Legislature(2003 - 2004)
02/24/2004 05:21 PM House EDT
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* first hearing in first committee of referral
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+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
HB 512-HYDROGEN ENERGY RESEARCH PROGRAM Number 1216 CHAIR HEINZE announced that the final order of business would be HOUSE BILL NO. 512, "An Act establishing the Hydrogen Energy Partnership in the Department of Community and Economic Development; requiring the commissioner of community and economic development to seek public and private funding for the partnership; providing for the contingent repeal of an effective date; and providing for an effective date." Number 1231 REPRESENTATIVE CRAWFORD, sponsor, explained that HB 512 establishes a hydrogen energy partnership within the Department of Community & Economic Development (DCED). Noting that Hawaii has a similar commission, he said passage of the bill is about "the future of Alaska, the future of America, and, I think, the future of the human race." He used an analogy to illustrate that Alaska needs to be forward thinking when dealing with energy resources. He said [the country] will shift from carbon- based energy in the future, and he feels hydrogen energy is how the energy needs will be met. Saying he wants Alaska to be a leader in the hydrogen-based energy economy, he emphasized that HB 512 would help with that. REPRESENTATIVE CRAWFORD shared the reasons Alaska should move into hydrogen energy research. He cited uncertain supplies of natural gas and the aging infrastructure [of the oil suppliers], and opined that exploring hydrogen energy sources could bring stability. He explained that the best way for Alaska to produce hydrogen energy is by using renewable resources that Alaska has an abundance of. He cited a statistic that there are about 100 years' worth of oil resources left in the world and 150 - 200 years of coal resources left. He pointed out, however, that there are enough geothermal resources to produce 45,000 years' worth of energy. Number 1385 REPRESENTATIVE CRAWFORD said one reason geothermal energy goes unused is because the areas with the resources have small populations. Hydrogen can be produced from seawater with geothermal resources and shipped in tankers throughout the world. He suggested Alaska could set up power plants in remote villages and run those plants from hydrogen fuel cells. He also pointed out that hydrogen is a nonpolluting energy source that only produces water vapor. He said pushing this type of energy source would help with global warming because it would reduce the emission of carbon monoxide into the atmosphere. REPRESENTATIVE CRAWFORD, noting that shipping hydrogen requires the use of zeolites, said Alaska has a lot of zeolite resources that could be mined, and that industry could be further developed. He said there are lots of other reasons for further developing hydrogen energy resources, an area Hawaii is already exploring. He said Alaska has the resources to develop hydrogen energy, and has a site on the island of Akutan that could be set up as a demonstration project. He said the only thing that is holding this project up is [the legislature]. Number 1494 REPRESENTATIVE KOHRING asked whether Representative Crawford has heard any opposition from the oil industry, and wondered if [the state] hadn't seen aggressive development in hydrogen resources because the oil industry is powerful and is pushing to further develop oil resources. REPRESENTATIVE CRAWFORD answered that he hadn't heard opposition from the oil industry. He said companies are starting to buy up land in other states that have geothermal potential because of a strong belief that this type of energy is the future power source for vehicles. Representative Crawford reported he'd seen some hydrogen cars when he went to the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) in San Francisco and felt that "the future is now." He stressed that Alaska needs to develop this resource now, before it is too late. Number 1586 REPRESENTATIVE KOHRING related his understanding that it takes a lot of energy to create hydrogen, and surmised that geothermal energy is so attractive because it is clean and abundant. He asked Representative Crawford where the realistic, potential geothermal energy sites are in Alaska. REPRESENTATIVE CRAWFORD answered that there are potential sites all through the Alaska Peninsula, the island of Akutan, and a site west of the Beluga power plant that have potential for geothermal energy harnessing. He added that the Beluga power plant had excess power capacity and doesn't run efficiently. He said the excess power could be used to create hydrogen and store that energy for times of need. He added that the same can be said for coal plants, and the utilization of this excess power to create hydrogen would drive the cost down for the consumer. Number 1701 REPRESENTATIVE KOHRING commented that those ideas sound great, and asked why some corporation or entrepreneur hadn't invested money into the development of hydrogen. REPRESENTATIVE CRAWFORD replied that he'd discussed that with the developers of the hydrogen fuel-cell cars at the NCSL; they'd told him that without government involvement, there was no impetus to invest in a distribution system as long as there was oil to burn. He added that without the distribution system, there is no impetus to build the cars; the auto industry could have the cars available if there were a distribution system; and the service stations will invest in the distribution systems when there is a demand for them. Thus the government has to get the ball rolling and create the impetus for both sides. REPRESENTATIVE CRAWFORD noted that in Iceland, they are changing over to hydrogen-powered vehicles. Saying California would love to have clear skies again, he said he felt this was a way to make that happen. He said it will take the policymakers to initiate this change, and HB 512 is the start of that. Number 1822 CHAIR HEINZE noted that Chugach has one of the largest fuel-cell demonstration projects in the world. She shared that during a recent briefing on mining, she learned that some companies are going to start mining north of Fairbanks for platinum that will be used for fuel-cell development. She said Representative Kott is interested in fuel cells, and announced that the bill would be held over for further discussion and for his involvement. [HB 512 was held over.]
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