W. Todd Akin: “I rise to support the clean coal power initiative in division E of H.R. 4. It is an effective and important initiative…”

“I rise to support the clean coal power initiative in division E of H.R. 4. It is an effective and important initiative because it is going to give us environmentally friendly electricity at a reasonable cost and for decades to come. Coal comprises 85 percent of our fossil fuel resources. We have enough coal for 250 years of additional use. More than 50 percent of our current electricity comes from coal. Burning coal is our chief source of electricity, but by making it more efficient and by making it cleaner, we can improve the air quality. That is important to me, because we have air quality problems in the St. Louis area. This bill will do that. Already, we have made investments in coal technology over the last 30 years that have reduced pollutants by 21 percent even though coal generation has tripled. Coal provides a clean, affordable and domestic energy source for us. This bill is very positive in cleaning that up and making it more reasonable.”