Beyond the Smokestack

Unfortunately, the fossil fuel industry and its allies are increasingly proposing gas-oriented solutions for addressing gas plant carbon pollution. These include hydrogen cofiring, carbon capture and storage, and biomethane. Because these approaches are all based on the full, ongoing use of gas plants, they fail to address many of these plants’ ongoing and unjust harms.

In this analysis, we took a fuller look at the climate implications of the industry’s proposed approaches. We found that heat-trapping emissions potentially arising from other steps in the process could undermine their overall reductions.

Our issue brief and customizable tool, available below, are intended to support decisionmakers, advocates, and the public in considering the full picture—of both carbon and non-carbon impacts—as they evaluate proposals for reducing gas plant pollution in their own communities.