A MASSIVE carbon capture project being drawn up in Yorkshire could cut the UK's entire CO2 emissions by more than 10 per cent, creating tens of thousand of jobs and transforming the region's reputation as one of Europe's biggest polluters.
As plans for the world's biggest "clean coal" power station at Hatfield, near Doncaster, move a step closer today with the passing of an important European Union funding deadline, experts say the proposed power plant will be just the first part of a wider project to make Yorkshire a world leader in the emerging green technology of carbon capture and storage.
More reports »Regional planners have laid out ambitious proposals for a huge network of CO2 pipelines running from the Aire Valley out across the Humber estuary to depleted gas fields in the North Sea, allowing every major polluter in the region to bury its carbon emissions – the gases largely responsible for global warming – deep beneath the seabed.
Experts believe the scheme has the potential to cut Yorkshire's carbon emissions by 60 millions tons per year – more than 10 per cent of the UK's total current output – by 2030, while creating more than 50,000 new jobs and adding £1.8bn to the region's economy.
The news comes as the Yorkshire Post launches its
2010 Environment Awards, which aim to recognise pioneering and dedicated environmental work by businesses, individuals, schools and community groups.
The awards have the backing of CO2Sense, an off-shoot of regional development agency Yorkshire Forward and the organisation behind the pioneering carbon capture plan.
CO2Sense chief executive Joanne Pollard said: "With its full implementation, this project has the opportunity of reducing the UK's total carbon emissions by over 10 per cent."
Yorkshire Forward chief executive Tom Riordan said the region's huge CO2 output and close proximity to depleted gas fields make it the ideal place to pioneer the new technology.
Powerfuel's proposed 900MW clean coal power plant at Hatfield, near Doncaster, looks set to secure a 180m euro grant from Europe after a deadline passed at the EU Parliament today.
