Jay Rockefeller: “I am committed to helping craft national energy legislation that takes energy production and conservation, balanced with…”

“I am committed to helping craft national energy legislation that takes energy production and conservation, balanced with environmental concerns and economic issues, into consideration. Today, I am pleased to join my colleagues Senator Allen, Senator Specter, and Senator Warner, in submitting amendment No. 3043 to the Senate energy bill to create an important tax incentive that I believe will encourage the recycling of coal combustion waste materials produced in the process of reducing sulfur emission in coal-fired electric utility boilers. Currently in the United States, many coal-fired power plants are equipped with sulfur dioxide scrubbers, the purpose of which is to significantly reduce the amount of sulfur dioxide released into the air. In the process of cleaning the air, these scrubbers produce more than 20 million tons of coal combustion waste or sludge per year. Stabilization of the sludge increases the waste materials to over 40 million tons per year, and this amount is expected to more than double as the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 continue to phase in. At this time, less than 20 percent of this waste material is recycled.”