By Natasha Dyer
After introductions, review of previous minutes, and a quick update from around the room the Local Emergency Planning Committee jumped into the area of new business. In June it was announced that of the $25,852,107 awarded to the state of West Virginia from the U.S. Department of Transportation, $4,570,000 would go to the Potomac Highlands Hydrogen Fuel Initiative in Grant County.
Through the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity grant program, the WV Division of Public Transit, in partnership with the Potomac Valley Transit Authority, will be using the funding to build an eight-acre solar powered hydrogen fuel production center in Grant County.
According to the state senate’s website, “This project will design a solar-powered hydrogen fuel plant in two main phases. Phase I will include the construction of a photovoltaic array to provide the electricity for an electrolysis hydrogen production plant. Phase II will include the development of facilities that will support the compression and storage of hydrogen on site and its delivery to onsite stations for hydrogen fuel cell powered transit vehicles.”
In their search to find sustainable and clean fuel sources, the PVTA initially explored the possibility of electric vehicles; however, it was determined that this technology would not fair well in this area’s mountainous terrain and cooler climate.
Hydrogen fuel has many pros in its favor: the only emissions are water vapor, fuel economy is double that of gasoline, and hydrogen is an abundant renewable energy. The only con is that the technology to refine the hydrogen is expensive. Having a solar powered plant would curtail some of that production cost.
According to the WV Infrastructure Hub, “This is a significant win for the state. The project affords West Virginia the opportunity to be on the front lines of researching developing hydrogen fuels. In addition to all the environmental benefits, this project provides the state with economic competitiveness and opportunity as well. The hydrogen production plant is predicted to create high quality paying jobs, and PVTA has already planned to collaborate with the local community college to provide training in the new technology’s manufacture and use.”
The question of hydrogen’s safety could be raised, but in doing so it’s important to compare it to the safety of other conventional fuels like gasoline, propane, and diesel. None of which are 100 percent safe. However, hydrogen has been shown to be safer than these fuels in many different regards.
Hydrogen is not toxic or carcinogenic, unlike the other fuels mentioned. As water vapor is the only emission, it’s a necessary step to neutralize the carbon emissions of the current technology.
Hydrogen is 14x lighter than air and 57x lighter than gasoline vapor, meaning if there were to be a leak, the hydrogen would rise and disperse rapidly reducing any risk of ignition at ground level.
Hydrogen has a lower radiant heat than conventional gasoline and has a higher oxygen requirement for explosion than all the other fossil fuels. While gasoline can be volatile at concentrations of 1-3 percent oxygen, hydrogen requires 18-59 percent.
This initiative shows West Virginia’s ability to adapt and prevail in the ever-changing world. Having been put on the forefront of adopting safer, carbon neutral technology, the state has risen to every occasion it has been afforded. West Virginians will continue to show the world what mountaineers are made of.
