What’s happening with the latest billion being thrown at Washington state (and is it the right thing)?A recent announcement has billions of federal taxpayer dollars and a bunch of new energy related jobs headed to Washington state. Let’s take a look at what’s up!
Here are Five Fast Facts on Washington state becoming a hydro hub:
- ❓ How Much? Sixteen states are getting a total of $7 billion from the infrastructure bill passed a couple years ago. Washington state’s share is around $1 billion, but we have to share it with Oregon, various companies, tribes, and utilities throughout the Pacific Northwest. Sharing economy, anyone?
- 🚧 What’s It For? The big picture purpose is to create a “power hub” for the PNW region to provide clean energy to reduce fossil fuel usage. It should create over 8,000 construction jobs and hundreds more permanent positions to operate it once complete.
- 💧⚡What’s The Deal? In particular, the hub would focus on using hydrogen power – splitting water molecules with electricity – to make things like fertilizer without fossil fuels. Except, you know, for the fossil fuels used to generate the electricity splitting those water molecules.
- 🤔 Not So Fast, Part 1 - Some local leaders are asking pointed questions. Part of the deal includes closing a coal power plant in Centralia, but there’s no word yet on how the 240 megawatts of electricity generated by that coal plant will be replaced, let alone provide the extra power for the hydro facility. Details, details, details…
- 🤔🤔 Not So Fast, Part 2 - Even some on the political left are skeptical. Environmentalists often call “bull” on hydro power because it requires fossil fuels to generate power from hydrogen. However, supporters say it’s okay as long as they capture the CO2 produced by this process rather than letting it escape into the atmosphere. Tiny detail: no one’s figured out how to do that yet. But don’t worry, it’ll be fine!
🔥Bottom line: One could certainly question the federal government throwing around billions of dollars like confetti – isn’t that what put us into the current ugly inflation situation in the first place?! – but if they’re determined to throw it, then I suppose we might as well catch it here and make use of it. But…is this really the best use of this money?
What do you think?
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