Wyoming Gov. Matt Mead and others on Wednesday will formally kick off construction of a laboratory where researchers will test new technologies to make profitable use of carbon dioxide emissions from a coal-fired power plant.
The goal isn’t just to prevent CO2 from entering the atmosphere, but to offset the cost of doing so while providing a glimmer of hope for a coal industry beset by bankruptcies and layoffs. As things stand now, carbon-capture technology typically is too expensive to keep coal-fired power competitive with wind and solar power.
