Governor Mark Gordon, Chair of the Western Governors’ Association (WGA), on June 12th, released the report containing findings of his Decarbonizing the West initiative during the association’s 40th Anniversary meeting in Olympic Valley, CA. Governor Gordon launched the initiative a year ago to examine how decarbonization strategies can position western states at the forefront of innovation, reduce CO2 in the atmosphere, and strengthen their economies. The initiative explored a wide range of engineered decarbonization approaches as well as natural sequestration through enhanced land and agriculture management practices.

“Western Governors have a longstanding tradition of addressing complicated issues in thoughtful and bipartisan ways that often lead to national policy reform,” Governor Gordon said, “This topic is not simple. I chose it because it’s important to gain a comprehensive understanding of strategies and technologies that can be utilized in managing carbon.”

Governor Gordon’s hope is to advance environmentally sound and economically reasonable, practical paths to address decarbonization. He is an all-of-the-above energy policy leader, focused on the necessity of ensuring hungry power grids continue to be fed — for the good of his home state and the nation. Yesterday, the Governor joined community leaders and power industry executives, including Bill Gates, in Kemmerer, Wyo. at a groundbreaking for Terra Power’s Natrium reactor demonstration project.

While introducing the initiative at the conference, Governor Gordon thanked Governors Brad Little (R-ID), Jared Polis (D-CO), and Tina Kotek (D-OR) for hosting workshops in their respective states this year. The decarbonization report is a culmination of information gathered at the four workshops and existing WGA policy.

“The diversity of our states represents opportunities for each of us to pursue as we collectively work toward decarbonizing the west,” Governor Gordon wrote in a letter to WGA members, Governor Gordon noted the range of pathways on display at each of the workshops including:

• Gillette, WY: Tour of Integrated Test Center, where cutting edge carbon capture technologies are being tested.
• Boise, ID: Focus discussions of Forestry, agriculture, and soil management can play a role in sequestration.
• Denver, CO: Focus discussions on innovative direct air capture technologies currently being tested in western states.
• Portland, OR: Focus discussions regarding carbon sequestration potential of coastal ecosystems and how biomass can be utilized to remove carbon dioxide.

“These conversations formed the basis for the policy recommendations outlined in the report,”  Governor Gordon said, “It’s my hope they spur common-sense policy reform. We can rally around those and work with our partners in the federal government to accelerate developing  these carbon management methods without compromising livelihoods.”

Governor Gordon has been critical of federal agency regulations failing to give states and utility companies time and adequate incentives to develop cost-effective CO2 capture technologies. 

 Recommendations in the WGA report of particular interest to Wyoming citizens include:

• Federal policies to limit CO2 emissions should be tailored to state needs, and promote, not impede, the development and deployment of CO2 capture technologies. Federal regulations should seek to expand cost-effective deployment of CO2 capture at power plants and other industrial sources.
• Congress should amend Section 45Q of the U.S. Tax Code to provide credit based on the amount of CO2 removed, regardless of whether it is stored or utilized.
• The U.S. Department of Agriculture should develop innovative carbon finance mechanisms to provide upfront capital to landowners seeking to implement [natural sequestration] projects. 
• The EPA should establish clear and consistent guidelines to states for obtaining primacy and should increase agency capacity to review state primacy applications in a more timely manner.  EPA should include aquifer exemptions for Class VI wells. 

Governor Gordon  has also promoted the important role private landowners have in providing natural CO2 sequestration through management of grazing and forest lands.

A complete copy of the report can be found on WGA’s website.