WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator John D. (Jay) Rockefeller IV, Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, issued the following statement today regarding President Obama’s meeting with a bipartisan group of governors from coal producing states, including West Virginia Governor Joe Manchin, to discuss America’s energy policy reform. The President announced at the meeting the creation of an Interagency Task Force on Carbon Capture and Storage. The goal of the task force is to develop a comprehensive and coordinated federal strategy to expedite the commercialization of clean coal technologies.

“I commend this important step toward the full-scale commercialization of clean coal technology within the next 10 years, which is the key to a secure energy future for the nation,” said Chairman Rockefeller. “West Virginia is already leading the way with the sequestration of carbon dioxide at AEP’s Mountaineer Plant—the first coal plant in the world to capture and store carbon dioxide on site. The rapid deployment of CCS and other clean coal technologies is critical to both the long term future of coal and reducing greenhouse gas emissions globally, all while creating good jobs for Americans. Energy from coal has been crucial to our nation’s prosperity, and this commitment from the federal government will position us to ensure America’s security in the 21st century.”

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