Schweitzer Energy Symposium

Energy Forum Slated for Tuesday

By Brooke Hewes, 10-15-05

Energy enthusiasts from across the nation will convene in Bozeman Tuesday for Montana’s first-ever Energy Future Symposium. Hosted by Governor Brian Schweitzer, the two-day event seeks to shape a long-term energy plan that simultaneously safeguards Montana’s environment, citizens and economy.

And Schweitzer’s timing, many agree, couldn’t be better.

“Energy issues are rightly being focused on,� says Patrick Judge with the Montana Environmental Information Center, a Helena-based conservation group. “There is clearly a pressing need in light of increasing gas prices.�

Gas, natural gas, home heating oil and electricity prices are estimated to increase this winter, straining not only budgets, according to Slate reporter Daniel Gross, but psyches too.

“These are serious concerns for all Montanans,� says Adam Pimley, Schweitzer’s deputy communications director, and concerns that the conference’s 120 speakers will address.

Panel topics range from oil and natural gas production, marketing and transmission to wind generation and bio-fuels. Governors from five western states as well as Gov. Joe Manchin III from West Virginia will be in attendance. New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson, Energy Secretary in the Clinton Administration, and Montana Senator Max Baucus both cancelled Friday, citing scheduling conflicts.

Conference preparations began in January shortly after Schweitzer took office and while public interest has been consistent since, registration peaked following hurricanes Katrina and Rita and pervasive national fears over petroleum prices. Such fears, even for Montanans, are reasonable: the Energy Information Administration estimates average bill increases of up to 52 percent on natural gas and 31 percent on heating oil nationwide this winter. It came as no surprise, then, when the governor added a session last week to address concerns about rising winter costs and offer advice on easing looming financial burdens.

To date, more than 500 people have registered for up to four of the symposium’s 27 breakout panels. Energy development and jobs, coal liquefaction and gasification, and the future of energy distribution are among the most popular. And while the governor eagerly awaits discussion of all of Montana’s energy options next week—“he is not going into this narrow-minded,� says Pimley— he seems to have a soft spot for the 120 billon tons of coal sitting beneath Montana soil.

In fact, says Judge, Schweitzer is far from shy about his enthusiasm for the mineral. Indeed, a Google of Schweitzer and coal hints at more than mere interest. Most notably, in an Oct. 3 New York Times editorial, he elucidates the benefits of coal liquefaction—a process that turns coal into a liquid-fuel substitute for petroleum-based diesel and heating oil. He has since described the process and emerging technology in “blogrunner� as a win-win-win solution for Montana consumers, environmentalists and the state’s coal industry.

“Synfuels [or synthetic fuels referring to coal-derived liquid fuels] are dramatically cleaner than conventional petroleum fuels in every emission,� he wrote in the blog on Oct. 6. “When the part of the process that generates electricity is compared to conventional coal plants, where we currently get most of our power, we find emission reductions in greenhouse gases, CO2, mercury and other particulate in excess of 90 percent.�

To produce synfuel, coal is vaporized into a gas, synthesized into paraffin wax and then refined into liquid fuel via the Fischer-Tropsch process. Pollutants such as sulfur, arsenic and mercury are removed during synthesis. CO2—the primary greenhouse gas responsible for global warming—is also removed and recycled either in the ground or ocean in a process known as sequestration; alternatively, CO2 emissions are retained for industrial use.

Apropos to lengthy blogs, letters to the editor and independent articles addressing Schweitzer’s progressive plan for Montana’s coal reserves, snynfuel sentiments vary.

Some, even those wary of using coal, are optimistic. Others, like Judge, are suspicious. Regardless of carbon emission mitigation, he says, coal is coal and still needs to be mined.

“Fundamentally we are still taking about extraction of a non-renewable fossil fuel,� Judge says. “Water use is an issue as is the discharge of pollutants.�

Judge believes Montana can meet all of its current and growing energy needs by conservation and cost-effective renewable sources of energy. David Merrill, executive director of GlobalWarmingSolutions.org, agrees.

“Energy efficiency and conservation are the cheapest and fastest ways to reduce CO2 emissions,� Merrill says, adding that we must also aggressively develop wind, sun and agricultural biomass.

In addition to faulting what he deems a coal-focused symposium, Merrill fears that certain funders—three large energy firms are covering 80 percent of the cost—will distort discussion and eventually policy. Echoing this sentiment, Judge also laments the lack of a critical panel.

“It is inconceivable to me to have an energy conference in this day and age without addressing the most critical environmental issue, global climate change,� he says.

Still, in spite of their criticisms, both Judge and Merrill applaud the governor’s gusto.
Energy consumption and production are urgent issues that must be addressed, and although the two men may have done things differently, they agree the conference is certainly a step in the right direction.

The symposium will be held in Montana State University’s Brick Breedan Fieldhouse. A continental breakfast and registration will run from 7 a.m. - 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 18. Gov. Schweitzer’s welcome officially kicks off the symposium at 8:30 a.m. The event is free for students and $50 for the general public (this fee includes food). A full list of speakers and a detailed schedule can be found at energyfuture.mt.gov.

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