Published: December 20, 2021 |

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In a meeting with federal officials on Friday, Wyoming leaders made one thing clear: The state is not giving up on coal.

“We cannot adequately plan for the future without respecting our past and our current situation. We do believe that coal should be a part of our future,” said Randall Luthi, Gov. Mark Gordon’s chief energy adviser, in his opening remarks.

The virtual workshop, which focused on the state’s energy transition, aimed to promote collaboration across local, state, and federal governments by allowing stakeholders at all levels to describe their circumstances, share concerns and propose solutions.

The state’s leading voices on energy policy and workforce training, along with commissioners from Campbell, Converse, Lincoln, and Sweetwater counties, spoke about Wyoming’s needs and interests. Representatives from the U.S. departments of energy, agriculture, and labor, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Economic Development Administration (EDA) outlined their goals on the federal side.

One worry arose repeatedly throughout the discussion: State leaders, whose stances on coal generally differ from the federal government’s position, wanted to know what types of projects the federal government would — and would not — support.

The issue is a sore spot for Wyoming; the state learned on Monday that none of its four Build Back Better Regional Challenge proposals had been selected as finalists, even though a portion of the program funding had been designated specifically for coal communities.

“We recognize the importance of coal and coal communities, even if EDA didn’t earlier this week,” Luthi said.

Several federal speakers, including Angela Martinez, regional director for the EDA’s Denver Regional Office, expressed shared frustrations about the program’s outcome and urged the state to continue applying for other grant programs funded by the infrastructure bill.

“It is disappointing that none of the proposals were selected from Wyoming,” said Brian Anderson, executive director of the federal interagency group behind the meeting and director of the National Energy Technology Laboratory.

“This is not the last opportunity,” added Anderson.

But Wyoming representatives on the call feared that the state’s exclusion from the Build Back Better Regional Challenge shortlist could reflect a pattern. They weren’t sure the federal government would support their ideas, like Campbell County’s plan to establish a low-emissions carbon hub using its existing coal resources.

Those state leaders still want — and often need — federal support to successfully transition their economies. They just don’t want the federal government to end up financing alternative, locally unpopular initiatives in coal communities instead.

In previously recorded remarks played during the call, Gordon asked the federal officials to “be willing to consider alternate solutions, ones that can keep industry and our communities thriving,” and to “be open to a Wyoming way to succeed.”

It turned out to be a goal shared across the levels of government. Nearly every federal participant described a desire to help local leaders dictate their own economic transitions — and emphasized their interest in backing the carbon capture, carbon-to-products, and clean hydrogen industries that the state aims to pursue. Many described the community-driven ideal as a “bottom-up” process.

“EDA takes our lead from you, and from the regional partners that we work in, focusing on what your strengths are, and what your regional plans and strategies are,” said Angela Martinez, regional director for the EDA’s Denver Regional Office.

Federal officials pointed out, too, that the partnership is already beginning to right itself. The Department of Energy said Friday that it would award $644,000 to the University of Wyoming School of Energy Resources to study the economic impacts of the fossil fuel industry and the need for clean hydrogen technologies.

The agencies expect to direct plenty more energy funding toward Wyoming over the next few years.

Source: Casper Star Tribune

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