchinson, C.A. 

66
Campbell and R.L. Desjardins. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology, Available online November 28, 

2006, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6V8W-4MFJJ0K3/2/620a0b36c4b24faace27735d1c691238. (Subscription may be required.) 

February 2007 

“Satellite-derived estimates of potential carbon sequestration through afforestation of 

agricultural lands in the United States.” Afforestation of marginal agricultural lands represents a 

promising option for carbon sequestration in terrestrial ecosystems. An ecosystem carbon model was 

used to generate new national maps of annual net primary production (NPP), one each for continuous 

land covers of ‘forest’, ‘crop’, and ‘rangeland’ over the entire U S continental area. Direct inputs of 

satellite “greenness” data from the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) sensor into the 

NASA-CASA carbon model at 8-kilometer spatial resolution were used to estimate spatial variability in 

monthly NPP and potential biomass accumulation rates in a uniquely detailed manner. The model 

predictions of regrowth forest production lead to a conservative national projection of 0.3 petagrams of 

carbon (Pg C) as potential carbon stored each year on relatively low-production crop or rangeland areas. 

On a regional level, the top five states for total crop afforestation potential were: Texas, Minnesota, Iowa, 

Illinois, and Missouri, whereas the top five states for total rangeland afforestation potential are: Texas, 

California, Montana, New Mexico, and Colorado. Afforestation at this level of intensity has the capacity to 

offset at least one-fifth of annual fossil fuel emission of carbon in the United States. These projected 

afforestation carbon gains also match or exceed recent estimates of the annual sink for atmospheric CO2

in currently forested area of the country. Christopher Potter, Steven Klooster, Seth Hiatt, 

Matthew Fladeland, Vanessa Genovese and Peggy Gross, Climatic Change, Published online 

January 7, 2007, 

http://www.springerlink.com/content/644174p5877522r7/?p=edfad81ea2624efb8a5571342c9904b2&pi=

0. (Subscription required.) 

“Carbon sequestration in the U.S. forest sector from 1990 to 2010.” Forest inventory data 

supplemented with data from intensive research sites and models were used to estimate carbon stocks 

and sequestration rates in US forests, including effects of land use change. Data on the production of 

wood products and emission from decomposition were used to estimate carbon stocks and sequestration 

rates in wood products and landfills. From 1990 through 2005, the forest sector (including forests and 

wood products) sequestered an average 162 teragrams of carbon per year (Tg C year−1

). In 2005, 49 

percent of the total forest sector sequestration was in live and dead trees, 27 percent was in wood 

products in landfills, with the remainder in down dead wood, wood products in use, and forest floor and 

soil. The pools with the largest carbon stocks were not the same as those with the largest sequestration 

rates, except for the tree pool. For example, landfilled wood products comprise only 3 percent of total 

stocks but account for 27 percent of carbon sequestration. Conversely, forest soils comprise 48 percent 

of total stocks but account for only 2 percent of carbon sequestration. For the tree pool, the spatial 

pattern of carbon stocks was dissimilar to that of carbon flux. On an area basis, tree carbon stocks were 

highest in the Pacific Northwest, while changes were generally greatest in the upper Midwest and the 

Northeast. Net carbon sequestration in the forest sector in 2005 offset 10 percent of US carbon dioxide 

emissions. In the near future, the authors project that US forests will continue to sequester carbon at a 

rate similar to that in recent years. Based on a comparison of the authors’ estimates to a compilation of 

land-based estimates of non-forest carbon sinks from the literature, the authors estimate that the 

conterminous US annually sequesters 149–330 Tg C year−1

. Forests, urban trees, and wood products 

are responsible for 65–91 percent of this sink. Peter B. Woodbury, James E. Smith and Linda S. 

Heath, Forest Ecology and Management, Available online January 16, 2007. 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6T6X-4MV19VM3/2/d5d65e9f2b93b324785a2f7ae2a52978. (Subscription may be required.)

67
“Sequestration offsets versus direct emission reductions: Consideration of environmental coeffects.” Atmospheric greenhouse gas accumulation, and consequential temperature increase, can be 

remedied by emission reductions or agricultural carbon sequestration. Both options have direct and 

external environmental effects. This paper examines the magnitudes of existing estimates of 

corresponding external co-effects and how they could affect optimal combination of emission reductions 

and agricultural carbon sequestration. The authors discuss whether government intervention, in the form 

of taxation/subsidization, is justified for internalizing the externalities considering their relative 

magnitudes, implementation costs and potential benefits that could be derived from such intervention. 

The authors conclude that the existing estimates of external benefits from sequestration and emission 

reduction do not provide enough support for allocating resources to alter the market mix of carbon 

sequestration and direct emission reduction strategies. Levan Elbakidze and Bruce A. McCarl, 

Ecological Economics, Volume 60, Issue 3, January 15, 2007, Pages 564-571. 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6VDY-4JCCH2T2/2/6ba72c884dfde6ffe749e63e95ad4655. (Subscription may be required.) 

“Transfers and environmental co-benefits of carbon sequestration in agricultural soils: retiring 

agricultural land in the Upper Mississippi River Basin.” This study investigates the carbon

sequestration potential and co-benefits from policies aimed at retiring agricultural land in the Upper 

Mississippi River Basin, a large, heavily agricultural area. In addition to empirically measuring 

environmental co-benefits, the authors also compute economic transfers, which have sometimes been 

referred to as a co-benefit. Very little empirical work measuring the potential magnitude of these transfers 

has previously been undertaken. The authors compare and contrast alternative targeting schemes. They 

find that there are considerable amount of co-benefits and transfers and that the geographic distribution 

of co-benefits and transfers varies significantly with the specific benefit targeted. This implies that policy 

design related to targeting can have very important implications for both environmental conditions and 

income distributions in sub-regions. Issues related to policy design in the presence of co-benefits are 

considered. Hongli Feng, Catherine L. Kling and Philip W. Gassman, Climatic Change, Published 

online December 21, 2006, 

http://springerlink.metapress.com/content/b15716t573043j64/?p=3062f6e110254017a86197a3f145dd0e

&pi=6. (Subscription required.)

March 2007 

“Optimizing carbon sequestration in commercial forests by integrating carbon management 

objectives in wood supply modeling.” This paper provides a methodology for generating forest 

management plans, which explicitly maximize carbon sequestration at the forest-landscape level. This 

paper takes advantage of concepts first presented in a paper by Meng et al. (2003; Mitigation Adaptation 

Strategies Global Change 8:371–403) by integrating carbon sequestration objective functions in existing 

wood supply models. Carbon-stock calculations performed in WoodstockTM (RemSoft Inc.) are based on 

carbon yields generated from volume table data obtained from local Forest Development Survey plots 

and a series of wood volume-to-carbon content conversion factors specified in von Mirbach (2000). The 

approach is used to investigate the impact of three demonstration forest-management scenarios on the 

carbon budget in a 110,000 hectare (ha) forest in south-central New Brunswick, Canada. Explicit 

demonstration scenarios addressed include (1) maximizing timber extraction either by clearcut or 

selection harvesting for greatest revenue generation, (2) maximizing total carbon storage in the forest 

landscape and in wood products generated from harvesting, and (3) maximizing carbon storage together 

with revenue generation. The level of clearcut harvesting was greatest for scenario 1 (≥15 Ã— 104

 cubic 

meter (m3

) of wood and ≥943 ha of land per harvesting period), and least for scenario 2 (=0 m3 per 

harvesting period) where selection harvesting dominated. Because softwood saw logs were worth more 

than pulpwood ($60 m−3

 vs. $40 m−3) and were strategic to the long-term storage of carbon, the 

production of softwood saw logs exceeded the production of pulpwood in all scenarios. Selection 

harvesting was generally the preferred harvesting method across scenarios. Only in scenario 1 did levels 

of clearcut harvesting occasionally exceed those of selection harvesting, mainly in the removal of old, 

68
dilapidated stands early in the simulation (i.e., during periods 1 through 3). Scenario 2 provided the 

greatest total carbon-storage increase over 80 years (i.e., 14 Ã— 106

 Milligrams (Mg) carbon, or roughly 

264 Mg per hectare) at a cost of $111 per Mg carbon due to lost revenues. Scenarios 3 and 1 produced 

reduced storage rates of roughly 9 Ã— 106

 Mg carbon and 3 Ã— 106 Mg carbon, respectively; about 64 

percent and 22 percent of the total, 80-year carbon storage calculated in scenario 2. The bulk of the 

carbon in scenario 2 was stored in the forest, amounting to about 76 percent of the total carbon 

sequestered. Charles P.-A. Bourque, Eric T. Neilson, Chris Gruenwald, Samantha F. Perrin 

Jason C. Hiltz, Yvon A. Blin Geoffrey V. Horsman, Matthew S. Parker, Christie B. Thorburn, 

Michael M. Core, Fan-rui Meng and D. Edwin Swift, Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies or Global 

Change, Published online January 30, 2007, 

http://www.springerlink.com/content/g721742q12218446/?p=d2ed7fa071cf41ccb2355292e08ceb17&pi=

6#ContactOfAuthor1. (Subscription required.) 

“Simulation of fluxes of greenhouse gases from European grasslands using DNDC model.”

Agricultural management of grasslands results in sequestration and emission of greenhouse gases 

(GHGs, particularly carbon dioxide [CO2], nitrous oxide [N2O] and methane [CH4]). Here, the authors 

used a process-based model (DNDC) to estimate the fluxes of the major GHGs from grasslands at 0.5° 

resolution across Europe, and combined these to produce a spatially explicit estimate of the total global 

warming potential (GWP, expressed in CO2 equivalents). The DNDC model [Li, C., Frolking, S., Crocker, 

G.J., Grace, P.R., Klir, J., Korchens, M., Poulton, P.R., 1997. Simulating trends in soil organic carbon in 

long-term experiments using the DNDC model. Geoderma 81, 45–60] simulates carbon and nitrogen 

cycling in agro-ecosystems at a sub-daily time step and consists of four interacting submodels: soil and 

climate (including water flow and leaching), plant growth, decomposition, and denitrification. Input data 

sets for grassland area, climate, nitrogen deposition, and soil properties were collated. The typical 

current grassland management regime was established for ten biogeographical regions on the basis of 

questionnaires sent to national experts, and used to derive model input data. A 20-year simulation was 

carried out using DNDC for each site. Simple estimates of methane emissions from grazing livestock 

were made according to the IPCC Tier 1 method. Most grassland areas are net sources for GHGs in 

terms of total global warming potential—the beneficial effect of sequestering carbon in soil is outweighed 

by the emissions of N2O from soil and (predominantly) CH4 emissions from livestock. The net effect of 

European grasslands on GWP (emission of 23 teragrams of carbon per year) corresponds to a 2.5 

percent increase on the EU-15 fossil fuel CO2 emissions (907 teragrams of carbon per year). P.E. Levy, 

D.C. Mobbs, S.K. Jones, R. Milne, C. Campbell and M.A. Sutton, Agriculture, Ecosystems and 

Environment, Published online January 23, 2007, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6T3Y4MWGYBX-2/2/8d7c4db3af9e50f9e9792df227522107. (Subscription may be required.) 

“Quantification of the regional carbon cycle of the biosphere: Policy, science and land-use 

decisions.” This paper addresses some issues related to the carbon cycle and its utilization by society. 

Traditional uses for agriculture, forestry, as a source of fuel and other products, and for pastoral farming, 

among others, have recently been supplemented by identifying its potential for mitigating the increasing 

concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Through the Kyoto Protocol, carbon has become 

a commodity and the carbon dioxide-absorbing capability of the vegetation and soils an economically 

valuable asset. The multi-facetted roles of the carbon cycle and its sensitivity to human activities present 

a demand for techniques that permit accurate, timely and affordable characterization of the various 

components of this cycle, especially on land where most human activities take place. Such techniques 

must satisfy a range of demands in terms of purpose, clients for the information, and biosphere 

properties. However, if successful, they offer the potential to support monitoring, reporting, policy setting, 

and management of terrestrial biospheric resources. The context for these requirements and possibilities 

is illustrated with reference to the China Carbon Sequestration Project and its findings. Josef Cihlar, 

Journal of Environmental Management, Published online January 2, 2007, 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6WJ7-4MR1RS5-

1/2/bc67cc500fbaa370d52a17c5b0085ff9. (Subscription may be required.) 

69
April 2007

“Small Phytoplankton and Carbon Export from the Surface Ocean.” Autotrophic picoplankton 

dominate primary production over large oceanic regions but are believed to contribute relatively little to 

carbon export from surface layers. Using analyses of data from the equatorial Pacific Ocean and Arabian 

Sea, the authors show that the relative direct and indirect contribution of picoplankton to export is 

proportional to their total net primary production, despite their small size. The authors suggest that all 

primary producers, not just the large cells, can contribute to export from the surface layer of the ocean at 

rates proportional to their production rates. Tammi L. Richardson and George A. Jackson, Science, 

February 9, 2007, Volume 315, Issue 5813, pages 838-840, DOI: 10.1126/science.1133471, 

http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/abstract/315/5813/838. (Subscription required.) 

“Plant crown traits and carbon sequestration capability by Platanus hybrida Brot. in Rome.”

Measurements of carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration carried out in the city of Rome in the period 

January–December 2005 showed a mean yearly CO2 concentration of 414 ± 45 parts per million; 

polluted sites (P sites) had 21 percent higher CO2 concentration than control sites (C sites). The 

significant (p < 0.01) correlation analysis between CO2 concentration and traffic density measured during 

the study period at P sites showed that traffic density explained 51 percent of the CO2 variation. The CO2

trend during the traffic limitation days (provision imposed by ordinance of the City Council) did not show 

significant differences as regards regular traffic days, suggesting the ineffectiveness of this provision. 

Leaf area index (LAI) of Platanus hybrida Brot. was on an average 11 percent lower at P sites than at C 

ones associated with a lower total photosynthetic leaf surface area (SPT, 34 percent lower at P sites 

than at C ones). P. hybrida had a total carbon sequestration of 117 ± 13 kg year−1

 (mean value of P and 

C sites) playing an important role in sequestering CO2. Thus, the choice of plant species for urban areas 

may be set out taking into account their own air amelioration capability. Plant traits of each species may 

be used for urban tree planting programs to ameliorate urban air pollution. Loretta Gratani and Laura 

Varone, Landscape and Urban Planning, Published online February 16, 2007, 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6V91-4N2M685-1/2/ff70e17f2d6ffa926d90e689ebebc3ac. 

(Subscription may be required.) 

May 2007 

“Combined climate and carbon-cycle effects of large-scale deforestation.” The prevention of 

deforestation and promotion of afforestation have often been cited as strategies to slow global warming.

Deforestation releases carbon dioxide (CO2) to the atmosphere, which exerts a warming influence on 

Earth's climate. However, biophysical effects of deforestation, which include changes in land surface 

albedo, evapotranspiration, and cloud cover also affect climate. Here [the authors] present results from 

several large-scale deforestation experiments performed with a three-dimensional coupled global carboncycle and climate model. These simulations were performed by using a fully three-dimensional model 

representing physical and biogeochemical interactions among land, atmosphere, and ocean. [The 

authors] find that global-scale deforestation has a net cooling influence on Earth's climate, because the 

warming carbon-cycle effects of deforestation are overwhelmed by the net cooling associated with 

changes in albedo and evapotranspiration. Latitude-specific deforestation experiments indicate that 

afforestation projects in the tropics would be clearly beneficial in mitigating global-scale warming, but 

would be counterproductive if implemented at high latitudes and would offer only marginal benefits in 

temperate regions. Although these results question the efficacy of mid- and high-latitude afforestation 

projects for climate mitigation, forests remain environmentally valuable resources for many reasons 

unrelated to climate. (See Science section of this newsletter, “Tree Planting May Add to Warming, 

Says DOE-Funded Study,” for an article referencing this journal abstract.) G. Bala, K. Caldeira, M. 

Wickett, T. J. Phillips, D. B. Lobell, C. Delire, and A. Mirin, Proceedings of the National Academy of 

70
Sciences, Published online April 9, 2007, http://www.pnas.org/cgi/content/abstract/0608998104v1. 

(Subscription required.) 

“The GEFSOC soil carbon modeling system: A tool for conducting regional-scale soil carbon 

inventories and assessing the impacts of land use change on soil carbon.” The GEFSOC soil 

carbon modeling system was built to provide interdisciplinary teams of scientists, natural resource 

managers and policy analysts (who have the appropriate computing skills) with the necessary tools to 

conduct regional-scale soil carbon (C) inventories. It allows users to assess the effects of land use 

change on soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks, soil fertility and the potential for soil carbon sequestration. 

The tool was developed in conjunction with case-studies of land use and management impacts on SOC 

in Brazil, Jordan, Kenya and India, which represent a diversity of land use and land management 

patterns and are countries where sustaining soil organic matter and fertility for food security is an ongoing problem. The tool was designed to run using two common desktop computers, connected via a 

local area network. It utilizes open-source software that is freely available. All new software and user 

interfaces developed for the tool are available in an open source environment allowing users to examine 

system details, suggest improvements or write additional modules to interface with the system. The tool 

incorporates three widely used models for estimating soil carbon dynamics: (1) the Century ecosystem 

model; (2) the RothC soil carbon decomposition model; and (3) the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate 

Change (IPCC) method for assessing soil C at regional scales. The tool interacts with a Soil and Terrain 

Digital Database (SOTER) built for the specific country or region the user intends to model. A 

demonstration of the tool and results from an assessment of land use change in a sample region of North 

America are presented. M. Easter, K. Paustian, K. Killian, S. Williams, T. Feng, R. Al-Adamat, N.H. 

Batjes, M. Bernoux, T. Bhattacharyya, C.C. Cerri, C.E.P. Cerri, K. Coleman, P. Falloon, C. Feller, P. 

Gicheru, P. Kamoni, E. Milne, D.K. Pal, D.S. Powlson, Z. Rawajfih, M. Sessay and S. Wokabi, 

Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, Available online February 15, 2007, 

doi:10.1016/j.agee.2007.01.004, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6T3Y-4N2DRBJ1/2/7f151403695b84df48ef38bf63b97b62. (Subscription may be required.)

June 2007 

“Total Soil Carbon and Water Quality: An Implication for Carbon Sequestration.” Carbon 

sequestration in soil has been suggested as a means of reducing the rate of increase of atmospheric 

CO2. Most soil science research has been on soil organic carbon (SOC) sequestration but in arid and 

semiarid climates, soil inorganic carbon (SIC) may offer another option for carbon sequestration. A field 

study was conducted in Bakersfield, California, to determine if irrigation water quality (fresh water [FW] 

vs. treated effluent [TE]) affected the distribution and amount of SIC and SOC in the upper 4 m [meters] 

of soil and parent material compared to a nonirrigated (NI) field. Significant carbonate depletions were 

found in the upper 2 m in both irrigated fields compared with the NI. Differences in carbonate content 

between irrigated fields were also related to soil texture. Total carbonate and clay-size carbonate were

more abundant at the sites irrigated with TE than at the sites irrigated with FW, indicating that the TE had 

inhibited carbonate dissolution. Based on stable isotope analyses (13C and 18O) and radiocarbon dating, 

[the authors] estimated that irrigation for greater than 75 years sequestered about 7.15 kilograms per 

meters squared (kg m–2) (4 m)–1 of SIC under FW and between 0.9 and 2.4 kg m–2 (4 m)–1 under TE, if 

carbonate dissolution is carbon sequestration. Adding carbon loss due to SOC decomposition to the SIC 

sequestration, the fields may be a source for 8.8 and 17.4 to 15.9 kg m–2 (4 m)–1 of carbon under FW and 

TE, respectively. This study provides some of the first evidence of how water quality affects the carbon 

budget in an arid region. Gil Eshel, Pinchas Fine and Michael J. Singer, Soil Science Society of 

America Journal, Published online March 12, 2007, DOI: 10.2136/sssaj2006.0061, 

http://soil.scijournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/71/2/397. (Subscription may be required.) 

July 2007

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“The human footprint in the carbon cycle of temperate and boreal forests.” Temperate and boreal 

forests in the Northern Hemisphere cover an area of about 2 x 107 square [kilometers] and act as a 

substantial carbon sink (0.6–0.7 petagrams of carbon per year). Although forest expansion following 

agricultural abandonment is certainly responsible for an important fraction of this carbon sink activity, the 

additional effects on the carbon balance of established forests of increased atmospheric [CO2], 

increasing temperatures, changes in management practices and nitrogen deposition are difficult to 

disentangle, despite an extensive network of measurement stations. The relevance of this measurement 

effort has also been questioned, because spot measurements fail to take into account the role of 

disturbances, either natural (fire, pests, windstorms) or anthropogenic (forest harvesting). Here [the 

authors] show that the temporal dynamics following stand-replacing disturbances do indeed account for a 

very large fraction of the overall variability in forest carbon sequestration. After the confounding effects of 

disturbance have been factored out, however, forest net carbon sequestration is found to be 

overwhelmingly driven by nitrogen deposition, largely the result of anthropogenic activities. The effect is 

always positive over the range of nitrogen deposition covered by currently available data sets, casting 

doubts on the risk of widespread ecosystem nitrogen saturation under natural conditions. The results 

demonstrate that mankind is ultimately controlling the carbon balance of temperate and boreal forests, 

either directly (through forest management) or indirectly (through nitrogen deposition). (See “Human 

Activities Increasing Carbon Sequestration in Forests” in the Science Section of this newsletter 

for an article referencing this journal abstract.) Federico Magnani, Maurizio Mencuccini, Marco 

Borghetti, Paul Berbigier, Frank Berninger, Sylvain Delzon, Achim Grelle, Pertti Hari, Paul G. 

Jarvis, Pasi Kolari, Andrew S. Kowalski, Harry Lankreijer, Beverly E. Law, Anders Lindroth, Denis 

Loustau, Giovanni Manca, John B. Moncrieff, Mark Rayment, Vanessa Tedeschi, Riccardo 

Valentini and John Grace, Nature, Volume 447, June 14, 2007, Pages 849-851, 

doi:10.1038/nature05847, Link unavailable. 

“Sensitivity of the Century Model to Scale-Related Soil Texture Variability.” Sequestering C 

[carbon] in agricultural soils presents an immediate viable option to reduce atmospheric CO2 to help 

mitigate global warming. Agricultural land managers who adopt practices that sequester C might market 

the sequestered (i.e., stored) C as a C credit to industrial CO2 emitters who wish to reduce their net CO2

emissions. Land managers or landowners will need to verify changes in soil organic carbon (SOC) 

related to a change in management practice to facilitate C credit trading. The objective of this study was 

to assess the accuracy of Century model predictions of SOC change due to the adoption of no-tillage 

using site-specific data and data from existing soil databases. [The authors] hypothesized that (i) using 

site-specific soil data would result in the most accurate Century estimates and (ii) Century estimates are 

sensitive to soil clay percentage. Five paired tillage/no-tillage farm sites in north-central Montana were 

used to test model predictions. Sites were chosen such that soil, landscape, climatic conditions, and 

historical cropping systems were similar within each tillage/no-tillage pair. The Century model 

overestimated SOC content using site-specific soils data by an average of 10 [percent]. Century was 

sensitive to the effects of clay content when predicting the total amount of SOC in a particular field. There 

was insufficient evidence to suggest that a linear association exists between clay content and Centuryestimated C change due to no-tillage. Results suggest that (i) the effect of clay percentage on the rate of 

C change is not well understood and (ii) the Century model is an acceptable predictor of soil C for C 

trading. Further examination of the relationship between soil clay content and the rate of C storage in 

agricultural systems is needed to determine if adjustments to the Century model are required. Ross S. 

Bricklemyer, P. R. Miller, P. J. Turk, K. Paustian, T. Keck and G. A. Nielsen, Soil Science Society of 

America Journal, Published online April 5, 2007, http://soil.scijournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/71/3/784. 

(Subscription may be required.) 

“A numerical study with an eddy-resolving model to evaluate chronic impacts in CO2 ocean 

sequestration.” To evaluate chronic impacts of CO2 ocean sequestration, [the authors] simulated the 

distribution of injected CO2 using an oceanic general circulation model (OGCM) with a horizontal 

resolution of 0.1 [degree]. The model can explicitly express transport and dispersion of dissolved CO2 by 

mesoscale eddies. The CO2 which is continuously injected by a moving ship dissolves and accumulates 

72
within the first several to 10 years, but the CO2 concentration has an upper limit after its initial increase 

as a result of the dilution effect of mesoscale eddies which counterbalances the accumulation effect of 

injection. [The authors] can estimate the CO2 injection flux with the CO2 maximum concentration below 

the “Predicted No Effect Concentration” (PNEC), an index to estimate concentration causing no effects 

on biota. Yoshio Masuda, Yasuhiro Yamanaka, Yoshikazu Sasai, Michimasa Magi and Takashi 

Ohsumi, International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control, Published online April 26, 2007, 

doi:10.1016/S1750-5836(07)00039-4, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B83WP-4NKB28N1/2/b5086b71d7293e1a2396e598fa2e0021. (Subscription may be required.)

August 2007 

“Terrestrial carbon pools in southeast and south-central United States.” Analyses of regional 

carbon sources and sinks are essential to assess the economical feasibility of various carbon 

sequestration technologies for mitigating atmospheric CO2 accumulation and for preventing global 

warming. Such an inventory is a prerequisite for regional trading of CO2 emissions. As a US Department 

of Energy Southeast Regional Carbon Sequestration Partner, [the authors] have estimated the statelevel terrestrial carbon pools in the southeast and south-central US. This region includes: Alabama, 

Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, 

and Virginia. [The authors] have also projected the potential for terrestrial carbon sequestration in the 

region. Texas is the largest contributor (34 [percent]) to greenhouse gas emission in the region. The total 

terrestrial carbon storage (forest biomass and soils) in the southeast and south-central US is estimated 

to be 130 Tg C/year [teragrams carbon per year]. An annual forest carbon sink (estimated as 76 Tg 

C/year) could compensate for 13 [percent] of the regional total annual greenhouse gas emission (505 Tg 

C, 1990 estimate). Through proper policies and the best land management practices, 54 Tg C/year could 

be sequestered in soils. Thus, terrestrial sinks can capture 23 [percent] of the regional total greenhouse 

emission and hence are one of the most cost-effective options for mitigating greenhouse emission in the 

region. Fengxiang X. Han, M. John Plodinec, Yi Su, David L. Monts and Zhongpei Li, Climatic 

Change, Published online March 1, 2007, DOI: 10.1007/s10584-007-9244-5,

http://www.springerlink.com/content/j86t187ur3u6nt53. (Subscription may be required.) 

“A pilot-scale continuous-jet hydrate reactor.” A three-phase, pilot-scale continuous-jet hydrate 

reactor (CJHR) has been developed for the production of gas hydrates. The reactor receives water and a 

hydrate-forming species to produce the solid gas hydrate. The CJHR has been tested for the production 

of CO2 hydrate for the purpose of ocean carbon sequestration. Formation of CO2 hydrate was 

investigated using various reactor/injector designs in a 72-l high-pressure vessel. Designs of the CJHR 

varied from single-capillary to multiple-capillary injectors that dispersed (1) liquid CO2 into water or (2) 

water into liquid CO2. The novel injector is designed to improve the dispersion of one reactant into the 

other and, thus, eliminate mass transfer barriers that negatively affect conversion. An additional goal was 

an increase in production rates of two orders of magnitude. The designed injectors were tested in both 

distilled and saline water. Hydrate production experiments were conducted at different CO2 and water 

flow rates and for pressures and temperatures equivalent to intermediate ocean depths (1100–

1700 [meters]). The pilot-scale reactor with the novel injection system successfully increased hydrate 

production rates and efficiency. Phillip Szymcek, Scott D. McCallum, Patricia Taboada-Serrano and 

Costas Tsouris, Chemical Engineering Journal, Published online March 24, 2007,

doi:10.1016/j.cej.2007.03.029, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6TFJ-4NB99NK1/2/941654ab98c370806b7ab30e0d8511b1. (Subscription may be required.) 

73
Trading 

 

September 2006 

RGGI Press Release, “States Reach Agreement on Proposed Rules for the Nation's First Cap-andTrade Program to Address Climate Change.” On August 15, 2006 the seven Northeast states under 

the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) release a model set of regulations to be proposed in 

each state to implement the program. Also released was an amendment to the December 2005 

Memorandum of Understanding, serving to simplify the way “offset credits” will be implemented. The 

states participating in RGGI include Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New 

York, and Vermont, with Maryland to join by 2007. Under RGGI, the states will launch a regional cap and 

trade system in which emissions credits will be issued to limit the total amount of carbon dioxide (CO ) 

emissions. The State will issue one credit or allowance to permit one ton of CO emissions. Coal, gas 

and oil-fired electric generating units with a capacity of 25 megawatts or more will be able to buy and sell 

allowances and will be required to have enough allowance to cover its reported emissions of CO . 

Starting in 2009, the emissions of CO from power plants in the region would be capped at 121 mission 

tons annually until 2015. The states would then be required to reduce emissions in increments over a 

four year span to achieve a 10 percent reduction by 2019. Twenty-five percent of a states allowance will 

be allocated to strategic energy or consumer benefit purposes such as energy efficiency, new clean 

energy technologies and ratepayer rebates, with funds generated from the sale of these to be used for 

beneficial energy programs. Offset projects, which serve to “offset” CO emissions from outside the 

electricity sector, will be allowed for up to 3.3 percent of the plant’s overall emissions. Off-set projects 

such as natural gas end-use efficiency, landfill gas recovery, reforestation, and methane capture from 

farms will allow the power plant owner/operator to select the lowest cost emissions reductions and apply 

them to a portion of the plants’ emissions requirements. Offset projects can be conducted in other states, 

as long as that state agrees to certain administrative requirements. After the states adopt the program, 

the RGGI program will begin on January 1, 2009. To read the RGGI model rule, and post-model rule 

action plan, see: 

2

2

2

2

2

http://www.rggi.org/modelrule.htm. For more information, see http://www.rggi.org/. 

August 15, 2006, http://www.rggi.org/docs/model_rule_release_8_15_06.pdf. 

AP, “Blair, Schwarzenegger Unite Against Global Warming.” British Prime Minister Tony Blair and 

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger announced an agreement on July 31 to share information 

and ideas regarding ways to fight global warming. Specifically the two agreed to collaborate on research 

into cleaner-burning fuels and technologies and the possibility of setting up a carbon dioxide emissions 

trading system. A main target of the agreement is carbon dioxide from cars, trucks and other modes of 

transportation, since 41 percent of California’s and 28 percent of Britain’s greenhouse gas emissions are 

from transportation. California is looking to cut greenhouse gas emissions to 2000 levels by 2010, and 

Britain to reduce carbon dioxide emissions to 60 percent of its 2000 level by 2050. California was the 12th

largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in 2005, greater than most countries. August 1, 2006, 

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20060801/blair_schwarzenegger_global_warming_

060801/20060801?hub=SciTech.

The Australian, “States Go Cool on Carbon Trading.” The Australian states have withdrawn their plan 

for a carbon trading system, due to government concerns that the scheme would affect low income 

households. The extent of the exemptions contained in the program also makes the scheme more 

complex than the European Union's carbon trading system. “The states' scheme has exclusions, 

generous permit allocations, offset credits, gateways, soft starts and compensation for loss of profits and 

no effective global greenhouse response," said John Howard, the Prime Minister of Australia. A green 

paper that was to outline the proposed system released the week of August 28 will be downgraded to a 

“discussion paper” and the 2010 deadline for carbon trading will not be met. August 4, 2006, 

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,20013169-2702,00.html.

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October 2006 

Greenwire, "Massachusetts Delegation Urges Governor Romney to Rejoin RGGI." Two senators 

and several members of congress, all Democrats, sent a letter to Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney 

questioning Romney's decision to withdrawal from the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). Both 

Massachusetts and Rhode Island have pulled out of RGGI after initial discussions. RGGI is a cap-andtrade program with a goal to cap carbon dioxide emissions from power plants at the current level of 121 

million tons per year, to year 2015. Also by 2020 the member states must cut CO2 emissions by 10 

percent. Member states currently include: Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, New Hampshire, New Jersey, 

New York and Vermont. Maryland will join RGGI in June 2007, and Pennsylvania is an observer of the 

program. The final model rule was released last month and will take effect January 1, 2009. Each state is 

now tasked with developing regulations to implement the plan. To view the letter to Governor Romney, 

see: http://www.eenews.net/features/documents/2006/09/12/document_gw_01.pdf. September 12, 2006, 

http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2006/09/12/9. 

Reuters, "Californian Climate Registry Seeks National Expansion." The California Climate Action 

Registry is in discussions with 30 states regarding creating a multi-state greenhouse gas registry. 

Companies document their greenhouse gas reductions with the registry which then verifies them though 

a third party. By logging their emissions reductions, companies hope to avoid the penalties such as those 

that early actors received in the first cap-and-trade pollution market for sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions. 

More than half of the emissions logged have been from outside the state. "Our standards are so broadly 

respected, that people feel it's the best place to log their reductions even they are outside the state," a 

source from the California Registry said. In the absence of federal laws, regulations are slowly taking 

shape in the States. September 19, 2006, 

http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/38152/story.htm. 

November 2006 

Reuters, “EU Warns 8 States Over Late CO Emissions Plans.” On October 12, the European 

Commission began legal action against eight of European Union states, sending warning letters to 

Austria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Hungary, Italy, Portugal, Slovenia, and Spain for failing to submit 

their 2008-2012 national allocation plans, required under the Kyoto Protocol. The plans, which were due 

in June, are to outline the carbon dioxide (CO ) emissions limits that large factories can release and 

enable the states to buy and sell emissions permits. 

2

2

The Commission is also taking Luxembourg to the 

European Court of Justice “for not providing sufficient information on its policies and measures to reduce 

greenhouse gas emissions and on its projected future emissions.” Also the Commission is sending seven 

other warning letters to states “for not communicating important technical information relating to their 

emission targets.” October 13, 2006, 

http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=38492&newsdate=13-Oct-2006. 

Reuters, “California seeks CO2 market with EU, US Northeast.” California Governor Arnold 

Schwarzenegger met with New York Governor George Pataki to discuss a plan for California and the 

Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) to work to create a market-based carbon trading program 

with the European Union. Last month, Schwarzenegger signed into law the Global Warming Solutions 

Act of 2006, which caps greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent by 2020. Pataki was responsible for 

spearheading RGGI once President George H.W. Bush withdrew from the Kyoto Protocol in 2001. RGGI 

is an alliance of seven Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic states working to reduce carbon dioxide emissions 

starting in 2009. On Oct 17, Schwarzenegger will sign an executive order to “develop a comprehensive 

market-based compliance program with the goal of creating a program that permits trading with the 

European Union, the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative and other jurisdictions,” according to document 

obtained by Reuters. October 16, 2006, 

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http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?type=domesticNews&storyID=2006-10-

16T171015Z_01_N16459595_RTRUKOC_0_US-ENVIRONMENT-SCHWARZENEGGEREMISSIONS.xml&WTmodLoc=USNewsHome_C2_domesticNews-6.

Reuters, “Rhodia, SOCGEN Form Carbon Trading Joint Venture.” French companies Rhodia and 

Societe Generale will form a joint venture company ORBEO to handle all of their carbon trading interests. 

ORBEO will start by marketing pollution reductions at Rhodia's chemical plants in Brazil and South Korea 

for 11 to 13 million ton of carbon credits per year from 2007-12. These credits are trading at 

approximately $17.50 per ton, making Rhodia’s sales of credits worth $114.2 million annually. ORBEO 

will be one of the largest holders of emissions credits worldwide. Rhodia generates carbon credits by 

destroying the potent greenhouse gas nitrous oxide, a by-product of nylon manufacture. Two of Rhodia’s 

plants in Brazil and South Korea are among the world's 10 biggest such Kyoto projects worldwide. 

ORBEO is pursuing carbon trading deals in China, Brazil and Eastern Europe. October 10, 2006, 

http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/38442/story.htm. 

Reuters, “UK Sees EU-Wide Carbon Capture Incentive from 2008.” European power plants which 

use carbon capture and storage will receive some exemptions from pollution caps under the European 

carbon trading scheme, beginning in the second phase of the scheme, from 2008-2012. Currently under 

the scheme, carbon sequestration is treated as if the CO were emitted. The United Kingdom’s 

Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs plans to work with the European Commission to gain 

recognition of the storage element of sequestration in the second phase of the trading scheme. The 

European Commission has not made any definite plans yet in incorporating carbon capture and storage 

into the scheme, but is looking into the matter. Some energy analysts see carbon sequestration as a 

technology that can cut the greatest amount of emissions before 2050, to help avert climate change. 

October 6, 2006, 

2

http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=38397&newsdate=06-Oct-2006.

December 2006

Greenwire, “Market for CO2 Credits Reaches $22B.” The carbon dioxide emissions trading market 

grew to $22 billion worldwide, which equates to more than double its size last year. These figures are 

according to a report by the World Bank and the International Emissions Trading Association entitled: 

“State and Trends of the Carbon Market 2006: Update: January 1 – September 30, 2006.” (See Recent 

Publications section of this Newsletter for a link to the report.) For the first nine months of 2006, the 

market totaled $21.47 billion in comparison to the level for all of 2005 which stood at under $11 billion. 

Launched at the start of 2005, the European Union's Emissions Trading Scheme accounted for $19 

billion dollars of trade this year. The report pointed out the noteworthy developments in carbon markets 

including the northeastern U.S.'s Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative and California's efforts to establish 

a trading system. The report also warned of an uncertain future for carbon emissions trading past the 

year 2012 which is when the Kyoto Protocol expires. October 27, 2006, 

http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/2006/10/27/archive/12/?terms=co2. (Subscription may be required.) 

Reuters, “Japan Firms Win OK For $24 Million Carbon Projects.” On October 24, the Japanese 

government approved seven joint Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects that will be 

implemented by five of the country’s companies in efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Under 

the CDM scheme, the companies will receive 360,000 tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) emission credits, 

through investments via a World Bank Fund, with $24 million given to countries where the projects will be 

carried out. The host countries include Honduras, Peru, Moldova, Nepal and Argentina. One project 

identified is a wind power plant that is expected to produce less CO2 emissions by operating on reduced 

amounts of fossil fuels. The five Japanese companies receiving the approval include Fujifilm Corporation, 

a wholly owned subsidiary by Fujifilm Holdings Corporation, Daiwa Securities SMBC Principal 

Investments Company, Nippon Oil Corporation, Idemitsu Kosan Company, and Okinawa Electric Power 

Company. Redirecting funds to poorer nations is one way that Japan will try to meet its goal to reduce 

emission levels by 6 percent from their 1990 level. Nonetheless, Japan has fallen short of that goal, since 

76
emission levels in 2005 were fourteen percent above its Kyoto reduction target. October 26, 2006, 

http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/38680/story.htm. 

The Age (Australia), “Qantas Plan to Offset Its Carbon Emissions.” The Australian airline Qantas is 

making plans to allow its customers to offset the carbon emissions from their flights taken. Qantas is 

working with its code share partner British Airways to allow customers to pay a fee to offset their carbon 

emissions via a link from the British Airways website. For example a flight from Melbourne to Singapore 

on a 747 produces about 1.36 tons of carbon dioxide, and the offset charge would be approximately 

$19.46. Fees raised by this program will go to sustainable energy projects via a company called Climate 

Care. November 2, 2006, http://www.theage.com.au/news/business/qantas-plan-to-offset-its-carbonemissions/2006/11/01/1162339917973.html. 

January 2007

Reuters, “EU’s Dimas Says CO2 Emission Decisions Due November 29.” Stavros Dimas, 

Environment Commissioner to the European Union (EU), announced that initial decisions concerning 

member states’ carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions allocations plans would be issued on November 29. 

Current efforts will focus on reducing emissions levels in the 2008-2012 plans, since poor efforts in 2005 

by some governments to control the number of pollution permits to industries resulted in a crash in 

carbon prices. EU countries who fail to provide the necessary emissions reductions and Kyoto Protocol 

targets will be sent back for revisions. The EU trading scheme sets limits on the amount of CO2 that 

factories can release, otherwise requiring those companies to purchase carbon credits when caps are 

exceeded. October 11, 2006, 

http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=38916&newsdate=10-Nov-2006. 

Reuters, “Banks Buy Over 200 Million Euro Chinese Carbon Credits.” On November 30, over $263 

million worth of carbon credits were bought from a Chinese mining company by banks including Lehman, 

Fortis and BNP Paribas. The investors will fund two projects to destroy the greenhouse gas methane in 

the coal mines at Yangquan Coal Industry Company, using the gas to generate power. Investors have 

been buying carbon credits inexpensively from countries like China and are selling them to European 

countries which face emissions targets enforced by the European Union. According to the World Bank, 

global carbon trade was worth $21.5 billion in the first nine months of 2006 versus $11.1 billion for the 

whole of last year. December 1, 2006, 

http://www.planetark.com/avantgo/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=39268. 

Reuters, “NY Plans To Auction 100 Percent of CO2 Permits – Source.” As part of the Regional 

Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), New York State plans to distribute its carbon emissions permits via 

auction. This method was chosen in order to avoid the European Union’s mistake of giving away carbon 

permits which caused a drop in the carbon trading prices last year. The carbon permits will function to set 

emissions limits for businesses, and allow businesses to buy carbon credits in order to emit over that 

limit. It is thought that the power plants which have more carbon dioxide emissions will be shorter on 

emissions credits, and would have the strongest money in the market. This would prevent the lesser 

emitting plants from hoarding credits. Vermont will also auction permits but has limited power generation 

in the state. The other RGGI states, including Maine, New Hampshire, Connecticut, New Jersey and 

Delaware, have not determined how they will distribute credits. A lawyer from the National Resources 

Defense Council advising RGGI feels that New York’s decision on how to distribute permits will influence 

decisions in other states regarding distribution of their allowances. December 6, 2006, 

http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/39347/story.htm. 

Greenwire, “Nonprofit Floats Emissions Certification Tool For Consumers.” The San Franciscobased non-profit Center for Resource Solutions (CRS) is developing a retail greenhouse gas reduction 

product standard, its “Green-e” emissions product certification standard. CRS will open its proposed 

standard for public comment in December and will promulgate it early next year. CRS is aiming to 

77
provide consumers third-party verification of greenhouse gas offsets in order to ensure that a vendor is 

supplying equal sales and retired offsets as advertised. The proposed standard was developed with input 

from the US government, World Resources Institute, National Resources Defense Council, Interface Inc., 

and others. The Green-e logo is currently used to certify renewable energy products, and would expand 

to include offsets. For more information, see: http://www.resourcesolutions.org/where/pressreleases/2006/Upcoming_Comment_Period_for_Retail_GHG_Reduction_Certif

ication_Program_Announced.11.20.06.htm. November 21, 2006, 

http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2006/11/21/7. 

February 2007 

Reuters, “UK to Offset Pollution from Jet-Setting Ministers.” On December 28, the British 

government confirmed their purchase of 255,000 tons worth of carbon credits in order to offset emissions 

generated from airline flights taken by UK government officials while on travel. The credits were bought 

at a price of $19.27 (9.76 pounds) per ton, for a total purchase price of almost $4.8 million (2.5 million 

pounds). The carbon credits will be used from 2007 to 2009, and the option to purchase an additional 

50,000 tons of credits may be taken. The government has plans to invest in projects registered under the 

Kyoto Protocol. In order to alleviate concern expressed by some environmental organizations in Britain, 

the government will publish a consultation paper in January 2007 which will outline the details of the 

various carbon offsetting schemes. It will then issue a follow-up report in April 2007 with 

recommendations to participate in the most environmentally sound schemes. The credits were 

purchased from Trading Emissions Plc, an investment fund run by EEA Fund Management which invests 

in renewable energy projects in developing countries including Brazil, Thailand and the Philippines. 

December 29, 2006, http://www.planetark.org/avantgo/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=39649. 

Greenwire, “Dell Launches Carbon Sequestration Initiative.” Michael Dell, chairman of Dell 

Incorporated, launched the company’s “Plant a Tree for Me” initiative in an effort to offset greenhouse 

gas emissions produced by computers. This is Dell’s second green initiative following the company’s 

industry-first pledge made last fall to recycle customers’ Dell-branded computers and peripheral 

equipment at no charge. The new program gives Dell customers the opportunity to make a donation to 

The Conservation Fund and Carbonfund.org when they buy a computer. Donations can range from $2 

with a notebook computer purchase to $6 for purchase of a desktop PC. Money from the donations will 

be used by the nonprofit groups to plant trees that convert carbon dioxide into oxygen, thus reducing the 

greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming. The Conservation Fund estimates that one laptop 

computer emits 0.42 tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) over its lifetime, and a desktop model releases 1.26 

tons of CO2. Over a seven year period one tree could sequester 1.33 tons of CO2, enough carbon to 

offset those amounts. Trees will be planted in areas where they will not be harvested for timber, such as 

wildlife refuges and county parks. Emissions created during the shipping of Dell products will also be 

targeted in the donation program, and other larger companies, including Travelocity and Expedia, offer 

similar opportunities to their customers. January 10, 2007, 

http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2007/01/10/16. (Subscription may be required.) 

March 2007 

Chicago Climate Exchange Press Release, “Kodak Joins Chicago Climate Exchange.” Eastman 

Kodak Company announced that it will become a member of the Chicago Climate Exchange (CCX). CCX 

is the world’s first and North America’s only legally binding rules-based greenhouse gas emissions 

allowance trading system, as well as the world’s only global system for emissions trading based on all six 

greenhouse gases. Dr. Richard Sandor, CCX Chairman and CEO, welcomed the company and 

expressed his gratitude for Eastman Kodak’s commitment to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. As 

part of Kodak’s “Responsible Growth” goals program, the company has made a commitment to achieve a 

20 percent reduction in carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions between 2003 and 2008. A ten percent reduction 

78
in CO2 emissions has already been reached during 2003-2005. Adding to the company’s reputation for 

addressing the environmental impacts of their operation, Kodak is a charter partner in the US 

Environmental Protection Agency’s Climate Leaders Program. Kodak was recognized in 2006 by the 

California Climate Action Registry for becoming that agency’s first participant to report all six greenhouse 

gases identified by the Kyoto Protocol on a worldwide basis. Eastman Kodak Company specializes in 

imaging products and services to the photographic, graphic communications, and healthcare markets 

and reported sales of $14.3 billion in 2005. To read more about Kodak (NYSE: EK), go to: 

www.kodak.com. For a full list of CCX members, daily prices and other program information, see 

www.chicagoclimateexchange.com. January 30, 2007, 

http://www.chicagoclimateexchange.com/news/press/release_20070130_Kodak.pdf. 

“A laboratory investigation of compliance behavior under tradable emissions rights: Implications 

for targeted enforcement.” This paper uses laboratory experiments to test theoretical predictions 

concerning compliance behavior in competitive emissions trading programs. The authors test the 

hypotheses that both the violations of competitive risk neutral firms and the marginal effectiveness of 

increased enforcement across firms are independent of differences in their benefits from emissions 

(abatement costs) and their initial permit allocations. This conclusion suggests that regulators have no 

conceptual justification for targeting their enforcement effort based on firm-level characteristics. 

Consistent with theory, the authors find that violations were independent of parametric differences in 

emissions benefits. However, subjects who were predicted to buy permits tended to have higher violation 

levels than those who were predicted to be sellers. Nevertheless, the authors find no evidence that the 

marginal effectiveness of enforcement depends on any firm-specific characteristic. The authors also 

examine the determinants of compliance behavior under fixed emissions standards. As expected, the 

authors find significant differences between compliance behavior under fixed standards and emissions 

trading programs. James J. Murphy and John K. Stranlund, Journal of Environmental Economics and 

Management, Published online January 26, 2007, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6WJ6-

4MX4VMD-1/2/67300411559329d45f4b2f6c81cf841c. (Subscription may be required.) 

April 2007

Greenwire, “Five Western States to Launch Greenhouse Gas Trading Program,” and The 

Associated Press, “Governors Team to Reduce Gas Emissions.” On February 26, five governors 

from the states of Arizona, California, New Mexico, Oregon and Washington signed a global warming 

agreement, pledging their commitment to cut greenhouse gas emissions. This latest agreement, signed 

during the annual winter meeting of the National Governors Association, is called the Western Regional 

Climate Action Initiative and will add to each of the states’ existing plans to reduce pollution levels and 

implement regulations. A coalition of ten Northeast and Mid-Atlantic States has already established their 

own program through the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative or RGGI. Other topics of discussion at the 

meeting included a plan by Western states to launch a regional cap-and-trade program, legislation to 

encourage clean-coal technology, alternative energy sources, and tax incentives to encourage the use of 

renewable energy. The five Western states have also agreed to start a registry to track and manage their 

emissions. In 2006, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger became the first governor to impose 

state legislation for emissions caps on utilities, refineries and manufacturing plants, with a goal to cut 

greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2020. The Western states’ press release to launch their 

greenhouse gas trading program says that officials will develop specific regional emissions targets within 

six months and will set up a market-based system “such as a load-based cap-and-trade program” by 

August 2008. It may be possible for this program to merge with the Northeastern trading system, as well 

as with similar efforts from both Canadian provinces and Mexican states. More information about the 

National Governors Association can be found by clicking: http://www.nga.org. February 26, 2007, 

http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2007/02/26/1, (Subscription may be required), and February 26, 

2007, http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/02/26/politics/ap/main2519109.shtml. To read the keynote 

remarks delivered by Secretary of Energy Samuel Bodman at the National Governors Association Winter 

Meeting, go to: http://www.energy.gov/news/4822.htm. 

79
Business Wire, “Record TXU Buyout Includes Unprecedented Global Warming, Emissions Plan,” 

and Greenwire, “TXU Agrees to $45 Billion Takeover, Limits on New Coal Plants.” TXU 

Corporation, the largest utility company in Texas, is being sold to a group of private equity investors for a 

reported $32 billion plus $13 billion in debt. The purchase would mark the largest private equity deal on 

record. Led by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Company and Texas Pacific Group, the buyout deal contains 

several environmental provisions which include reversing TXU’s plans to build 11 new coal-fired power 

plants in Texas, as well as proposed plants in Pennsylvania and Virginia. Conditions of the sale include 

investment in a number of energy efficiency strategies, commitments to tackle global warming, and 

support for federal legislation to establish a cap-and-trade system for greenhouse gas emissions. The 

buyers worked with the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), a national, nonprofit organization of 

scientists, lawyers and environmental specialists, in order to gain their endorsements. According to the 

NRDC and other environmental experts, the new company will also aim to limit total carbon dioxide 

(CO2) emissions from existing plants in an effort to reduce its emissions to 1990 levels by 2020. 

Investments in renewable energy sources and initiatives to help customers reduce their energy needs 

are planned, and research on alternative technologies will be explored. Residential customers will benefit 

from a planned 10 percent decrease in electricity prices until 2008, which could amount to more than 

$300 million per year in total savings. Salaries for top executives and performance measurement at the 

new company would be tied directly to the climate protection goals. Former EPA Administrator William 

Reilly and former Commerce Secretary Donald L. Evans will join TXU’s board, and former Secretary of 

State James Baker will serve as advisory chairman. February 24, 2007, 

http://www.energycentral.com/centers/news/daily/printer_friendly.cfm?aid=7889031, (Subscription 

required), and February 26, 2007, http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2007/02/26/2. (Subscription 

may be required.) To listen to a story about the buyout from NPR’s Morning Edition and to read related 

NPR stories on this piece, go to: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=7615613. 

Terrapass Press Release, “Greenlighting at the Oscars.” The Academy Awards made their own 

contribution to global climate change this year. Instead of acknowledging the presenters and performers 

with the usual gift bag full of lavish and expensive gifts, the Academy opted for a more meaningful and 

less exotic approach by presenting the recipients with a more unique token of appreciation created in 

collaboration between TerraPass, the leading retailer of carbon offsets, and Simon Pearce, a 

distinguished designer and manufacturer of hand blown glass objects. The result was a gift that 

consisted of a “Year of Carbon Balanced Living,” an original Simon Pearce glass sculpture and 100,000 

pounds of carbon dioxide reductions from TerraPass’ suite of verified clean energy projects. Also 

included as part of the gift was a handbook for climate-conscious living, which describes several simple 

suggestions for increasing energy efficiency and decreasing the amount of greenhouse gases each 

person produces, a term that TerraPass describes as reducing your “carbon footprint.” For $2,100 the 

same sculpture given to presenters and performers at the 79th Annual Academy Awards can be 

purchased online at: http://www.lohacharasculpture.com/products-5yr.html. The price includes a tour of 

the Simon Pearce glass workshop in Queechee, Vermont, lunch or dinner for two at a Simon Pearce 

restaurant, and five years of carbon balanced living (equal to 150 metric tons of greenhouse gas 

reductions). To read the TerraPass handbook for climate conscious living given to the Academy Award 

presenters, go to: http://www.terrapass.com/handbook/. February 26, 2006, 

http://www.terrapass.com/lp/index.oscars.html. 

Chicago Climate Exchange Press Release, “Chicago Climate Exchange Sets New Record Trading 

Month.” On March 1, Chicago Climate Exchange (CCX) announced a new record for carbon dioxide 

(CO2) trading volumes in February 2007. Trading numbers reached 3,712,100 metric tons of CO2, which 

is the highest trading month in the history of the CCX. The cap-and-trade program is the world’s first and 

North America’s only legally binding greenhouse gas reduction and trading system for emissions sources 

and offset projects. March 1, 2007, 

http://www.chicagoclimatex.com/news/press/release_20070301_CCX.pdf. 

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May 2007 

The Sydney Morning Herald, “Energy Giant Embraces Carbon Trading.” AGL Energy Limited 

(AGL), one of Australia’s leading energy conglomerates, will become the country’s first company to join 

the Chicago Climate Exchange (CCX). Membership in the carbon trading scheme will enable AGL to 

benefit from their efforts to reduce emissions and cut greenhouse gas pollution in Australia by marketing 

their carbon offsets to less efficient companies around the world. Additionally, the endeavor will allow the 

company to expand its renewable energy operations and add to the already $1.6 billion ($2 billion 

Australian) they have invested in renewables over the past year. This includes plans to build the largest 

wind farm in the southern hemisphere, which will power almost 200,000 homes. AGL’s managing 

director, Paul Anthony, came from Britain to join the company in 2006 and strongly endorses AGL’s 

participation in the CCX. Australia has not committed to setting up its own carbon trading scheme. 

However, Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, recently established a taskforce to do so. March 20, 

2007, http://www.smh.com.au/news/environment/energy-giant-embraces-carbontrading/2007/03/19/1174152972167.html#

June 2007 

The Associated Press, “EU Makes 6 Percent Cut to Italy’s Carbon Trading Cap.” On May 15, the 

executive body of the European Union (EU) modified Italy’s original carbon trading cap to a level 6.3 

percent below the amount requested. Due to the modification, Italy will now be permitted to emit 195.8 

million metric tons per year of emissions versus the 201 million metric tons per year initially requested. It 

is the European Commission that sets the carbon trading caps for each of the 25 EU nations bound by 

the Kyoto Protocol. In practice, this system creates a financial incentive for emissions reductions by 

assigning a cost to polluting. Generally, companies that can reduce emissions at a low cost can sell off 

their residual permits to other companies who are not able to meet their caps. However, one recent glitch 

arose when it was determined that some countries were supplying a surplus of permits to power plants 

and factories, which gave them no incentive to reduce their greenhouse gas emission levels. The EU 

Commission is hoping to limit the number of permits granted in order to reach its goals to cut CO2

emissions by eight percent from 1990 levels by 2012, and ultimately by 20 percent by 2020. May 15, 

2007, http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/05/15/business/EU-FIN-EU-Italy-Carbon-Trading.php. 

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, “Delta’s New Fliers’ Perk: A Tree.” In conjunction with Earth Day 

on June 1, Delta Air Lines will kick off a voluntary carbon offsetting program with its customers. The 

program will be the first of its kind initiated by a US carrier and will allow customers to compensate for 

the CO2 produced during their flight with the planting of a tree. Delta has teamed up with The 

Conservation Fund, an environmental nonprofit organization dedicated to similar terrestrial carbon 

sequestration projects throughout the country. The organization’s efforts have allowed them to plant nine 

million trees in the US which will make up for 13.5 million tons of CO2 emissions over a century. The 

Conservation Fund will direct donations from Delta’s program to aid in the reforestation of Gulf Coast 

areas damaged by Hurricane Katrina. Customers willing to participate in the program will be charged 

$5.50 for a domestic round trip ticket and $11 for an international flight. Delta announced that the 

company will donate an additional $300,000 to kick off this program. Other international carriers offering 

similar programs to their customers include British Airways and Scandinavian Airlines Group. April 18, 

2007, Link unavailable. 

July 2007

U.S. House of Representatives Press Release, “Kirk Amendment Calls for House to Offset All 

Greenhouse Gas Emissions.” In efforts to meet guidelines outlined in a House of Representatives 

report entitled “Green the Capitol,” US Representative Mark Kirk of Illinois announced the approval of an 

amendment that will require the US House of Representatives to offset all CO2 emissions produced by 

81
House operations with the purchase of emissions credits through the Chicago Climate Exchange. The 

recommended purchase amount was set at 34,000 tons of carbon, which would cost the House 

approximately $122,700, including associated fees for the transaction. Combined with the 

recommendation by the House Chief Administrative Officer to adopt renewable energy technologies, the 

House could become a carbon neutral operation. Total yearly emissions from the House of 

Representatives buildings produce approximately 91,000 tons of CO2. June 12, 2007, 

http://www.house.gov/apps/list/press/il10_kirk/Kirk_Amendment_Calls_for_House_to_Offset_All_Greenh

ouse_Gas_Emissions.html. 

Entergy Corporation Press Release, Entergy Carbon Credit Purchase Makes 270,000 Megawatt 

Hours ‘Carbon Neutral’.” On June 5, Entergy Corporation announced the purchase of 150,000 metric 

tons of CO2 credits from Anadarko Petroleum Corporation, a company that supplies natural gas to 

Entergy for electricity production Entergy’s customer base is comprised of 2.6 million utility customers in 

Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. This deal has made 270,000 megawatt hours of electricity 

produced by the company as “carbon neutral,” since Entergy is, in effect, paying Anadarko for polluting 

rights to generate electricity. The transaction will allow Entergy to meet its second voluntary greenhouse 

gas (GHG) stabilization commitment to reduce its GHG emissions to 20 percent below 2000 levels 

through 2010. The company met their first milestone of becoming the first US utility to voluntarily stabilize 

GHG emissions at 2000 levels through 2005 by 23 percent, while increasing megawatt hour sales by 21 

percent for the period from 2001 to 2005. Entergy acquired the emission reduction credits by utilizing 

carbon capture and storage at its plants. Carbon dioxide emissions from the flue gases are captured 

from gas liquids production and then injected into oil-bearing formations for geologic sequestration and 

enhanced oil recovery. June 5, 2007, http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/070605/latu127.html?.v=55. 

 

August 2007 

Bloomberg, “Asian Swamps Worth $39 Billion in Emission Credits.” Indonesia is seeking 

international assistance to help prevent the draining of tropical swamps, known as peatlands, which they 

develop for plantations by starting fires to clear the land. Indonesia releases approximately two billion 

metric tons of CO2 per year through this practice. The request came at the global government-sponsored 

Convention on Biological Diversity in Paris, which was attended by twelve countries, including Indonesia, 

the Netherlands, Germany, Canada and Switzerland. By discontinuing the burning, the carbon could 

instead be stored, thus allowing Indonesia to generate emission credits worth $39 billion (29 billion 

euros), using the United Nations estimate of 14.59 euros per ton. The money generated would be spent 

towards alternative projects that would not involve intrusion of the peatlands. July 6, 2007, 

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601207&sid=azeZfyJQ8NIE&refer=energy.

Toronto Star, “Air Canada Goes Green.” Air Canada kicked off a voluntary carbon offsetting program 

to their customers. The program will allow travelers to offset the CO2 produced during their flight at the 

completion of their online ticket purchase. The company’s website will provide patrons with an online 

carbon calculator to determine how much CO2 the trip will generate and the price to offset the emissions. 

Money generated from the program will be designated to a project aimed at reducing greenhouse gases, 

such as planting a tree. Zerofootprint is the nonprofit organization in charge of managing Air Canada’s 

program. An Air Canada passenger would pay $19.20 to offset the CO2 produced to fly from Toronto to 

London, for example. July 2, 2007, http://www.thestar.com/printArticle/231461. 

Recent Publications 

September 2006 

82
“International Energy Annual (IEA) 2004.” The International Energy Annual (IEA) is the Energy 

Information Administration’s primary report of international energy statistics. For many series, data begin 

with the year 1980. Included are data on energy consumption and production; overviews of petroleum, 

natural gas, coal, and electricity, as well as carbon dioxide emissions from the use of fossil fuels, 

petroleum prices, energy reserves, and population; and data unit conversion tables. To view data tables 

of “World Carbon Dioxide Emissions from the Use of Fossil Fuels,” go to: 

http://www.eia.doe.gov/iea/carbon.html. For the overall report, see: http://www.eia.doe.gov/iea/. 

“Annual Energy Outlook Evaluation, 2005.” Each year since 1996, EIA’s Office of Integrated Analysis 

and Forecasting has produced a comparison between realized energy outcomes and the projections 

included in previous editions of the AEO. Each year, the comparison adds the projections from the most 

recent AEO and updates the historical data to the most recently available. The comparison summarizes 

the relationship of the AEO reference case projections since 1982 to realized outcomes by calculating 

the average absolute percent differences for several of the major variables for AEO82 through AEO2005. 

The average absolute percent difference is the simple mean of the absolute values of the percentage 

difference between the Reference Case projection and the actual value. The historical data are typically 

taken from the Annual Energy Review (AER). As indicated in Table 1 of the report, the reference case 

projections of energy consumption, energy production, and carbon dioxide emissions have been 

relatively close to realized outcomes. Table 7 presents detailed data of the Total Carbon Dioxide 

Emissions, Actual vs. Reference Case. To view the report and supporting tables, go to: 

http://www.eia.doe.gov/oiaf/analysispaper/forecasteval/index.html. Document number DOE/EIA0640(2005), July 2006. 

“Following The Paper Trail: The Impact of Magazine And Dimensional Lumber Production On 

Greenhouse Gas Emissions: A Case Study. 2006.” Canfor, The Home Depot, Stora Enso in North 

America (SENA) and Time Inc. (listed in alphabetical order) commissioned the greenhouse gas (GHG) 

life-cycle analysis (LCA) of two magazine chains and a dimensional lumber chain. The collaboration of 

the four companies in this project reflects the flows of (i) Canfor wood fiber to The Home Depot, a large 

do-it-yourself remodeling and construction retailer, and (ii) flows of Canfor kraft pulp, SENA wood fiber 

and SENA kraft pulp used to produce magazine paper for Time and InStyle magazines. The Heinz 

Center for Science, Economics and the Environment, an environmental non-governmental organization 

(NGO), helped the participants identify and address relevant environmental issues. The participants 

undertook the self-initiated study to quantify sources of GHG emissions for each major step in the 

magazine and dimensional lumber product chains. This life-cycle analysis provides valuable information 

that company managers can use to increase efficiency in the production of paper and wood products by 

decreasing the demand for energy resources and reducing GHG emissions. [The authors] only examined 

the major components of GHG budgets in this study. This study is unlike other forest product LCA 

studies in that the participants in this study provided their product-specific data. Dr. Stith T. Gower, Ann 

McKeon-Ruediger, Annabeth Reitter, Michael Bradley, David J. Reflcin, Timothy Tollefson, Fred J. 

Souba Jr., Amy Taup, Lynn Embury-Williams, Steven Schiavone, James Weinbauer, Anthony C. 

Janetos, and Ron Jarvis, The H. John Heinz III Center for Science, Economics and the Environment, 

Washington, DC, 2006, http://www.heinzctr.org/publications.shtml.

October 2006 

"US Climate Change Technology Program Strategic Plan September 2006." The US Department of 

Energy (DOE) released the Climate Change Technology Program (CCTP) Strategic Plan on September 

20, which details measures to accelerate the development and reduce the cost of new and advanced 

technologies that avoid, reduce, or capture and store greenhouse gas emissions. CCTP is the 

technology component of a comprehensive US strategy introduced by President Bush in 2002, to combat 

climate change that include measures to slow the growth of greenhouse gas emissions through 

voluntary, incentive-based, and mandatory partnerships, advance climate change science, spur clean 

energy technology development and deployment, and promote international collaboration. The CCTP 

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Strategic Plan organizes roughly $3 billion in federal spending for climate technology research, 

development, demonstration, and deployment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and increase 

economic growth. It provides a long-term planning context, taking into account many uncertainties, and 

establishes principles for formulating research and development portfolios to identify areas for reductions 

in greenhouse gas emissions and highlights an array of technology strategies and investment criteria. 

This Plan complements other Administration efforts including short-term measures to reduce greenhouse 

gas emissions intensity, advance climate change science, and promote international cooperation through 

partnership including the Asia Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate, Methane to 

Markets Partnership, and the International Partnership for a Hydrogen Economy. The Plan sets six 

complementary goals: (1) reducing emissions from energy use and infrastructure; (2) reducing emissions 

from energy supply; (3) capturing and sequestering carbon dioxide; (4) reducing emissions of other 

greenhouse gases; (5) measuring and monitoring emissions; and (6) bolstering the contributions of basic 

science to climate change. The Plan outlines approaches toward attaining these goals, articulates 

underlying technology development strategies, and identifies a series of next steps toward 

implementation. To read press release, see: 

http://www.climatetechnology.gov/library/2006/pr20sep2006.pdf. To download the report, see: 

http://www.climatetechnology.gov/stratplan/final/index.htm. 

 "Energy and Economic Impacts of H.R.5049, the Keep America Competitive Global Warming 

Policy Act." The Energy Information Administration (EIA), an independent statistical and analytical 

agency in the US Department of Energy, released this study on September 5, 2006. This report responds 

to a May 2, 2006 request from Congressmen Tom Udall and Tom Petri asking EIA to analyze the 

impacts of their legislation implementing a market-based allowance program to cap greenhouse gas 

emissions at 2009 levels. The legislation, introduced March 29, 2006, limits the potential economic 

impact through the sale of additional allowances at a safety-valve price, an allowance allocation program, 

and allowance credits for carbon sequestration projects. The HTML/PDF formats of this report can be 

viewed at: http://www.eia.doe.gov/oiaf/servicerpt/economicimpacts/index.html, and 

http://www.eia.doe.gov/oiaf/servicerpt/economicimpacts/pdf/sroiaf2006(03).pdf. 

"Carbon Disclosure Project Report 2006 Global FT500." The Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) has 

released its CDP4 report. On behalf of its 225 signatory investors, CDP requested information on 

corporate risks and opportunities associated with climate change from more than 2,000 companies 

globally, including the world's 500 largest publicly-owned companies (FT500). The institutional investors 

represented by CDP will receive the companies' answers and CDP's fourth annual report (CDP4) on the 

FT500 companies' responses written by consultancy Innovest. The $31.5 trillion in assets behind CDP4 

represents an increase of over $10 trillion (50 percent) from the $21 trillion behind CDP3 in 2005. The 

Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) provides a secretariat for the world's largest institutional investor 

collaboration on the business implications of climate change. CDP represents an efficient process 

whereby many institutional investors collectively sign a single global request for disclosure of information 

on Greenhouse Gas Emissions. CDP has historically sent this request to the FT500 largest companies in 

the world. However, in 2006 they have expanded their reach to 2180 companies, with over 950 

responding with an answered questionnaire. To view a press release regarding the report, see: 

http://www.cdproject.net/viewrelease.asp?id=8. To download the full CDP4 report as a pdf, go to: 

http://www.cdproject.net/download.asp?file=cdp4_report.pdf, or 

http://www.cdproject.net/download.asp?file=CDP4_FT500_Summary_Report.pdf for a summary of the 

report. 

"Climate Change Action Plan, August 2006." The Action Plan is the product of more than a year's 

effort by the 35-member Climate Change Advisory Group (CCAG) and its five Technical Working Groups 

(TWGs). The full CCAG met six times between July 2005 and June 2006, and the TWGs met a total of 

40 times via teleconference during this time. The Action Plan contains a comprehensive set of 49 

recommendations for addressing and reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in Arizona. Of the 49 

policy recommendations adopted by the CCAG, 45 received unanimous consent, two received a 

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supermajority of support and two received a majority of support. Pursuant to Executive Order 2005-02, 

the CCAG prepared an inventory and forecast of GHG emissions in Arizona, which found that between 

1990 and 2005, Arizona's net GHG emissions increased by nearly 56 percent. Arizona's GHG emissions 

are projected to increase by 148 percent from 1990 to 2020. As the Action Plan states, "While Arizona's 

high emissions growth rate presents challenges, it also provides major opportunities. Because more than 

three-fourths of Arizona's GHG emissions are directly related to energy and transportation, the 

opportunity exists for Arizona to reduce its GHG emissions while continuing its strong economic growth 

by being more energy efficient, using more renewable energy sources, building new infrastructure "right" 

in the first place to produce lower emissions and increasing the use of cleaner transportation modes, 

technologies and fuels." http://www.azgovernor.gov/dms/upload/Climate_Change_Action_Plan_finalweb.pdf. 

"Evaluating the Role of Prices and R&D in Reducing Carbon Dioxide Emissions, September 

2006." This report released by the Congressional Budget Office outlines concepts to address climate 

change through a combination of regulation and a long-term scientific investment plan. The report 

discusses policies for reducing carbon dioxide emissions including emissions taxes and cap and trade 

policies, and whether emission taxes would spur research and development of new technologies. Costs 

and benefits of research and development (R&D) are covered, as are current policies that support R&D. 

The effectiveness of policy approaches is also reviewed. http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdocs/75xx/doc7567/09-

18-CarbonEmissions.pdf. 

November 2006 

“International Carbon Capture and Storage Projects Overcoming Legal Barriers.” To assist in the 

development of a regulatory framework for carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects, an understanding 

of current practices is important. This paper therefore examines regulatory developments of major CCS 

projects to determine actual progress in regulating such projects. In particular, we look at five case 

studies of CCS projects that range from enhanced resource recovery to direct storage and which have 

been developed for a mix of purposes, such as commercial, research and development, and pilot 

demonstrations. These case studies indicate that regulatory progress varies greatly among projects, and 

differs depending on the size, scope, and the location of the projects. The focus of this report is the legal 

and regulatory context for international projects, but it should be recognized that CCS field projects in the 

United States are also addressing many of the regulatory issues related to CCS. NETL contact: Sarah 

Forbes; Authors: Kate Robertson, Jette Findsen, Steve Messner. DOE/NETL-2006/1236. 

http://www.netl.doe.gov/energy-analyses/pubs/CCSregulatorypaperFinalReport.pdf.

“Agricultural & Forestlands: U.S. Carbon Policy Strategies.” This report examines the wide array of 

ways in which forest and agricultural lands can be managed to store or “sequester” carbon and reduce 

net emissions (hereafter the authors use the term “sequestration” for the process by which carbon is 

removed from the atmosphere by plants and stored in soils and trees). It discusses a range of policies 

and programs that would promote this objective and evaluates them in terms of their cost, environmental 

effectiveness, and other considerations. The results of this analysis suggest that, by carefully designing 

and implementing a large-scale forest and agricultural carbon sequestration strategy, the United States 

could substantially reduce its net carbon dioxide emissions. A successful strategy is likely to encompass 

a variety of initiatives at the national, state, and local levels, and to involve both government and private 

parties. Kenneth R. Richards, R. Neil Sampson, Sandra Brown. Prepared for the Pew Center on 

Global Climate Change, September 2006. September 21, 2006, http://www.pewclimate.org/globalwarming-in-depth/all_reports/ag_forestlands/index.cfm. 

“Agriculture's Role in Greenhouse Gas Mitigation.” In this report, the authors make the case for 

“suitable payments” to encourage farmers to adopt new management practices to store carbon in 

agricultural soils and reduce agricultural emissions of methane and nitrous oxide. Policy incentives also 

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are needed, the authors say, to reduce costs of producing biofuels and accelerate key technologies. The 

report notes that climate mitigation could potentially become a source of new income and cost reductions 

for farmers. However, access to financing, changes in economic conditions and technologies, and 

policies will be key factors that will affect farmers’ willingness to play a part in climate solutions. Keith 

Paustian, John M. Antle, John Sheehan, Eldor A. Paul. Prepared for the Pew Center on Global 

Climate Change, September 2006, September 21, 2006, http://www.pewclimate.org/global-warming-indepth/all_reports/agriculture_s_role_mitigation/index.cfm. 

“The World in 2050: Implications of global growth for carbon emissions and climate change 

policy.” PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) released a report which considers six possible carbon 

emissions and climate change policy scenarios but focuses most attention on two key possibilities: 1.) A 

baseline scenario in which energy efficiency improves in line with trends of the past 25 years, with no 

change in fuel mix by country; this ‘business as usual’ scenario acts as a benchmark against which to 

assess the need for change, rather than as a forecast of the most likely outcome; and 2.) A scenario 

called ‘Green Growth + CCS,’ which incorporates possible emission reductions due to a greener fuel mix, 

annual energy efficiency gains over and above the historic trend, and widespread use of carbon capture 

and storage (CCS) technologies. Of the scenarios considered in the report, only this ‘Green Growth Plus’ 

strategy stabilizes atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations by 2050 at what the current scientific 

consensus suggests would be broadly acceptable levels. The G7 economies — the US, Japan, 

Germany, UK, France, Italy and Canada — may need to take the lead in reducing their carbon emissions, 

given that emissions from the faster-growing emerging economies, such as China and India, will almost 

certainly continue to rise over the next few decades. John Hawksworth, Head of Macroeconomics,

September 2006, 

http://www.pwcglobal.com/extweb/pwcpublications.nsf/docid/DFB54C8AAD6742DB852571F5006DD532. 

“Global Framework for Climate Risk Disclosure,” and “Guide to Using the Global Framework for 

Climate Risk Disclosure.” A unique global partnership of 14 leading institutional investors and other 

organizations representing trillions in assets released the Global Framework for Climate Risk Disclosure 

to provide specific guidance to companies regarding the information they provide to investors on the 

financial risks posed by climate change. Also included is a companion tool for using the Framework. For 

each of the four elements of the Framework, the Guide provides specific guidance for companies about 

how to disclose using the most common reporting mechanisms for climate risk: securities filings, the 

Global Reporting Initiative, and the Carbon Disclosure Project. The Guide also contains examples of 

disclosure from leading companies using these disclosure mechanisms. See the website to download 

both pdf files of the reports and to see the list of organizations that comprise the partnership. October 

2006, http://www.ceres.org/pub/publication.php?pid=225. 

December 2006

“GHG Data Highlights from Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions Data for 1990-2004 for Annex I 

Parties.” Every year, Parties included in the Annex I to the United Nations Framework Convention on 

Climate Change (UNFCCC), which are often called Annex I Parties or “industrialized countries”, submit 

their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions data to the UNFCCC secretariat, which then publishes an annual 

report on the latest available data on GHG emissions from the Annex I Parties. This report presents 

some findings on the data reported in 2006, both Annex I Parties and for those Annex I Parties that are 

Parties to the Kyoto Protocol. One key finding is that for all Annex I Parties taken together, GHG 

emissions in 2004 were 3.3 percent below the 1990 level. The overall decrease is composed of 36.8 

percent decrease for Parties with economies in transition (EITs) and an 11.0 percent increase for nonEIT Parties. In 22 Annex Parties GHG emissions decreased from 1990 to 2004 whereas in 19 Parties the 

emissions increased. In general, the message from the 2006 data is that industrialized countries will 

need to intensify their efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Transport remains a sector where 

emissions reductions are needed but seem to be especially difficult to achieve. But the challenge is well 

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understood, and the Kyoto Protocol, which is now firmly in place, is guiding Annex I Parties in identifying 

and implementing policy option, including the flexibility mechanisms, for meeting their targets under the 

Protocol. To access the document directly go to: 

http://unfccc.int/files/essential_background/background_publications_htmlpdf/application/pdf/ghg_booklet

_06.pdf. To access a table of “Changes in GHG emissions from 1990 to 2004 for Annex I Parties,” go to: 

http://unfccc.int/files/essential_background/background_publications_htmlpdf/application/pdf/ghg_table_

06.pdf. 

State and Trends of the Carbon Market 2006: Update: January 1 – September 30, 2006. This report 

by the World Bank and International Emissions Trading Association was released in October 2006. It 

states that the carbon market grew in value to an estimated $21.5 billion in the first three quarters of the 

year, more than doubling in value over the previous year. The market was dominated by the European 

Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS), which shrugged off signs of weakness following the sharp 

declines that accompanied the release of verified emissions data in May 2006. The project-based market 

also grew in value to $2.41 billion in just the first nine months of the year. The volume of European Union 

Allowances (EUAs) transacted on major exchanges and over-the counter rose to 764 million tons of 

carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e) by the end of September 2006 compared to approximately 324 million 

tCO2e in 2005. EUAs traded at a market value of $18.9 billion so far in 2006, more than twice the 

previous year’s $8.2 billion. The Chicago Climate Exchange (CCX), the New South Wales Greenhouse 

Gas Abatement Scheme (NSW) and the United Kingdom Emissions Trading Scheme (UK ETS) all grew 

sharply, as did the trendy but non-standardized retail carbon market. Developing countries supplied 214 

million tCO2e of primary project-based credits or 21 percent of total volumes traded for a total market 

value of $2.3 billion. China continued to have a dominant market-share of the Clean Development 

Mechanism (CDM) with 60 percent and exerted its market power to try and influence prices of Certified 

Emission Reductions (CERs), while Ukraine supplied one third of Joint Implementation (JI) volumes. 

CERs and Emission Reduction Units (ERUs) transacted at average prices of $10.50 and about $8 

respectively across a range of prices varying with the terms of the contracts entered into. Buyers found it 

easier to close transactions than six months ago, while sellers managed carbon price risk by favoring 

fixed price forward contracts. (Also see Trading section of this Newsletter for the news item “Market 

for CO2 credits reaches $22B.”) View the report online at: 

http://carbonfinance.org/docs/StateandTrendsMarketUpdateJan1_Sept30_2006.pdf. 

“Powering a Sustainable Future.” World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), 

along with eight of the world's leading electric utility companies, released this report which contains an 

"agenda for concerted action" to secure future electricity generation, to bring more power to more people 

and to decrease the industry's greenhouse gas emissions. The eight companies warn that unless there is 

a marked shift in the way electricity is generated and regulated worldwide, increased energy production 

will have serious environmental impacts. The group also urges that business and government alike need 

to reverse the trend of declining resources for energy research and development, to make sure that 

carbon capture and storage, among other technologies, will be ready for deployment in time. October 24, 

2006, http://www.wbcsd.org/Plugins/DocSearch/details.asp?DocTypeId=33&ObjectId=MjEyMzE. 

“Climate Change 101.” In an effort to enhance the quality of the climate dialogue, The Pew Center on 

Global Climate Change and the Pew Center on the States have developed a series of brief 

reports entitled Climate Change 101: Understanding and Responding to Global Climate Change. These 

brief reports are meant to provide a reliable and understandable introduction to climate science and 

impacts, technological solutions, and recent action in the US. Report subtopics include Science and 

Impacts, Technological Solutions and State Actions. Download pdfs of the report at: 

http://www.pewclimate.org/global-warming-basics/climate_change_101/index.cfm. 

“At loggerheads? Agricultural expansion, poverty reduction, and environment in the tropical 

forests.” The World Bank’s report states that a system of international payments – “forest carbon 

finance” can be an incentive to stop deforestation and in turn slow global warming. According to the 

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report, a majority of people in rural tropical areas — about 800 million — live in or around vulnerable 

forests or woodlands, depending on them heavily for survival. Yet deforestation at five percent a decade 

is steadily depleting this resource base, contributing to 20 percent of annual global CO2 emissions and 

seriously threatening biodiversity. The report argues that with stronger financial incentives for avoiding 

cutting down trees, poor farmers in Madagascar and other forest countries could invest in sustainable 

agriculture in already-cleared fields, rather than cutting down more forest for paltry and often temporary 

gains. But current carbon markets do not tap the potential benefits of forest carbon. The report reviews 

the obstacles impeding the use of global carbon finance to reduce deforestation, and offers workable 

solutions. The report offers a simple framework for policy analysis by identifying three forest typesfrontiers and disputed lands, lands beyond the agricultural frontier, and mosaiclands where forests and 

agriculture coexist. It collates geographic and economic information for each type that will help formulate 

poverty-reducing forest policy. The report highlights distinct priorities for each forest type, where 

deforestation incentives, remoteness, forest rights, and environment interact differently. The report and 

associated materials are available at: 

http://econ.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/EXTDEC/EXTRESEARCH/EXTPRRS/EXTTROPICALF

OREST/0,,menuPK:2463898~pagePK:64168092~piPK:64168088~theSitePK:2463874,00.html. 

January 2007

“Emissions of Greenhouse Gases in the United States 2005.” This report, in accordance with 

Section 1605(a) of the Energy Policy Act of 1992, provides estimates of US emissions of greenhouse 

gases. US emissions of greenhouse gases in 2005 totaled 7,147.2 million metric tons carbon dioxide 

equivalent (MMTCO2e), 0.6 percent more than in 2004 (7,104.6MMTCO2e). The modest increase in total 

greenhouse gas emissions in 2005 is attributable mainly to below-average growth in emissions of carbon 

dioxide (0.3 percent). There were larger increases in emissions of nitrous oxide (1.9 percent) and 

methane (0.9 percent), but collectively these two gases make up only about 14 percent of total US 

greenhouse gas emissions. Emissions of high-GWP gases—hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), 

perfluorocarbons (PFCs), and sulfur hexafluoride (SF6)—increased by 7.2 percent, but their share of the 

total is only 2.2 percent. The US economy grew by 3.2 percent in 2005. Consequently, US greenhouse 

gas intensity (greenhouse gas emissions per unit of real economic output) was 2.5 percent lower in 2005 

than in 2004. From 1990 to 2005, US greenhouse gas intensity declined by 25 percent, or by an average 

of 1.9 percent per year. US greenhouse gas emissions in 2005 were 17 percent higher than the 1990 

emissions level of 6,112.8 MMTCO2e—an average annual increase of 1.0 percent over the period. Since 

1990, US emissions have increased more slowly than the average annual growth in population (1.2 

percent), primary energy consumption (1.1 percent), electric power generation (1.9 percent), or gross 

domestic product (3.0 percent). While the annual growth rate in carbon dioxide emissions since 1990 

(1.2 percent) has closely tracked annual growth in population and energy consumption, the average 

annual rate of growth in total greenhouse gas emissions has been lower (1.0 percent) because of 

reductions in methane emissions and relatively slow annual growth in nitrous oxide emissions (0.6 

percent) since 1990. The pdf of the full report and the most recent full documentation for the data and 

methods used to calculate the emissions estimates are available at: 

http://www.eia.doe.gov/oiaf/1605/ggrpt/index.html. 

Global Warming in the Courts: An Overview of Current Litigation and Common Legal Issues. This 

report, presented by Georgetown Environmental Law and Policy Institute, Georgetown University Law 

Center, provides an overview of global warming litigation, discussing the question of the judiciary’s 

proper role in addressing this issue, identifying the cross-cutting legal topics raised by the pending 

litigation, and describing the specific cases before the Supreme Court and lower courts across the 

country. On November 29, 2006, the US Supreme Court will hear oral argument in Massachusetts v. 

EPA, addressing, for the first time, one of the most pressing and controversial environmental issues of 

our time — global warming. While undoubtedly important, the Massachusetts case is only the most 

visible in a large and growing group of lawsuits in the state and federal courts dealing with global 

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warming. 

http://www.law.georgetown.edu/gelpi/current_research/documents/GlobalWarmingLit_CourtsReport.pdf

February 2007 

“Sustainable Power Generation from Fossil Fuels: Aiming for Near-Zero Emissions from Coal 

After 2020.” Coal and gas account for over 50 percent of the EU's electricity supply and will remain an 

important part of their energy mix in the future. On the international level, it is expected that twice as 

much electricity as today will be produced from coal by 2030. However, increasing concern over the 

effects of climate change means that Europe has to take the lead in undertaking serious measures to 

ensure that they reduce carbon emissions from coal and work on developing cleaner coal technologies. 

On January 10, 2007 the European Commission therefore adopted an Energy Package for Europe, 

which included a Communication on the sustainable use of fossil fuels in electricity generation. The 

Communication sets out the policy guidelines and the conditions for a continued and sustainable use of 

fossil fuels, in particular of coal, as primary energy sources in the power generation sector. To read the 

complete Communication from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament see:

http://ec.europa.eu/energy/energy_policy/doc/16_communication_fossil_fuels_en.pdf. 

To view the memo regarding this report, see:

http://ec.europa.eu/energy/energy_policy/doc/16_fossil_fuels_%20memo_en.pdf.

“Trends in Public Attitudes on Global Warming,” Stephen Ansolabehere, Thomas E. Curry, 

Howard Herzog, MIT, October 2006. Any attempt by industry or governments to address greenhouse 

gas emissions and global warming will require wide public understanding or recognition of this problem 

and willingness to bear the costs of remedies. With that end in mind, MIT has instituted a cross-national 

survey research program aimed at tracking public understanding of this problem and support for and 

opposition to policies that may be required in order to lessen emissions. The first of these surveys was 

conducted in 2003 in the United States. It showed a relatively low level of public recognition of the 

problem and willingness to bear costs of a remedy. That survey was replicated in the United Kingdom, 

Sweden, and Japan. Across all four nations varying degrees of acceptance of the problem and varying 

beliefs about what national government should do were found. Researchers did find a unified response 

in one critical aspect – willingness to pay. In no country was the median person willing to pay 10 percent 

more per month on electricity bills in order to lower carbon emissions. That was 2003. The first effort to 

track changes in public attitudes came in 2006. Researchers replicated the 2003 survey in October 2006 

using the same survey design and same questionnaire that they administered three years prior. Little has 

changed in public policies concerning global warming. However, there has been considerable public 

discussion in the United States of this problem. Findings from this survey offer the first evidence from any 

survey organization that there has been a real change in public attitudes on this issue. Because 

researchers used the same survey design and questionnaire, they were able to compare directly the 

public attitudes today with those just three years ago. Americans’ attitudes have changed in two key 

respects. A sizable majority now recognizes global warming as a problem, and the salience of that 

problem has grown. And, perhaps more importantly, the willingness to pay for remedies has risen 50 

percent. To access the MIT survey data, go to: 

http://www.eenews.net/features/documents/2006/12/05/document_pm_01.pdf, and to read MIT’s full 

analysis of the survey, see: 

http://www.eenews.net/features/documents/2006/12/05/document_pm_02.pdf. 

March 2007 

“President Bush Plans to Strengthen America’s Energy Security.” The White House Office of 

Communications has released a fact sheet as a companion document to President Bush’s 2007 State of 

the Union Address. The document outlines the President’s “Twenty in Ten” initiative, whose goal is to 

reduce US gasoline usage by 20 percent in the next ten years. The report states that the President’s plan 

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will help confront climate change by stopping the projected growth of carbon dioxide emissions from 

cars, light trucks and SUVs within ten years. By 2017, the renewable fuel and fuel efficiency components 

of the plan would cut annual emissions from cars and light trucks by as much as ten percent, about 175 

million metric tons—equal to zeroing out the annual emissions of 26 million automobiles. The plan could 

cumulatively prevent the buildup of more than 600 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions. The 

President has set a target of cutting our greenhouse gas intensity by 18 percent through the year 2012 

and his budgets have devoted nearly $29 billion to climate-related science, technology, international 

assistance, and incentive programs. January 23, 2007. To view the complete document, go to: 

http://usinfo.state.gov/xarchives/display.html?p=washfileenglish&y=2007&m=January&x=20070123170347eaifas0.7542993. To read the State of the Union 

address in its entirety or to view a video webcast of the speech, go to: 

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2007/01/20070123-2.html#. 

Tackling Climate Change in the U.S., Potential Carbon Emissions Reductions from Energy 

Efficiency and Renewable Energy by 2030, American Solar Energy Society, Charles F. Kutscher, 

Ph.D., P.E., Editor, January 2007. For SOLAR 2006, the 35th Annual National Solar Energy 

Conference last July, the American Solar Energy Society (ASES) chose to address global warming. 

Under the theme “Renewable Energy: Key to Climate Recovery,” climate experts James Hansen of the 

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Warren Washington of the National Center for 

Atmospheric Research (NCAR), Robert Socolow of Princeton University, and Marty Hoffert of New York 

University (NYU) described the magnitude of the global warming crisis and what is needed to address it. 

A key feature of the conference was a special track of nine invited presentations by experts in energy 

efficiency and renewable energy that detailed the potential for these technologies—in an aggressive but 

achievable climate-driven scenario—to address the needed US carbon emissions reductions by the 

years 2015 and 2030. These presentations covered energy efficiency in buildings, industry, and 

transportation, as well as the following renewable technologies: concentrating solar power, photovoltaics, 

wind, biomass, biofuels, and geothermal. Since the conference, these studies were subjected to 

additional review and were revised for publication in this special ASES report. Also included are sections 

on Carbon Capture and Storage and Carbon Sequestration in Soils. To download the report as a pdf file, 

see: http://www.ases.org/climatechange/climate_change.pdf. 

“A Call for Action: Consensus Principles and Recommendations from the U.S. Climate Action 

Partnership: A Business and NGO Partnership.” A diverse group of US-based businesses and 

leading environmental organizations today called on the federal government to quickly enact strong 

national legislation to achieve significant reductions of greenhouse gas emissions. The group said any 

delay in action to control emissions increases the risk of unavoidable consequences that could 

necessitate even steeper reductions in the future. This alliance, called the US Climate Action Partnership 

(US-CAP), consists of companies Alcoa, BP America, Caterpillar, Duke Energy, DuPont, FPL Group, 

General Electric, Lehman Brothers, PG&E, and PNM Resources, along with four non-governmental 

organizations – Environmental Defense, Natural Resources Defense Council, Pew Center on Global 

Climate Change, and World Resources Institute. At a news conference January 22 at the National Press 

Club, US-CAP issued a landmark set of principles and recommendations to underscore the need for a 

policy framework on climate change. The report includes recommendations for carbon capture and 

storage. The solutions-based report, titled A Call for Action, lays out a blueprint for a mandatory 

economy-wide, market-driven approach to climate protection. (See Legislative Activity section of this 

newsletter for more information.) Read the report at: http://www.us-cap.org/ClimateReport.pdf. Read 

a related press release at: http://www.us-cap.org/media/release.pdf. 

April 2007

“The Future of Coal – Living in a Carbon Constrained World.” An interdisciplinary Massachusetts 

Institute of Technology (MIT) faculty group examined the role of coal in a world where constraints on 

carbon dioxide emissions are adopted to mitigate global climate change. This follows "The Future of 

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Nuclear Power" which focused on carbon dioxide emissions-free electricity generation from nuclear 

energy and was published in 2003. This report, the future of coal in a carbon-constrained world, 

evaluates the technologies and costs associated with the generation of electricity from coal along with 

those associated with the capture and sequestration of the carbon dioxide produced coal-based power 

generation. Growing electricity demand in the US and in the world will require increases in all generation 

options (renewables, coal, and nuclear) in addition to increased efficiency and conservation in its use. 

Coal will continue to play a significant role in power generation and as such carbon dioxide management 

will become increasingly important. This study, addressed to government, industry and academic 

leaders, discusses the interrelated technical, economic, environmental and political challenges facing 

increased coal-based power generation while managing carbon dioxide emissions from this sector. The 

full report, which was released on March 14, 2007, can be accessed by going to: http://web.mit.edu/coal/. 

To listen to a related story on National Public Radio’s Morning Edition, “Scientists Hunt for Solution to 

Carbon Dioxide Problem,” go to: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=7874053. This 

feature includes comments by Sean Plasynski, sequestration technology manager at the Department of 

Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory. 

“Confronting Climate Change: Avoiding the Unmanageable and Managing the Unavoidable.” For 

this report, the Scientific Expert Group on Climate Change and Sustainable Development (SEG) was

asked to consider innovative approaches for mitigating and/or adapting to projected climate changes and 

to anticipate the effectiveness, cost, and implementation of possible response measures. After 

addressing the comments made during a wide-reaching review process and carefully considering the 

actions that are needed to stem the tide of climate change, the SEG prepared this final report conveying 

its findings and recommendations. The authors believe that these recommendations are consistent with 

the findings of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and will be broadly endorsed by the 

expert community, which agrees that both near- and long-term efforts to mitigate and adapt to climate 

change need to be intensified, while at the same time strengthening efforts to promote equitable and 

sustainable economic development. In this report, Chapter 1 summarizes the key aspects of the science 

of climate change and associated environmental and societal impacts. Chapter 2 provides a review of 

the technological options for slowing climate change by limiting emissions of greenhouse gases. In this 

light, several recommendations are made to fulfill the objective set forth in the 1992 United Nations 

Framework Convention on Climate Change. Chapter 3 offers guidance on making society less vulnerable 

and even more resilient to the changing climate. These chapters make clear that it is critical to begin both 

mitigation and adaptation, focusing in early efforts on steps that offer cost-effective opportunities and 

ways to reduce pollution and other maladaptations to the current climate, while establishing the rules and 

incentives to spur long-term investment and change through a portfolio of approaches. The pdf of the full 

report, which was published in February 2007, can be accessed at: 

http://www.unfoundation.org/files/pdf/2007/SEG_Report.pdf. 

“The association between climatic factors and childhood illnesses presented to hospital 

emergency among young children.” This study has examined the relationship between climatic factors 

and common childhood illnesses among young children presented to an emergency department. To the 

knowledge of the author, this is one of very few studies that have investigated this specific topic of 

environmental child health. The results suggest that climatic factors are influential to the physical health 

of young children. The maximum daily temperature has been shown to be a significant risk factor for 

common childhood illnesses. It is positively and significantly associated with emergency presentations of 

fever and gastroenteritis among children younger than 6 years old. On the other hand, the UV index is 

negatively related to gastroenteritis only. None of the climatic variables are found to be associated with 

emergency presentations due to respiratory problems. These results on childhood morbidity, on the 

whole, are consistent with that obtained from previous studies on adults' mortality and all-ages morbidity 

and mortality studies by Semenza et al (1996, 1999). A detrimental effect of climatic variation, particularly 

temperature changes, on physical health among children has been suggested from these results. (See 

Science section of this newsletter, “Heating Planet ‘Makes Children Sick’,” for an article 

pertaining to the study.) Lawrence T. Lam, International Journal of Environmental Health Research, 

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Volume 17, Issue 1, February 2007, Pages 1-8. 

http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/content?content=10.1080/09603120601124264. (Subscription 

required.) 

May 2007 

“Carbon Sequestration Atlas of the United States and Canada.” The US Department of Energy’s 

(DOE) National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) is proud to release the first “Carbon 

Sequestration Atlas of the United States and Canada.” Production of this Atlas is the result of 

cooperation and coordination among carbon sequestration experts from local, state, and government 

agencies, as well as industry and academia. This Atlas presents the first coordinated assessment of 

carbon capture and storage (CCS) potential across the majority of the US and portions of western 

Canada. The Atlas also provides an introduction to the carbon storage (sequestration) process, 

summarizes the DOE’s Carbon Sequestration Program, and gives information about the CCS 

contributions from each Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnership (RCSP) to date. One of the key 

questions concerning CCS is: how much potential is there to effectively help address global climate 

change? As shown in this Atlas, CCS holds great promise as part of a portfolio of technologies that 

enables the US and the rest of the world to address climate change while meeting the energy demands 

of an ever increasing global population. The Atlas includes the most current and best available estimates 

of potential carbon dioxide (CO2) sequestration capacities determined by a methodology applied 

consistently across all of the RCSPs. All data were collected before December 2006. “The Carbon 

Sequestration Atlas of the United States and Canada” contains three main sections: (1) Introduction, (2) 

National Perspectives, and (3) Regional Perspectives. The Introduction section contains an overview of 

CCS technologies, a summary of the DOE’s efforts in the CCS area, a brief description of the RCSP 

Program, and information on the National Carbon Sequestration Database and Geographic Information 

System (NATCARB). The National Perspectives section provides maps showing the number, location, 

and magnitude of all CO2 sources in the US and portions of Canada, as well as the areal extent and 

capacity of geologic CO2 sequestration sites evaluated within the RCSP Regions. The National 

Perspectives section also contains a summary of the methodologies and assumptions employed to 

calculate the estimated CO2 sequestration capacities of various geologic formations. (Appendix A 

contains the complete “Methodology for Development of Carbon Sequestration Capacity Estimates” 

document.) The Regional Perspectives section includes a detailed presentation of CO2 sequestration 

capacity assessments for each RCSP based on these methodologies and assumptions. (See article in 

this month’s Highlights section, “DOE Regional Partnerships Find More Than 3,500 Billion Tons 

of Possible Carbon Dioxide Storage Capacity,” and News section for the article, “US Sees Ample 

Room to Bury Carbon Dioxide but Costs Unknown,” which reference the Atlas.) To download the 

Atlas or sections of the Atlas see: http://www.netl.doe.gov/publications/carbon_seq/atlas/index.html. 

Working Group II Contribution to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Fourth 

Assessment Report, “Climate Change 2007: Climate Change Impacts, Adaptation and 

Vulnerability.” This Summary sets out the key policy-relevant findings of the Fourth Assessment of 

Working Group II of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The Assessment is of 

current scientific understanding of impacts of climate change on natural, managed and human systems, 

the capacity of these systems to adapt and their vulnerability. It builds upon past IPCC assessments and 

incorporates new knowledge gained since the Third Assessment. To download the Summary for 

Policymakers which was released on April 6, 2007 in Brussels, go to: http://www.ipcc.ch/SPM6avr07.pdf. 

To listen to the audio webcast of the press conference in Brussels, go to: 

http://scic.cec.eu.int/streaming/archives/ipcc2007/audio.asx. (See article entitled, “Panel: Global 

Warming a Threat to Earth,” in the Science section of this newsletter, which references this 

report.) 

“Scotland’s Climate Change Programme: Annual Report 2007.” “Scotland’s Climate Change 

Programme, Changing our Ways,” sets out how the Scottish Executive is responding to the urgent social, 

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economic and environmental challenge of climate change. It quantifies Scotland’s equitable contribution 

to UK climate change commitments in carbon terms – the Scottish Share - and has set an ambitious 

Target to exceed this by one million tons of carbon savings in 2010. The Programme sets out actions to 

reduce all greenhouse gases but most measures focus upon carbon dioxide which makes up the 

greatest proportion of greenhouse gases. The Scottish Share and Target are therefore expressed in 

terms of tons of carbon. Scotland’s Climate Change Programme is work in progress towards a goal in 

2010 and this is the first in a series of annual reports. “Scotland’s Climate Change Programme, Changing 

our Ways” can be found online at: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2006/03/30091039/0. The pdf 

of the subject annual report, which was laid before the Scottish Parliament by the Scottish Ministers in 

March 2007 can be found at: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/Doc/169305/0047159.pdf. 

June 2007 

“Carbon Sequestration Technology Roadmap and Program Plan 2007.” This document describes 

the Technology Roadmap and Program Plan that will guide the Carbon Sequestration Program in 2007 

and beyond. An overview of the Program and the key accomplishments in its 10-year history are 

presented as well as the challenges confronting deployment and successful commercialization of carbon 

sequestration technologies. The research pathways that will be used to achieve Program goals and 

information on key contacts and web links related to the Program are included. This document is 

intended to be a valuable tool in engaging interested stakeholders. (See article in this month’s 

Highlights section, “DOE Releases 2007 Carbon Sequestration Technology Roadmap, Marks 

Tenth Year of Carbon Sequestration Program,” which references the release of the Roadmap.) To 

download the 2007 Carbon Sequestration Roadmap, go to: 

http://www.netl.doe.gov/publications/carbon_seq/project%20portfolio/2007/2007Roadmap.pdf. 

Working Group III Contribution to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fourth 

Assessment Report, “Mitigation of Climate Change.” The Working Group III contribution to the IPCC 

Fourth Assessment Report (AR4) focuses on new literature on the scientific, technological, 

environmental, economic and social aspects of mitigation of climate change, published since the IPCC 

Third Assessment Report (TAR) and the Special Reports on CO2 Capture and Storage (SRCCS) and on 

Safeguarding the Ozone Layer and the Global Climate System (SROC). The summary is organized into 

five sections: Greenhouse gas (GHG) emission trends; Mitigation in the short and medium term, across 

different economic sectors (until 2030); Mitigation in the long-term (beyond 2030); Policies, measures 

and instruments to mitigate climate change; and, Sustainable development and climate change 

mitigation. To download the Summary for Policymakers which was released on May 4 in Bangkok, 

Thailand, go to: http://www.ipcc.ch/SPM040507.pdf. To watch a video webcast of the press conference 

in Bangkok, go to: http://ipcc.bravehost.com/. (See article entitled, “Climate Panel Reaches 

Consensus on the Need to Reduce Harmful Emissions,” in the Science section of this newsletter, 

which references this report.) 

“Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990-2005.” An emissions inventory that 

identifies and quantifies a country's primary anthropogenic sources and sinks of greenhouse gases is 

essential for addressing climate change. This inventory adheres to both 1) a comprehensive and detailed 

set of methodologies for estimating sources and sinks of anthropogenic greenhouse gases, and 2) a 

common and consistent mechanism that enables Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention 

on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to compare the relative contribution of different emission sources and 

greenhouse gases to climate change. In 1992, the United States signed and ratified the UNFCCC. As 

stated in Article 2 of the UNFCCC, “The ultimate objective of this Convention and any related legal 

instruments that the Conference of the Parties may adopt is to achieve, in accordance with the relevant 

provisions of the Convention, stabilization of greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level 

that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system. Such a level should 

be achieved within a time-frame sufficient to allow ecosystems to adapt naturally to climate change, to 

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ensure that food production is not threatened and to enable economic development to proceed in a 

sustainable manner.” Parties to the Convention, by ratifying, “shall develop, periodically update, publish 

and make available...national inventories of anthropogenic emissions by sources and removals by sinks 

of all greenhouse gases not controlled by the “Montreal Protocol,” using comparable methodologies...”3 

The United States views this report as an opportunity to fulfill these commitments. The pdf of the full 

report, which was published in April 2007, can be accessed by going to: 

http://epa.gov/climatechange/emissions/downloads06/07CR.pdf. 

“U.S. Climate Change Science Program Synthesis and Assessment Product 2.2, The First State of 

the Carbon Cycle Report (SOCCR): The North American Carbon Budget and Implications for the 

Global Carbon Cycle.” A primary objective of the US Climate Change Science Program (CCSP) is to 

provide the best possible scientific information to support public discussion, as well as government and 

private sector decision-making, on key climate-related issues. To help meet this objective, the CCSP has 

identified an initial set of 21 Synthesis and Assessment Products that address its highest priority 

research, observation, and decision-support needs. This Report—CCSP Synthesis and Assessment 

Product (SAP) 2.2—addresses Goal 2 of the CCSP Strategic Plan: Improve quantification of the forces 

bringing about changes in the Earth’s climate and related systems. The report provides a synthesis and 

integration of the current knowledge of the North American carbon budget and its context within the 

global carbon cycle. In a format useful to decision makers, it (1) summarizes [the authors’] knowledge of 

carbon cycle properties and changes relevant to the contributions of and impacts upon North America 

and the rest of the world, and (2) provides scientific information for decision support focused on key 

issues for carbon management and policy. Consequently, this Report is aimed at both the decisionmaker audience and to the expert scientific and stakeholder communities. The pdf of the March 2007 

(Draft subsequent from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration review) version can be found 

on the SOCCR website at: http://cdiac.ornl.gov/SOCCR/pdf/SAP2.2_Entire_Report_March2007.pdf. 

July 2007

“Draft Environmental Impact Statement of FutureGen Project.” The Draft Environmental Impact 

Statement (EIS) for the FutureGen Project provides information about the potential environmental 

impacts of [DOE’s] proposal to provide federal funding to the FutureGen Alliance, Inc. (Alliance) for the 

FutureGen Project. In a March 2004 Report to Congress, DOE estimated the cost of the project at $950 

million in constant 2004 dollars shared at a 74/26 ratio by DOE and the Alliance. Accounting for 

escalation, based on representative industry indices, the project is currently estimated to cost 

$1,757,232,310 in as-spent dollars. Including $300,800,000 in expected revenues from the sale of 

electricity, which would be used to offset operational costs and research and development expenses, the 

total net project cost is estimated to be $1,456,432,310 in as-spent dollars. DOE will share approximately 

74 percent of the net cost (estimated at $1,077,760,230), which includes at least $80 million in projected 

contributions from foreign governments. The Alliance will share approximately 26 percent of the net cost 

(estimated at $378,672,080). The cost estimate will be updated as work progresses. The Alliance is a 

non-profit industrial consortium led by the coal-fueled electric power industry and the coal production 

industry. The FutureGen Project would include the planning, design, construction, and operation by the 

Alliance of a coal-fueled electric power and hydrogen gas production plant integrated with [CO2] capture 

and geologic sequestration of the captured gas. The FutureGen Project would employ integrated 

gasification combined cycle power plant technology that for the first time would be integrated with CO2 

capture and geologic sequestration. Four sites have been identified as reasonable alternatives and are 

considered in this EIS: (1) Mattoon, Illinois; (2) Tuscola, Illinois; (3) Jewett, Texas; and (4) Odessa, 

Texas. DOE determined that the proposed FutureGen Project constitutes a major federal action within 

the meaning of the National Environmental Policy Act. The Federal Register “Notice of Intent to Prepare 

an Environmental Impact Statement for FutureGen Project” was published on July 28, 2006 (71 FR 

42840). DOE held public scoping meetings at Mattoon, Illinois, on August 31, 2006; Tuscola, Illinois, on 

August 29, 2006; Fairfield, Texas (near Jewett), on August 22, 2006; and Midland, Texas (near Odessa), 

on August 24, 2006. The Draft EIS provides an evaluation of the environmental consequences that may 

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result from the Proposed Action at each of the four candidate sites, including potential impacts on air 

quality; climate and meteorology; geology; physiography and soils; groundwater; surface water; wetlands 

and floodplains; biological resources; cultural resources; land use; aesthetics; transportation and traffic; 

noise and vibration; utility systems; materials and waste management; human health, safety, and 

accidents; community services; socioeconomics; and environmental justice. The Draft EIS also provides 

an analysis of the No-Action Alternative, under which DOE would not provide financial assistance to the 

FutureGen Project. A preferred alternative has not been identified. (See article in this month’s 

Highlights section, “DOE Releases Draft EIS Statement for FutureGen Project,” which references 

the release of the document.) To download the complete FutureGen EIS which is contained in two 

volumes, click on: http://www.netl.doe.gov/technologies/coalpower/futuregen/EIS/. 

“Recommendations for Designing a Greenhouse Gas Cap-and-Trade System for California.” The 

Secretary for Environmental Protection created the Market Advisory Committee, a committee of national 

and international experts, to develop recommendations concerning the design of a market-based 

program for reducing California’s GHG emissions. The committee was formed according to Executive 

Order S-20-06 and will formally submit its recommendations to the California Air Resources Board 

(CARB) by June 30, 2007. The Market Advisory Committee has focused on the design of a mandatory 

cap-and-trade program for California. The Committee members have experience in the development and 

implementation of a number of cap-and-trade-type programs, including the European Union’s Emissions 

Trading Scheme, the US Acid Rain Program, the NOx Budget Program, and the Northeast Regional 

Greenhouse Gas Initiative. This report offers the Committee’s judgments as to the best design options 

for a mandatory GHG cap-and-trade system for California. To read the complete report, go to: 

http://www.climatechange.ca.gov/events/2007-06-12_mac_meeting/2007-06-

01_MAC_DRAFT_REPORT.PDF. 

“Pennsylvania Environmental Council releases ‘Climate Change Roadmap for Pennsylvania’.” In 

brief, the “Roadmap” presents a “base case” scenario reflecting current policies, Pennsylvania’s GHG 

emissions are projected to grow in the coming years at roughly 10 [percent] per decade. However, 

Pennsylvania could lower and ultimately reverse this growth if it joins other states in setting goals for 

reducing GHG emissions, and adopting the necessary supporting policies. The policies should address 

every sector of the economy: industry, buildings, transportation, agriculture, forestry, etc. The policies 

should also be designed to achieve multiple goals: lower GHG emissions, energy independence, cleaner 

air and water for Pennsylvania, economic development and job creation. Estimates of the GHG impacts 

of these policies indicate that they could support a goal of reducing Pennsylvania’s emissions to 25 

percent below 2000 levels by the year 2025. To read the complete “Pennsylvania Climate Change 

Roadmap” report, click on: 

http://www.pecpa.org/FINAL%20PEC%20Roadmap%20Complete%20Report.pdf. 

“Global Energy Technology Strategy Addressing Climate Change: Phase 2 Findings from an 

International Public-Private Sponsored Research Program.” This report is the capstone to nine years 

of research in two phases of the Global Energy Technology Strategy Program (GTSP). That research 

was conducted at the Joint Global Change Research Institute and in collaboration with partner research 

institutions around the world. The first phase of that work began at a time when the importance of a 

technology strategy in addressing climate change was unappreciated. GTSP Phase 1 made the case 

that a technology strategy was an important part of a larger strategy to address climate change and 

needed to be included along with the other major components: climate science research, adaptation to 

climate change, and emissions mitigation. The second phase of the GTSP recognized that to craft a 

global energy technology strategy it was important to develop a deeper understanding of potentially 

important technologies and technology systems, and to embed that knowledge in the context of the 

larger global energy and economic systems. In Phase 2 [the authors] identified six energy technologies 

and technology systems with the potential to play a major role in a climate-constrained world: CO2

capture and storage, biotechnology, hydrogen systems, nuclear energy, other renewable energy, and 

end-use technologies that might be deployed in buildings, industry and transportation. Knowledge gained 

95
in each area has been integrated into a larger global energy-economy-climate frame. That combination 

of depth of study and integrated assessment produced a unique strategic perspective and a bounty of 

fresh insights. In this document, [the authors] have distilled and summarized some of the most salient. To 

download the pdf file of the full report, published in May 2007, go to: 

http://www.pnl.gov/gtsp/docs/gtsp_2007_final.pdf. To download the Executive Summary of this report, 

click on: http://www.pnl.gov/gtsp/docs/gtsp_2007_execsummfinal.pdf. 

August 2007 

“Legal Aspects of Storing CO2.” In 2004, the International Energy Agency (IEA) Working Party on 

Fossil Fuel jointly organized a workshop with the Carbon Sequestration Leadership Forum (CSLF) on the 

legal aspects of CO2 storage. This workshop, held in Paris, was the first international event to 

systematically examine the legal issues affecting the storage of CO2 as a greenhouse gas (GHG) 

mitigation strategy. The workshop concluded by highlighting the urgent need for appropriate regulatory 

and legal frameworks to facilitate the successful uptake of CO2 storage, with a particular emphasis on the 

need to facilitate large-scale demonstration projects. The subsequent IEA publication, “Legal Aspects of 

Storing CO2” (IEA, 2005), provided an overview of the main legal and regulatory issues. The publication 

noted five important areas that merited further work and analysis. The five areas were: (1) increase the 

number of CO2 storage demonstration projects; (2) governments should ensure that there is an 

appropriate national legal and regulatory framework for storage demonstration projects; (3) Contracting 

parties to international instruments should take a proactive approach to clarifying the legal status of 

carbon storage in the marine environment protection instruments; (4) governments should create a levelplaying field for CO2 storage with other climate change mitigation technologies; and (5) increase public 

awareness and work on gaining public acceptance of CO2 storage. In October 2006, the IEA and the 

CSLF revisited these themes at a follow-on workshop, the 2nd IEA Workshop on “Legal Aspects for 

Storing CO2” in Paris, France. The second workshop explored the five issue areas in greater detail, 

asking whether these five areas merited further international attention. Workshop participants also 

examined additional gaps and barriers to the deployment of CO2 capture, and identified 

recommendations to guide further development of appropriate legal and regulatory frameworks. This 

publication summarizes the discussions and developments related to the IEA/CSLF October 2006 

workshop, and reorganizes issue areas to reflect changed priorities. It also includes recommendations 

for priorities for future work in this critical area. Each chapter is designed to provide an overview of key 

legal aspects of CO2 storage, and includes relevant case studies where appropriate. Published by the 

International Energy Agency, ISBN 978-92-64-03408-2, Copyright 2007, Link unavailable. 

“Recommendations for Designing a Greenhouse Gas Cap-and-Trade System for California, 

Recommendations of the Market Advisory Committee to the California Air Resources Board – 

Final Report.” The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 (Act) requires the State of California 

to dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2020. Specifically, this forward-looking statute 

charges the California Air Resources Board with responsibility for overseeing the development and 

implementation of a plan that will reduce California’s aggregate greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels 

by 2020. This challenging emissions reduction target will need to be achieved during a period of 

significant population growth and continued expansion of the state’s economy. Successfully 

implementing the Act’s requirements will again signal California’s leadership in environmental protection 

and demonstrate that meaningful steps to address climate change are compatible with promoting

balanced and sustainable economic growth and development. In support of the Act, Governor Arnold 

Schwarzenegger directed the Secretary for Environmental Protection to create a Market Advisory 

Committee (Committee) to advise the Air Resources Board regarding the development of a greenhouse 

gas-reduction plan for California. The Committee is composed of national and international experts who 

have backgrounds in economics, environmental policy, regulatory affairs, and energy technologies. The 

Act recognizes that a market-based system can be used in conjunction with regulatory and other 

strategies to meet an economy-wide emissions reduction target. Therefore, the Secretary for 

96
Environmental Protection charged the Market Advisory Committee with providing recommendations to 

the Air Resources Board regarding the design of an appropriate cap-and-trade program for reducing the 

state’s greenhouse gas emissions. The objective of the Committee was to design a cap-and-trade 

program to achieve cost-effective emissions reductions within and across all sectors of the State’s 

economy. To achieve this objective, the Committee used a systems approach, one that considers 

connections among all sectors of the economy and that examines how a cap-and-trade program 

interacts with existing and proposed emission reduction measures including regulations, performancebased standards, price subsidies, tax credits, and other technology promoting initiatives. The Committee 

concluded that a well-designed cap-and-trade program is fully compatible with and complementary to 

these other regulatory programs and could contribute significantly to achieving the goals of the Act. To 

read the Market Advisory Committee’s final report dated June 30, 2007, click on: 

http://www.climatechange.ca.gov/documents/2007-06-29_MAC_FINAL_REPORT.PDF. 

Legislative Activity 

September 2006 

Reuters, “Norway Demands CO2 Capture at Gas Plant.” A decision by the Norwegian Pollution 

Control Authority (SFT) reversed an earlier recommendation by the Norwegian Water Resources and 

Energy Administration (NVE) that Statoil’s planned Mongstad refinery should be allowed only if it is 

equipped with carbon dioxide capture technology. The Norwegian government will make the final 

decision regarding what type of permit will be granted to the $635 million 280 megawatt (MW) power / 

350 MW heat plant, slated for a 2008-2009 start-up. Statoil’s position is that a requirement for carbon 

capture from the start of the project would make the project impossible to implement. The SFT said that 

without carbon capture, the plant would emit 1.3 million tons of CO2 annually. August 21, 2006, 

http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=37742&newsdate=21-Aug-2006.

October 2006 

Reuters, "California Strikes Accord on Global Warming Bill" and Pew Climate Center Website, 

"California Global Warming Act" On August 30, 2006, Governor Schwarzenegger and the California 

Legislature passed AB32, the Global Warming Solutions Act (The Act). The Act caps California's 

greenhouse gas emissions at 1990 levels by 2020, with mandatory reporting for top emitters such as 

energy companies. The Act is the first enforceable state-wide program in the US to cap all GHG 

emissions from major industries that includes penalties for non-compliance. The State Air Resources 

Board (Board) is required to establish a program for statewide greenhouse gas emissions reporting, 

monitoring and enforcement. The Board will adopt market-based compliance mechanisms, including capand-trade, and allow a one-year extension of the emissions targets under extraordinary circumstances. 

California is the world's eighth-biggest economy and the 12th largest producer of greenhouse gas 

emissions. To read the legislation on AB 32, see: http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgibin/postquery?bill_number=ab_32&sess=CUR&house=B&author=nunez. To see a table of emissions 

targets worldwide, see: http://www.pewclimate.org/what_s_being_done/targets/index.cfm. To see a map 

of states with emissions targets, see: 

http://www.pewclimate.org/what_s_being_done/in_the_states/emissionstargets_map.cfm. 

August 31, 2006, http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/37896/story.htm, and 

http://www.pewclimate.org/what_s_being_done/in_the_states/ab32/index.cfm. 

 

State of Arizona Press Release, "Governor Napoliano Issues Executive Order to Promote Energy 

Efficiency: Order Steps Up Efforts to Reduce "Greenhouse Gas" Emissions," On September 8, 

2006, Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano signed Executive Order 2006-13, which establishes a 

97
statewide goal to reduce Arizona's future greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) to the 2000 emissions level 

by the year 2020, and to 50 percent below the 2000 level by 2040. The Governor's decision was made 

after receiving a report from the Governor's Climate Change Advisory Group (CCAG) on cleaner air. The 

Action Plan, a product of more than a year's work by the group, contains a report on the effects of 

climate changes and offers a list of recommendations to decrease GHG emissions. The Executive Order 

also creates a Climate Change Executive Committee which will develop a strategy to implement the plan, 

and explore ways to meet the targets sooner, by 2012 if possible, to coincide with Arizona's Centennial. 

Recommendations made by the Advisory Group include using better land and forest management 

practices to increase efforts to remove carbon from the atmosphere (known as "carbon sequestration"). 

View the August 2006 Climate Change Action Plan at: 

http://www.azgovernor.gov/dms/upload/Climate_Change_Action_Plan_final-web.pdf. September 08, 

2006, http://azgovernor.gov/dms/upload/NR_090806_CCAG.pdf. 

 

Boston Channel.com, "Massachusetts Sets Rules for CO2 Trading on Power Plants," and 

MassDep News Release, "Romney Administration Promulgates Rules To Implement First-In-TheNation Regulation To Limit Carbon Dioxide Emissions From Power Plants." Massachusetts has 

filed regulations on September 14 that will be promulgated on October 6, which allow the state's six 

largest power plants to regulate carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions while allowing for environmental 

projects to be funded by those plants. Regulations were established in 2001 for the CO2 emissions to be 

met in 2 phases beginning in 2006. The new rule establishes the criteria by which the plants can meet 

those emissions limits. The rule specifies several different types of projects which fulfill the requirement 

of those reductions, including the capture of landfill gases, greenhouse gas sequestration, renewable 

energy generation and tree planting. The projects can be conducted on or off the plant sites, by the 

companies or by third parties whose emission reductions have been certified by Massachusetts' 

Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP). Plants will be required to pay for projects in the 

Northeast US unless the price of those programs costs more than $6.50 per ton of CO2, in which case 

they can pay for programs anywhere in the world. If the price for the programs is over $10 of CO2 per 

ton, then the companies are to pay into a state trust fund. To view the rule, see: 

http://www.mass.gov/dep/air/laws/ghgappb.pdf. September 14, 2006, 

http://www.mass.gov/dep/public/press/0906ghg.htm. 

Greenwire, "'Strange Bedfellows' File Briefs in Supreme Court Emissions Case." A wide array of 

parties has filed their opening briefs for Massachusetts v. EPA, the lawsuit aimed at forcing the US EPA 

to regulate carbon dioxide from motor vehicles. The parties filing briefs include the states of California, 

Connecticut, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, 

Vermont and the District of Columbia, environmental groups, scientists and energy companies. Other 

parties filing "friend of the court" briefs were energy companies Entergy and Calpine, former Secretary of 

State Madeleine Albright, Alaska native groups, the National Wildlife Federation, hunting and fishing 

groups, four former EPA administrators, the National Council of Churches, and the US Conference of 

Mayors. Oral arguments are expected in December after the US Circuit Court of Appeals for the District 

of Columbia denied the state's motion to reverse an earlier ruling. The case centers around the appeals 

court's decision upholding the Bush administration's refusal to regulate carbon dioxide as a pollutant 

under the Clean Air Act. To read the opening brief filed by Massachusetts and other plaintiffs in the case, 

see: http://www.eenews.net/features/documents/2006/09/05/document_gw_14.pdf. To read other briefs 

files by petitioners, go to the following news story weblink to view a chart of filers, and links to pdfs of the 

brief. September 5, 2006, http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2006/09/05/1. (Subscription may be 

required.) 

Bloomberg, "California Sues GM, Ford, Toyota Over Global Warming." California is suing the six 

largest automakers in the US, including General Motors, Ford, Toyota Motor Corp., DaimlerChrysler AG, 

Honda Motor Co. and Nissan Motor Co. arguing that the vehicles add to global warming and cost the 

state billions of dollars to fight pollution and erosion. The state filed a complaint in US District Court in 

Oakland that the companies are creating a public nuisance, with is defined as "anything which is 

98
injurious to health," obstructs free use of property or interferes with the comfortable enjoyment of life or 

property. The lawsuit is California v. General Motors, 06-05755, US District Court, Northern District of 

California. September 20, 2006, 

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=aSthCirr_IoI&refer=us . 

November 2006 

Greenwire, “Oral Arguments Set For November 29 In Supreme Court Emissions Case.” The US 

Supreme Court will hear arguments in its first global warming case, Massachusetts v. U.S. EPA, 

beginning on November 29. The case revolves around whether or not the federal government will 

regulate greenhouse gasses from new vehicles. The plaintiffs in the case argue that the EPA violated the 

law in 2003 when it did not designate carbon dioxide as a pollutant under the Clean Air Act. Plantiffs 

include Massachusetts Attorney General Tom Reilly (Democrat) and a coalition of a dozen states, New 

York City, Baltimore and environmental groups. The case was decided against them in two prior 

decisions by the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. October 2, 2006, 

http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2006/10/02/9. 

Greenwire, “California Businesses Fear A.B. 32 Will Spur 'Tax-Like' Carbon Fees.” As California 

takes steps to implement its latest climate change legislation, A.B. 32 also known as the "Global 

Warming Solutions Act of 2006," business leaders are warning the law could lead to a tax on carbon and 

curbs on the state's economic growth. The California Chamber of Commerce Vice President Dominic 

Dimare stated, “A cap on carbon is a cap on growth.” The law sets reduction levels for greenhouse gas 

emissions to the 1990 levels by 2020. There is also a provision through which the California Air 

Resources Board may adopt by regulation a fee schedule under which emitters would have to pay into 

an Air Pollution Control Fund. In California, these charges are known as "Sinclair fees" after a 1997 

California Supreme Court decision, Sinclair Paint Co. v. State of California, which allowed regulators to 

charge mitigating pollution to the source, upholding the "polluter pays" principle. Dimare is also 

concerned that there is no budget allocation for economic analysis of any carbon reduction efforts. A lead 

agency also has yet to be determined for the law. October 12, 2006, 

http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/2006/10/12/#2

Marin Independent Journal, “Marin Launches Attack On Global Warming.” On October 10, Marin 

Country California, pledged to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions by 15 percent by 2020, using 

alternative energy projects. The county is one of 30 local governments in California and 134 across the 

nation that is participating in an international greenhouse gas reduction program. The total percent of the 

world’s greenhouse gases produced by those municipalities is 17 percent. 

http://www.marinij.com/marin/ci_4479920. 

December 2006

E&E News, “Senator Coleman Floats Plan to Set 'Clean Energy' Standard, Nix GHG Programs,” 

and Clean Air Report, “Senator Prompts Debate Over Draft Plan Blocking EPA, State CO2 Rules.”

Senator Norm Coleman (R-MN) is proposing legislation which would mandate clean energy purchases 

and promote low-carbon fossil technologies while blocking EPA and state driven climate policies. 

Colman’s plan was first reported in the publication InsideEPA, and would require major electric utilities to 

transfer an increasing percentage of their energy portfolio to low and zero-carbon production methods, 

including wind, solar, nuclear or integrated gasification combined cycle coal plants. Preliminary proposed 

limits would set a national portfolio standard at 10 percent in 2015, 15 percent in 2020 and 20 percent in 

2025. Caps on emissions are not included in the proposed plan. The proposal would also serve to 

preempt the Massachusetts et al. v EPA Supreme Court case, due to stating that carbon dioxide is not a 

pollutant under the Clean Air Act and is that “any harm allegedly caused by carbon dioxide emissions is 

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not actionable under federal or state common law.” The proposal would also weighs a prohibition on any 

laws or regulations set up in states such as California, New York and across the Northeast United States 

which are designed to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from power plants. October 20, 2006, 

http://www.eenews.net/eenewspm/2006/10/20/archive/1/?terms=climate, and November 2, 2006, 

http://epa.iwpnewsstand.com/showdoc.asp?docnum=CLEANAIR-17-22-1. (Subscription may be required 

for both sources.) 

January 2007

Greenwire, “Boxer To Use California Model For Federal Warming Initiative.” Senator Barbara Boxer 

(D-CA) is taking over the US Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works in January. She plans 

to use California’s Global Warming Solutions Act (AB32) as a model in drafting the federal climate 

legislation for the 110th US Congress. AB32 is requiring a 25 percent cut in greenhouse gas emissions by 

2020. Though there is no timetable for the legislation, a Boxer aide stated that the senator will be 

engaged in the issue of global warming at the start of next Congress. November 11, 2006, 

http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2006/11/10/1. 

Reuters, “Colorado Town Passes First US Carbon Tax.” Boulder, Colorado has passed the first 

municipal carbon tax in the US. Residents and businesses will have to pay the carbon tax according to 

how much electricity they use. The tax will raise the average home bill by $1.33 per month, and the 

business’ bill by $3.80 per month. Annually, the carbon tax will generate $1 million for the city annually, 

and will be used to fund energy audits for homes and businesses, and energy advisors for homeowners. 

Residents who choose to purchase wind power will not have to pay the tax. November 13, 2006, 

http://www.planetark.com/avantgo/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=38939. 

February 2007 

E&E Daily, “Global Warming, Energy Top Senate Democrats’ Floor Plans,” and E&E Daily, 

“Warming Policy Debate Picks Up Steam as Dems Move Into Power.” In a memo sent on January 3 to 

Senate Democrats, the incoming majority leader, Senator Harry Reid (D-Nevada), included global warming 

as one of ten specific legislative items to be addressed by the 110th Congress. Leaders from both the 

House and Senate also mentioned climate change and energy policy in their opening day speeches to 

Congress. Reid’s plan to implement this legislation will begin with hearings held through a committee 

process. Senator Barbara Boxer (D-California), chairwoman of the Environment and Public Works 

Committee, and Jeff Bingaman, Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chairman, (D-New 

Mexico) will lead the effort. Senator Bingaman has already circulated draft global warming legislation to 

industry, environmental groups, economists and others. The current draft legislation, which ensues an 

earlier draft, calls for stricter industry regulations relating to air pollution and carbon dioxide emissions. 

Majority Whip Dick Durbin (Illinois), the second highest ranking Senate Democrat, predicts bipartisan 

interest in global warming and recommended questions about climate change be put before Boxer. To 

read the full memo by Senator Harry Reid, go to: 

http://www.eenews.net/features/documents/2007/01/04/document_daily_01.pdf, and to read the Bingaman 

draft legislation, see: http://www.eenews.net/features/documents/2007/01/05/document_gw_01.pdf. 

January 4, 2007, http://www.eenews.net/EEDaily/print/2007/01/04/2, and January 8, 2007, 

http://www.eenews.net/EEDaily/2007/01/08/archive/1/?terms=carbon%20sequestration. (Subscription may 

be required.) 

AP, “Details of Competing Global Warming Plans in the U.S. Senate.” Three global warming bills 

were recently introduced in the US Senate. The “Climate Stewardship and Innovation Act of 2007” was 

introduced on January 12 by Senators John McCain, (R-Arizona), Joseph Lieberman, (I-Connecticut), 

and Barack Obama, (D-Illinois). The bill aims to reduce emissions to one-third of 2000 levels by 2050. It 

would set up a cap-and-trade system where the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 

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administrator would set up a system for distributing, borrowing and trading emissions credits. The act 

would establish a national greenhouse gas (GHS) database in order to track and analyze emissions. 

Companies could earn cap-and-trade credits by participating in emissions reductions projects in other 

countries. Also companies which reach emissions goals ahead of their timeframe would earn additional 

credits. The “Global Warming Pollution Reduction Act” was introduced on January 16 by Senator Bernie 

Sanders, (I-Vermont) and was co-sponsored by Senator Barbara Boxer, (D-California), Senator Ted 

Kennedy, (D-Massachusetts) and others, totaling 11 in all. The Act would require a reduction of 

emissions of GHG to 1990 levels by 2020, and further decreases every ten years to 80 percent below 

1990 levels by 2050. This bill has no mechanism for cap-and-trade, but would establish emissions 

standards for vehicles. All power plants built after 2012 would have to comply with mandatory GHG 

emission standards, which would apply to all plants by 2030 no matter when they were built. A 

requirement of 0.5 percent of electricity generation would have a low carbon coal requirement by 2015, 

with five percent of generation to follow that requirement by 2020. The "Electric Utility Cap-and-Trade 

Act" was introduced by Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-California), and Tom Carper (D-Delaware) on 

January 17. This bill seeks to cap GHG emissions in the electricity sector at 2006 levels in 2011 and 

2001 levels in 2015. By 2020 emissions would need to be reduced to 25 percent below where they would 

be expected to be without action. The bill sets up a cap-and-trade system with one credit equivalent to 

one ton of carbon dioxide emissions, with allocation based on emission reduction goals outlined in the 

bill. The EPA would auction credits each year and the money would go toward the development of new 

low-carbon technologies and mitigating the effects of climate change. A scientific panel would be 

established to make recommendations to the EPA every four years regarding emission reduction rates. 

January 17, 2006, 

http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/local/states/california/northern_california/1648272

1.htm. 

Greenwire, “Automakers Ask Court to Dismiss California Lawsuit.” The “Big Six” automakers filed a 

motion on December 15 to dismiss the state of California’s lawsuit, California v. GM, which would hold 

the major automobile industry financially accountable for global warming caused by new automobile 

emissions. Attorneys for the automobile companies, including General Motors Corporation, Toyota Motor 

North America Incorporated, Ford Motor Company, Honda North America Incorporated, Chrysler Motors 

Corporation and Nissan North America Incorporated, argue that federal courts are prohibited from 

intervening to create new common law on vehicle emissions and fuel economy, as written in existing 

congressional and executive branch regulations. California Attorney General Bill Lockyer (D), who filed 

California’s original complaint in September 2006, is being accused of creating a tort lawsuit out of the 

international political debate that surrounds the subject of global warming. The Supreme Court heard 

arguments last month in a similar case, Massachusetts v. EPA. The Court is expected to hand down a 

decision by this summer concerning the Environmental Protection Agency’s decision not to regulate 

greenhouse gas emissions from new cars and trucks. To read the automakers’ motion, go to: 

http://www.eenews.net/features/documents/2006/12/18/document_gw_01.pdf, and to view California’s 

original complaint, see: http://www.eenews.net/features/documents/2006/09/20/document_pm_01.pdf. 

December 18, 2006, http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2006/12/18/8. (Subscription may be 

required.) 

Reuters, “Massachusetts to Join Northeast US Greenhouse Pact.” Massachusetts will join the 

Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), a pact among northeastern US states to control emissions. 

The announcement was made on January 18 by Governor Deval Patrick to join the initiative to cap 

carbon dioxide emissions from electricity plants at current levels until 2015 and then reduce emissions by 

10 percent by 2019. Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York and 

Vermont have also pledged their commitment to the pact, and support is also expected from Maryland, 

Washington D.C., and possibly California. Estimated savings from green investments funded by the pact 

could reduce annual household electricity bills by $21 to $26 by 2015, although in the short term 

electricity bills may initially increase by $3 to $16 per year. In total, the investments could reduce the 

states $8 billion electricity bill by $160 million. Under the RGGI plan, power plants would have limits as to 

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how much carbon dioxide they can emit. Once the limit is exceeded they would then have to buy carbon 

credits from cleaner operating plants. Profits from the emissions market would go to the state which, in 

turn, would invest in green technology and conservation. The regional pact would cap carbon dioxide 

emissions from electricity plants at current levels until 2015, and then require a 10 percent decrease by 

2019. January 19, 2007, http://www.planetark.com/avantgo/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=39906. 

March 2007 

Voice of America, “Private Coalition Calls for Swift US Action on Global Warming,” and Voice of 

America, “US Businesses, Environmental Groups Join Forces to Push for Action on Global 

Warming.” A coalition of US-based businesses and non-governmental environmental organizations are 

joining forces to confront the problem of global warming. The US Climate Action Partnership, or US-CAP, 

is made up of chief executives from some of the country’s largest corporations, such as General Electric, 

DuPont, Alcoa, and Legman Brothers, who have teamed up with environmental groups including 

Environmental Defense, Natural Resources Defense Council, Pew Center on Global Climate Change, 

and World Resources Institute. Both parties are calling on the US government to address the issue of 

climate change by enacting national legislation to require significant reductions in greenhouse gas 

emissions. The proposal describes a market driven approach that places caps on emissions, while at the 

same time providing economic incentives to reach those targets. The goal is to see a reduction in carbon 

dioxide emissions by 30 percent in the next 15 years. Similar plans are in place in Europe where goals to 

reduce carbon dioxide emissions to pre-industrial levels by the year 2020 have been proposed by the 

European Commission. US-CAP supports the enactment of a number of climate change bills currently 

being presented to Congress. (See Recent Publications section of this newsletter for a link to the 

report, A Call for Action, in news item “A Call for Action: Consensus Principles and 

Recommendations from the U.S. Climate Action Partnership: A Business and NGO Partnership.”) 

January 22, 2007, http://www.voanews.com/english/2007-01-22-voa46.cfm, and January 24, 2007, 

http://www.voanews.com/english/2007-01-24-voa31.cfm. 

April 2007

E&E Daily, “Congress to Evaluate Carbon Taxes as Part of Warming Solution.” Two separate 

hearings that may address the possibility of imposing a carbon tax to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 

are scheduled to take place on Capitol Hill. The proposals under consideration would create new taxes 

on fossil fuels and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. A difference of opinion exists with lawmakers, 

however, as many believe that a cap-and-trade system would be a better approach to resolve the 

problem. Advocates of a carbon tax defend their approach due to its simplicity of applying a fixed cost on 

coal, oil and other sources of greenhouse gas emissions. They claim that cap-and-trade programs are 

more difficult to administer and more susceptible to corruption. Proponents of a carbon tax also site the 

increased revenue that the tax could bring to the government. An estimate released by the 

Congressional Budget Office stated that an additional $11.8 billion in revenue could result in 2008 alone 

with approval of a tax of $4 per ton of CO2 released into the atmosphere. An additional $95.4 billion in 

revenue could be seen by 2012. Observers of the global warming policy debate explain that a cap-andtrade system is, in effect, a carbon tax, because whether a company is paying a straight out tax or 

whether they are investing money from emissions into trading markets, they are still required to pay for 

emissions. The Senate Finance Committee will hold the first of the proposed hearings on February 27 

and is likely to explore carbon taxes and other energy incentives. Similarly, Representative Charles 

Rangel (D-NY), the chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, will hold the first in a series of 

hearings on energy and climate change issues on February 28. Proponents of a carbon tax are keeping 

a watchful eye on Representative. Fortney “Pete” Stark (D-CA), who is also a member of the Ways and 

Means Committee. He has expressed his own ideas about plans to introduce legislation that would put a 

tax on coal, petroleum and natural gas based on their carbon content. It may be difficult for legislation of 

this type to pass into law, as was the case with former President Clinton’s appeal to Congress in 1993 to 

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pass legislation taxing energy based on its British thermal unit output, otherwise known as the Btu tax. 

The consensus on Capitol Hill is that lawmakers are much more likely to pass cap-and-trade legislation 

over the imposition of a carbon tax. For one, the Bush administration has signaled no interest in carbon 

taxes and, if passed, a carbon tax would undercut US farmers who would earn as much as $8 billion a 

year in payments through the cap-and-trade plan described in a bill by Senator Joe Lieberman (I-CT), 

and whereby any revenue raised by the program would be put into a “trust fund” that would be used for 

energy technologies, for example. Finally, opponents also state that imposing a carbon tax would not 

guarantee any specific reductions in emissions. February 26, 2007, 

http://www.eenews.net/EEDaily/print/2007/02/26/1. (Subscription may be required.) 

U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on Science and Technology, Legislative Highlights,

“National Carbon Dioxide Storage Capacity Assessment Act of 2007,” and “Congress Pushes to 

Catalog Nation's Capacity to ‘Bottle’ Carbon Emissions from Coal and Other Energy Plants.” US 

Senators Ken Salazar and Jim Webb have introduced a bill which authorizes the US Geological Service 

(USGS), in cooperation with the Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency to 

conduct a comprehensive inventory of carbon dioxide storage capacity in geologic features and other 

natural basins. The bill was co-sponsored by Senator Jeff Bingaman (D-NM). Also introduced was the 

House companion bill by Representative Bart Gordon (D-TN), Chairman of the Committee on Science 

and Technology. The National Carbon Dioxide Storage Capacity Assessment Act of 2007 would 

authorize the federal government to spend $20 million on the inventory process. Congress would need to 

appropriate the funds. This bill would also require the USGS to develop an official methodology of the 

assessment that will then be reviewed by a panel of experts and the public for accuracy. To read the text 

of the house version as a pdf file, click on:

http://democrats.science.house.gov/Media/File/Commdocs/carbondioxide_act.pdf. To read the Senate

version of the bill, click on: http://salazar.senate.gov/images/pdf/070301env.pdf. March 1, 2007, 

http://science.house.gov/legislation/leg_highlights_detail.aspx?NewsID=1587, and 

http://science.house.gov/press/PRArticle.aspx?NewsID=1590. 

May 2007 

Greenwire, “Supreme Court Orders EPA to Consider Regulating Greenhouse Gases.” On April 2, 

the Supreme Court ruled in favor of 11 states and 13 environmental groups that the US Environmental 

Protection Agency (EPA) must take action to regulate carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from new cars and 

trucks. The first of its kind ruling, Massachusetts v. EPA rejects the notion that the EPA does not have 

the authority to set emissions standards or somehow regulate greenhouse gases in relation to global 

warming. Justice Paul Stevens, writing for the majority, also dismissed EPA’s standing that a federal rule 

would have little or no effect on climate change in Massachusetts or other states, because US 

automobile emissions account for only seven percent of global fossil fuel emissions and only a third of 

the country’s overall emissions. The consensus among environmentalists about the ruling is that it will 

now be up to Congress to move forward and institute legislation to regulate greenhouse gases. To read 

the Supreme Court opinion, go to: 

http://www.eenews.net/features/documents/2007/04/02/document_gw_03.pdf. To read a transcript of the 

oral arguments, see: http://www.eenews.net/features/documents/2006/11/29/document_pm_01.pdf. 

April 2, 2007, 

http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/2007/04/02/archive/1/?terms="CLIMATE". (Subscription may be 

required.)

Greenwire, “EPA to Issue Decision on California Emissions Waiver” and The Associated 

Press/Time, “EPA Revives California Emissions Rule.” Following the Supreme Court decision in 

Massachusetts v. EPA on April 9, giving the agency the authority to establish vehicle emissions 

standards, California will now be able to move ahead with ambitions to set fuel economy standards for 

cars, light trucks and sport utility vehicles. While the federal Clean Air Act generally does not allow 

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individual states to regulate air pollution, California has special authority to do so because it began 

regulating air pollution before the federal government did in the 1970’s. The Environmental Protection 

Agency will now have to consider California’s waiver request to enact the standards. Ten other states 

have adopted similar standards to those in California, but until the waiver is granted to California, they 

will not be allowed to set their own emissions standards. The Massachusetts v. EPA ruling has caused 

other legal challenges to resurface. In a separate lawsuit against the “Big Six” automakers, attorneys 

argued that a lawsuit filed against them by the state of California should be dropped since the Supreme 

Court decision grants the federal government the right to regulate emissions, not the states. California 

interprets the ruling in a different light, however. A similar case is scheduled to be heard in Vermont 

where the auto industry is suing the state for their efforts to implement the same emissions regulations 

as those in California. April 4, 2007, http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/print/2007/04/04/9, and April 4, 

2007, http://www.time.com/time/printout/0,8816,1606584,00.html#. (Subscription may be required.) 

Great Falls Tribune, “Tester Bill Aims to Put $315 Million into Clean-Coal Technology.” United 

States Senator Jon Tester (D-Montana) is co-sponsoring a bill totaling $315 million which he would like 

to use to fund carbon capture and storage projects throughout the United States. The proposed 

legislation has the support of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee chairman and the 

ranking member. The funding, to be allocated from 2008 through 2010, would be divided among the 

seven US Department of Energy (DOE)-sponsored Regional Partnerships, formed by DOE in 2004 to 

study the feasibility and safety of capture, injection and long-term storage of carbon dioxide (CO2). 

Tester’s state of Montana is home to the Big Sky Regional Partnership, made up of researchers in 

Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, Washington, and Oregon. The partnership is based at Montana State 

University. Big Sky is currently hoping to initiate geologic sequestration pilot studies, which would involve 

small scale CO2 injection studies at sites previously determined in their initial phase of research. Success 

of these tests would be followed by large-scale injections. April 8, 2007, 

http://www.greatfallstribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070408/NEWS01/704080305&template=pr

intart

June 2007 

United Press International, “Bingaman-Domenici Bill Passed In Committee.” In a 20-3 vote, the 

Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee passed the Bingaman-Domenici bill on May 2, a key 

piece of energy legislation encompassing incentives for energy efficiency and renewables. The bill will be 

brought before the Senate soon. The legislation combines energy improvement initiatives from three 

important bipartisan measures that have surfaced over the past several months. First, the bill includes 

$125 million in carbon sequestration research and development. Second, the measure calls for a 20 

percent reduction in US gasoline consumption over the next ten years. Finally, increased federal funding 

for research and development in bioenergy technologies is authorized in the legislation. This includes 

new energy efficiency requirements for household appliances. Important to state and county lawmakers 

is the inclusion of an Energy and Environment Block Grant. This passes funding to local governments to 

enact energy saving programs in their communities, a grant stemming from requests voiced during the 

Conference of Mayors held in January. May 3, 2007, 

http://www.upi.com/Energy/Briefing/2007/05/03/bingamandomenici_bill_passed_in_committee/. 

Environment & Energy Daily, “Rahall-Sponsored Climate, Energy Bill Starts to Take Shape.” Nick 

Rahall (D-W. Va.), chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee, is sponsoring a climate bill that 

will incorporate two key provisions to draft legislation expected to be brought before the House floor this 

summer. The first provision is to study the potential of carbon sequestration in the United States. Rahall 

cites legislation introduced by House Science and Technology Committee Chairman Bart Gordon (D-TN)

that would produce a comprehensive inventory of the nation’s ability to store CO2 in geologic formations 

and other natural basins. The USGS would work with the DOE and US Environmental Protection Agency 

to establish this inventory, as well as developing a “rigorous methodology” for the assessment. The US 

Geological Survey (USGS) endorses the bill, H.R. 1267, in addition to supporting a companion bill being 

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brought before the Senate’s Energy and Natural Resources Committee. The House and Senate versions 

of the legislation have been endorsed by several environmental groups and energy industry groups. The 

second provision repeals to Section 390 of the 2005 Energy Policy Act that allows for categorical 

exclusions from oil and gas National Environmental Policy Act studies of drilling projects on Western 

public lands. Categorical exclusions such as this one are generally opposed because they often result in 

shortened approval time for permit requests and do not leave time to conduct public hearings. It is often 

during the public comment periods that opposition and concern over wildlife and habitat concerns are 

voiced. The Western Governors’ Association and other environmental groups endorse the repeal. To 

review the content of H.R. 1267, go to: 

http://www.eenews.net/features/bills/110/House/010507175934.pdf. May 2, 2007, 

http://www.eenews.net/EEDaily/print/2007/05/02/3. 

July 2007

The Associated Press, “Utah Joins Pact to Reduce Gas Emissions.” On May 21, Republican 

Governor Jon Huntsman of Utah signed the Western Regional Climate Action Initiative. Utah is now the 

sixth state to join the group of Western states that have pledged their formal commitment to reduce 

greenhouse gas emissions. Governors from California, Arizona, Washington, Oregon, and New Mexico 

are current members of the pact, which was enacted earlier this year by California Governor Arnold 

Schwarzenegger. The group will work together to set collective targets for greenhouse gas reductions by 

August 2007 and establish a protocol for tracking and registering greenhouse gas emissions. 

Additionally, the agreement calls for implementation of a regional carbon market by August 2008, 

whereby companies that pollute in excess of their allowance must purchase credits from companies who 

are able to meet their emissions targets. A similar scheme is being developed in a number of 

Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic states as a way to mitigate climate change. Utah relies almost exclusively 

on coal-fired power plants to generate electricity, so initiatives such as the Western Regional Climate 

Action Initiative present a viable option in reducing the state’s carbon dioxide emissions and addressing 

global climate change. May 21, 2007, http://www.washingtonpost.com/wpdyn/content/article/2007/05/21/AR2007052101280.html. 

The Associated Press, “Western Governors Target Clean Energy.” On June 10-12, the Western 

Governors’ Association held a three-day conference to discuss global warming, clean energy 

alternatives, agriculture policy, and reducing the impact of climate change in the region. Attendees 

included ten governors and the premiers of two Canadian provinces. Considerable attention was given to 

carbon sequestration, with a request to the federal government to increase its research and funding 

efforts with the technology. Economic incentives, deployment of large-scale sequestration projects, 

technological advances, and long-term liability are many of the issues that will need to be addressed with 

carbon sequestration. The commitment to move forward with large-scale solar energy projects was also 

discussed. June 11, 2007, http://www.billingsgazette.net/articles/2007/06/11/news/state/40-governor.prt.

August 2007 

 

Bloomberg, “Bill Would Cut Greenhouse Gas Emissions Twenty Percent by 2030.” On July 11, 

Senators Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) and Arlen Specter (R-PA) unveiled an industry-backed climate change 

bill that would impose mandatory limits on US CO2 emissions. The bill calls for emission levels to be cut 

by 20 percent by 2030 through a cap-and-trade system requiring industry to reduce emissions or buy 

credits if they exceed their quotas. If the legislation moves forward, industries affected by the regulations 

would begin the cap-and-trade system in 2012, with an allotment of 53 percent of their emissions 

allowances. Industries who fail to reduce their pollution levels would be required to purchase additional 

allowances in the market. To secure industry support, the bill sets limits for tradable allowances at $12 

per ton of CO2, although the price would increase by five percent per year plus the cost of inflation. 

Although President Bush has called for voluntary reductions in emissions, he stipulates that any 

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greenhouse gas trading scheme must include China and other Asian economies before becoming 

mandatory in the US. July 11, 2007, 

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601070&sid=a5qSZkX.S2kQ&refer=home. 

US House of Representatives Committee on Science and Technology Press Release, “Energy and 

Climate Change R&D Measures Clear Committee, Contribute to House Energy Package.” On June 

27, four bills were passed by the House Committee on Science and Technology, including H.R. 1933, the 

Department of Energy Carbon Capture and Storage Research, Development and Demonstration Act of 

2007. The bill is designed to enhance the country’s knowledge and use of carbon capture and 

sequestration. The primary sponsor of the legislation is Mark Udall (D-CO). H.R. 1933 reauthorizes DOEfunded research and development programs, and specifically funds demonstration of carbon 

sequestration field test projects currently underway by the seven Regional Carbon Sequestration 

Partnerships. Other bills passed by the full Committee include: H.R. 906, the Global Change Research 

and Data Management Act; H.R. 2773, the Biofuels Research and Development Enhancement Act; and 

H.R. 2774, the Solar Energy Research and Advancement Act of 2007. To read H.R. 1933 reported (as 

amended) by the full Committee on June 27, 2007, click on: 

http://democrats.science.house.gov/Media/File/Commdocs/markups/full/27jun/1933_adopted_amnds.pdf. 

June 27, 2007, http://science.house.gov/press/PRArticle.aspx?NewsID=1908. 

Newsday, “NJ Enacts Long-Reaching Anti-Global Warming Law” and Assembly Democrats News 

Release, “‘Global Warming Response Act’ Signed Into Law.” On July 6, New Jersey Governor Jon 

S. Corzine signed the “Global Warming Response Act” into law, an initiative that places the state at the 

forefront in US efforts to combat global warming. The law sets forth strict emissions standards for New 

Jersey, requiring a reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emission levels to 1990 levels by the year 2020. 

By 2050, the law calls for emission levels not to exceed 80 percent of levels present in 2006, an objective 

that makes New Jersey the first state to set a global warming target so far into the future. Additionally, 

the mandate makes the state the first to require that energy imports adhere to New Jersey’s standards. 

The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) will play an integral part in the state’s 

efforts to reach the goals set forth in the new law. In the first year, the DEP will conduct an emissions 

inventory which will identify GHG emission levels from 1990, 2006, and the present. The new law mirrors 

an executive order signed by the governor in January. By 2009, the DEP will establish a GHG emissions 

monitoring and reporting program and will set standards for industry. By June 30, 2008, the DEP will 

report its recommendations to reach 1990 levels by 2020. The 2050 milestone recommendations will be 

described in a second report expected no later than June 30, 2010. The DEP will be required to inventory 

and establish industry emission caps for six greenhouse gases, including CO2, methane, nitrous oxide, 

sulfur hexafluoride, hydroflurocarbons (HFCs), and polyflurochemicals (PFCs). Former Vice-President Al 

Gore was present at the signing of the law, which took place at Giant’s Stadium on the eve of the “Live 

Earth” concert aimed at raising awareness of global warming. New Jersey joins California and Hawaii in 

adopting the anti-global warming law and eight other states are considering similar actions. July 6, 2007, 

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/newjersey/ny-bc-nj--globalwarmingnj0706jul06,0,7721814,print.story?coll=ny-region-apnewjersey, and July 6, 2007, 

http://www.politicsnj.com/assembly-democrats-global-warming-response-act-signed-law-10157. 

Announcements 

October 2006

DOE Releases Climate Change Technology Program Strategic Plan: Plan Outlines Strategies for 

Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions through Development and Deployment of Advanced 

Technologies. On September 20, the US Department of Energy (DOE) released the Climate Change 

Technology Program (CCTP) Strategic Plan which details measures to accelerate the development and 

reduce the cost of new and advanced technologies that avoid, reduce, or capture and store greenhouse 

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gas emissions. To read the press release, see: 

http://www.climatetechnology.gov/library/2006/pr20sep2006.pdf. To download the report entitled "US 

Climate Change Technology Program Strategic Plan September 2006," see: 

http://www.climatetechnology.gov/stratplan/final/index.htm. Also see this Newsletter's Recent 

Publications section for details. 

"Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) and Joint Implementation (JI) in Charts" Booklet. The 

Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES) is pleased to announce that the aforementioned 

booklet has now been upgraded to version 6.0. Published by IGES as part of the Integrated Capacity 

Strengthening (ICS) for the CDM/JI (ICS-CDM/JI) Program under the Ministry of the Environment, Japan, 

the booklet contains plain and easy-to-understand description of the CDM and other Kyoto mechanisms. 

All the changes from the previous version are listed in the book. Download at: 

http://www.iges.or.jp/en/cdm/report01.html. 

J.D. Power and Associates Releases Alternate Powertrain Study 2006. J.D Power and Associates 

new Alternative Powertrain Study (APS) includes the Automotive Environmental Index (AEI), which 

combines US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) publicly available information with voice-of-thecustomer data related to fuel economy, air pollution and greenhouse gases for 2006 model-year 

vehicles. Voice-of-the-customer data is also used to help determine the relative importance of these 

environmental factors. The fuel economy factor represents approximately 50 percent of the index, while 

air pollution and greenhouse gases contribute to the remainder. The top 30 vehicle models are included 

in the index. To access the index and see a video explaining the ranking, see: 

http://www.jdpower.com/autos/green-info/green-matt.aspx. 

November 2006

2006 Gasification Technologies Council Annual Conference Papers and Presentations. The 

papers and presentations from the 2006 Gasification Technologies Conference, which was held from 

October 1-4 in Washington, DC, are available to download. Visit 

http://www.gasification.org/Presentations/2006.htm to view the papers, with several papers under the 

heading of “Carbon Management with Gasification Technologies.” Also available is a presentation 

given by Mike Mudd of the FutureGen Alliance on the Status and Schedule of the FutureGen Plant at: 

http://www.gasification.org/Docs/2006_Papers/39MUDD.pdf. 

 “The Great Warming,” a new documentary film, to be released November 3. The film examines

world-wide issues of climate change and offers many real-world solutions. Filmed on four continents and 

narrated by Keanu Reeves and Alanis Morissette, the film will be released nationwide through the Regal 

Cinema chain in the top 50 U.S. markets. http://www.prweb.com/releases/2006/10/prweb445785.htm.

Television show “The Climate Code with Dr. Heidi Cullen" to be launched on the Weather 

Channel. The Weather Channel is launching a new show called "The Climate Code" that will focus on 

global warming and environmental issues. The host is Heidi Cullen, who holds a Ph.D. from Columbia 

University. The show will air at 5 p.m. every Sunday with reruns on Saturdays at 5 p.m., 7 p.m. and 11 

p.m. http://climate.weather.com/onair.html. 

Point Carbon’s Carbon Market North America free e-newsletter. View and/or register for Point 

Carbon’s newsletter covering North America’s carbon market news and commentary. Also included is a 

summary of global carbon politics and markets. 

http://www.pointcarbon.com/Home/Carbon%20Market%20North%20America/category1325.html.

January 2007

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Read Jeffrey Jarrett’s Opinion Column on Carbon Sequestration. Jeffrey Jarrett, Assistant 

Secretary, Office of Fossil Energy, of the US Department of Energy has written a guest column on 

Carbon Sequestration which appeared in the Waco-Tribune Herald on November 30, 2006. Read it at 

this link: http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20061129/news_lz1e29jarrett.html.

Register for NYSERDA's Carbon Capture and Sequestration Listserv. Join New York State Energy 

Research and Development Authority's email listserv to receive updates on NYSERDA's and New York 

State's involvement with Carbon Sequestration issues. To subscribe to the list, visit: 

http://www.nyserda.org/programs/Research_Development/CCSListserv.asp for instructions. Or send an 

email to: listserv@listserv.nyserda.org. Leave SUBJECT blank, and put in the BODY of the email 

message (using your name): subscribe CCS-L firstname lastname. E-mail info@nyserda.org if you have 

questions about registering. 

February 2007

DOE Announces Thomas D. Shope as New Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Fossil 

Energy. The announcement was made on December 19 by Jeffrey Jarrett, Assistant Secretary for Fossil 

Energy. To read the full announcement, see: http://www.fossil.energy.gov/news/techlines/2006/06074-

Thomas_Shope_Named_PDAS.html. 

Read Jeffrey Jarrett’s Column on Carbon Sequestration. Jeffrey Jarrett, Assistant Secretary, Office 

of Fossil Energy, of the US Department of Energy, has contributed an article about Carbon Sequestration 

which appeared in The Pittsburgh Post Gazette on January 21, 2007. The article can be read in its 

entirety at: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07021/755289-109.stm. 

IPCC will Release Its Fourth Assessment Report “Climate Change 2007” on February 2, 2007. The 

report will present a comprehensive and rigorous picture of the global state of knowledge of climate 

change. Check the website for the report. http://www.ipcc.ch/. 

March 2007

NETL’s Bauer Named “Laboratory Director of the Year.” Carl O. Bauer, Director of the Office of 

Fossil Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL), has been named a Laboratory Director 

of the Year by the Federal Laboratory Consortium for Technology Transfer (FLC). The annual award 

honors directors who have made outstanding contributions supporting technology transfer activities at 

their laboratories. The award will be presented May 17, 2007, at the FLC National Meeting in Arlington, 

Texas. To read the full announcement, link to the Department of Energy’s Fossil Energy website: 

http://www.fossil.energy.gov/news/techlines/2007/07006-NETL_Director_Wins_Award.html.

FutureGen Alliance website updated. Changes to the website include the addition of Frequently Asked 

Questions (FAQs), information on the four Candidate Sites to host FutureGen, and an overview of the 

Alliance organizational structure. These updates can be found at: http://www.FutureGenAlliance.org. 

Hear Secretary of Energy Samuel Bodman’s remarks for a broadcast on NPR’s All Things 

Considered, entitled “U.N. Report: Humans Behind Climate Change.” The story follows the Fourth 

Assessment Report released by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change on February 2, 2007. 

To read a brief article summarizing the main findings of the report and a link to the audio file, go to: 

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=7137290. 

Energy Market and Economic Impacts of a Proposal to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Intensity with a 

Cap and Trade System. This report was prepared by the Energy Information Administration (EIA), in 

response to a September 27, 2006, request from Senators Bingaman, Landrieu, Murkowski, Specter, 

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Salazar, and Lugar. The Senators requested that EIA assess the impacts of a proposal that would 

regulate emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs) through an allowance cap-and-trade system. The 

program would set the cap to achieve a reduction in emissions relative to economic output, or 

greenhouse gas intensity. To read the January 2007 report in its entirety, go to: 

http://www.eia.doe.gov/oiaf/servicerpt/bllmss/pdf/sroiaf(2007)01.pdf. 

Branson, Gore Announce $25 Million “Virgin Earth Challenge.” In a joint announcement, Sir Richard

Branson and Al Gore have pledged a $25 million prize for viable solutions for carbon sequestration. The 

award will go to the individual or group who is able to demonstrate a commercially viable design which 

will remove at least 1 billion tons of atmospheric carbon dioxide per year for at least ten years without 

harmful effects. The removal must have long term effects and contribute materially to the stability of the 

Earth’s climate. It is the largest science and technology prize ever offered. To read more about the Virgin 

Earth Prize, go to: http://www.environmentalleader.com/2007/02/09/branson-gore-announce-25-millionvirgin-earth-challenge/. 

April 2007

“Two Senior Energy Department Officials to Depart.” On March 5, Assistant Secretary for Fossil 

Energy Jeffrey Jarrett, announced his resignation from the Department of Energy (DOE). Jeffrey Jarrett 

joined DOE in January 2006 as chief advisor to Secretary of Energy Samuel Bodman on fossil fuel 

policies and programs, which includes carbon sequestration research and development, as well as 

oversight of the FutureGen project. Mr. Jarrett has accepted the position of executive director of CoalBased Generation Stakeholders. To read Secretary Bodman’s remarks concerning the announcement 

and to view the full DOE press release, go to: http://energy.gov/news/4832.htm. 

Secretary of Energy Participates in Online Forum, “Ask the White House.” The online interactive 

forum allows the public to participate in online discussions with Cabinet Secretaries, senior White House 

officials, behind-the-scenes professionals at the White House, and others. On February 23, Secretary 

Bodman responded to an inquiry on advances being made with clean coal technology, saying that 

carbon sequestration and the FutureGen initiative are two examples of progress being made. A question 

inquiring about Department of Energy (DOE) advances in life sciences sparked the Secretary to 

comment on DOE-sponsored research into microbes to aid in carbon sequestration. To read the Q&A 

session in its entirety, go to: http://www.whitehouse.gov/ask/20070223.html. 

Sean Plasynski on National Public Radio’s Morning Edition. To listen to a radio story “Scientists 

Hunt for Solution to Carbon Dioxide Problem,” with comments by Sean Plasynski, Sequestration 

Technology Manager at the Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory go to: 

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=7874053. 

Read “Farming the Climate,” an Article about Plantstone Carbon Research. Plantstone Carbon, or 

phytolith occluded carbon, is a process which occurs naturally in plants and could play an important role 

in countering carbon dioxide emissions and global warming. The authors discuss the technology and the 

financial and environmental benefits it could bring to the agricultural sector in Australia. The article was 

first published in Australian R&D Review on February 7, 2007 – “Linking Australian Science, Technology 

and Business.” Read it at this link: http://www.sciencealert.com.au/farming-the-climate.html. 

View a Presentation by the Electrical Power Resource Institute (EPRI) on “Electricity Technology 

in a Carbon-Constrained Future.” EPRI has presented a technical analysis of the potential for 

significant carbon dioxide reductions from the US electric power sector within the next 25 years. To view 

the executive summary and PowerPoint presentation, see: 

http://my.epri.com/portal/server.pt?space=CommunityPage&cached=true&parentname=Login&parentid=

1&in_hi_userid=2&control=SetCommunity&CommunityID=205&PageID=410. 

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May 2007 

The Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) Releases “Carbon 

Sequestration Atlas of the United States and Canada.” The first coordinated assessment of carbon 

capture and storage (CCS) potential in the United States and portions of western Canada is presented in 

extensive detail in this document. (See Highlights section of this newsletter for the article “DOE 

Regional Partnerships Find More Than 3,500 Billion Tons of Possible Carbon Dioxide Storage 

Capacity,” the News section article, “US Sees Ample Room to Bury Carbon Dioxide But Costs 

Unknown,” and the Publications section for more information regarding the Atlas.) NETL has 

made the Atlas available online at: http://www.netl.doe.gov/publications/carbon_seq/atlas/index.html. 

View a Slideshow entitled “Climate Change Issues.” This slideshow contains over 200 slides related 

to current climate change issues, each accompanied by a related news story. The slideshow is updated 

daily with new photos and news stories related to the topic. To access the link to “Climate Change 

Issues,” click on: http://news.yahoo.com/photos/ss/events/sc/120203climateissues. 

June 2007 

The Department of Energy’s Carbon Sequestration Program Releases “2007 Carbon 

Sequestration Technology Roadmap and Program Plan.” This year’s annual update to the Carbon 

Sequestration Program roadmap provides a detailed analysis of the program’s ten year history and the 

plan that will guide the program in the years to come. (See Highlights section of this newsletter for 

the article “DOE Releases 2007 Carbon Sequestration Technology Roadmap, Marks Tenth Year of 

Carbon Sequestration Program” and the Publications section for more information regarding the 

document. NETL has made the Roadmap available online at: 

http://www.netl.doe.gov/publications/carbon_seq/project%20portfolio/2007/2007Roadmap.pdf. 

Read “Why Put CO2 in the Air When You Can Bury It?” an article about the Recently Held Sixth 

Annual Conference on Carbon Capture and Storage. This article appeared in the Environment 

section of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette following the conference and describes briefly how carbon 

sequestration can be used to mitigate carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions. The article 

also includes comments from some of the conference keynote and other featured speakers. To read the 

article in its entirety, go to: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07133/785696-113.stm. 

The United States Climate Action Partnership (USCAP) Announces Fourteen New Members on 

May 8. New members include American International Group (AIG), Alcan, Boston Scientific, 

ConocoPhillips, Deere & Company, The Dow Chemical Company, General Motors Corporation, Johnson 

& Johnson, Marsh, PepsiCo, Shell, and Siemens, along with the Nature Conservancy and the National 

Wildlife Federation. The USCAP objective calls for the federal government to enact mandatory legislation 

for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. The coalition is made up of nongovernmental businesses 

and environmental organizations with a collective workforce exceeding 2 million people. To read the 

USCAP press release of the announcement, go to: 

http://www.pewclimate.org/docUploads/USCAP%205%2E8%2E07%20Release%2Epdf. 

July 2007 

National Public Radio Story About Carbon. View a five-part animated series on National Public Radio 

(NPR) dedicated to carbon. This series explains how carbon atoms form bonds, break apart, and create 

the conditions that can lead to global warming. Listen to the accompanying story on NPR’s “All Things 

Considered,” by clicking on: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=9943298. 

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“Statement by the President on the Decline of United States Carbon Dioxide Emissions for 2006.” 

Figures contained in the May 23 report from the Energy Information Administration show that the US is 

on track to meet national greenhouse gas emission reductions by 18 percent by 2012. The report 

contains a “flash estimate” of US carbon dioxide emissions for 2006, which show a decrease of 78 million 

metric tons over the prior year. To read the President’s statement in its entirety, click on: 

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2007/05/20070523-8.html. 

August 2007

Proceedings available for Sixth Annual Conference on Carbon Capture & Sequestration.

Individuals who were not able to attend the conference can purchase a user-friendly, searchable CDROM containing the presentations made by the key decision makers and the over 200 technical papers. 

The CD provides the latest updates on actions being taken and the status of RD&D from the leading 

organizations and experts on carbon capture, storage and sequestration. For order information, visit the 

conference website at: http://www.carbonsq.com/index.htm. 

Read “Companies Judged for Global-Warming Awareness, Found Lacking.” The excerpt appeared 

in the Wall Street Journal on June 19, 2007. Climate Counts, a nonprofit group, ranked 56 companies on 

their commitment to climate change based on carbon conscious criteria. The study’s goal was to 

demonstrate that companies have a major impact on climate change. Only four companies scored a 

70/100 or higher and no company exceeded 77. To read the full blog post, see: 

http://blogs.wsj.com/energy/2007/06/19/companies-measured-for-global-warming-awareness-foundlacking/. 

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Contact Information: 

National Energy Technology Laboratory 

626 Cochrans Mill Road 

P.O. Box 10940 

Pittsburgh, PA 15236-0940 

3610 Collins Ferry Road 

P.O. Box 880 

Morgantown, WV 26507-0880 

Contacts: 

Sean Plasynski 

U.S. Department of Energy 

National Energy Technology Laboratory 

626 Cochrans Mill Road 

P.O. Box 10940 

Pittsburgh, PA 15236 

Phone: (412) 386-4867 

Fax: (412) 386-4822 

sean.plasynski@netl.doe.gov 

Dawn Deel 

U.S. Department of Energy 

National Energy Technology Laboratory 

3610 Collins Ferry Road 

P.O. Box 880 

Morgantown, WV 26507 

Phone: (304) 285-4133 

Fax: (304) 285-4403 

dawn.deel@netl.doe.gov. 

For more information on the Carbon Sequestration Program 

please visit our web site: 

NETL Carbon Sequestration Page at: 

http://www.netl.doe.gov/technologies/carbon_seq/index.html. 

July 2007 

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