Inside Energy (https://insideenergy.org/tag/wyoming/page/3/)
The wind energy industry is growing worldwide, and so is the global competition between turbine-makers. That battle is now playing out in Wyoming, a state with some of the best wind potential in the nation. To get an edge, a Chinese company is trying to win over some of the state’s scant pool of workers through free training to become a wind turbine technician.
Coal used to be the dominant resource to feed power generation, but it’s fallen to natural gas and renewable energies. With a drop in coal demand, a Kentucky-based company is looking for a new way to use the resource. They’re hoping to find a way to make coal as versatile as oil, creating new products like car parts, building material, and much more.
As coal continues to lose out to natural gas and renewables, the industry is banking on research into new technologies to stay afloat. Both North Dakota and Wyoming are working to hone these technologies, working on everything from carbon capture to carbon products.
Many would have liked to see the Endangered Species Act reformed years ago, yet it has resisted change thanks to bipartisan and public support. But momentum in Congress and in western states is building to make changes to the landmark regulation that protects threatened animal and plant species and their habitats.
Wyoming coal companies are rehiring workers in the Powder River Basin, bringing residents home and boosting local morale. Still there’s a lot of uncertainty for the state and the coal industry overall.
There’s growing concern in many states about the proximity of homes and occupied buildings to active oil and gas wells. This comes after a fatal explosion in Colorado in April killed two people and was traced to an abandoned, unsealed gas line. But old wells can be a problem too. In Wyoming last year, a gas leak from an abandoned well forced a small-town school to shut down. Now it’s preparing to reopen.
President Trump is directing the Environmental Protection Agency to revise or get rid of the most significant climate regulation of the Obama Administration — the Clean Power Plan. Trump signed an executive order to “suspend, revise, or rescind” the plan at the EPA headquarters Tuesday.
Snow and cold: Call them Alaska’s secret solar super powers. Turns out Alaska has great solar potential, even in the midst of winter. Still, the state ranks last in rankings for solar jobs per capita, with less than half the number of the next lowest performer, Wyoming. Entrepreneurs see opportunity.
As early as this week, President Trump is expected to take executive action to ease regulations on coal and other fossil fuel industries, fulfilling a campaign promise.
