With the addition of wind and solar energy , West Virginia can continue its legacy as an energy-producing state .
VAN NOSTRAND : The West Virginia ’ s Energy Future report produced by the Center for Energy & Sustainable Development shows the advantage of scaling up wind and solar energy by diversifying the state ’ s energy portfolio and taking advantage of the thousands of jobs that are being created in the renewable energy sector . Reductions in the cost of renewable energy have been dramatic over the past decade , and the decreases continue to exceed forecasts . Since 2009 , solar and wind energy costs have decreased by 90 % and 71 % respectively . As a result of these dramatic cost declines , new renewable energy projects frequently are not only cheaper than new fossil fuel power plants , often a new renewable energy project is cheaper to install and operate than the ongoing cost to operate and fuel an existing coal-fired power plant . Given the speed with which these plants are becoming uneconomical versus renewable energy power plants , West Virginia ’ s electric utilities urgently need to consider diversifying their resource portfolios to include more renewable energy facilities . This diversification would reduce West Virginia ’ s vulnerability to downswings in the coal economy and avoid the problems caused by such downswings in the past , such as government revenue declines , population loss , cuts to education budgets and negative effects on related businesses .
WRIGHTSTONE : This is a nonsensical statement since West Virginia has huge reserves of coal and natural gas that provide a reliable and economic source of fuel for power generation . The northern one-third of West Virginia is home to three natural gas reservoirs that qualify in the category of giant . The Marcellus Shale is the largest gas field in the world and is currently being exploited from northern Ritchie County to the Ohio and Pennsylvania state lines . Natural gas production from this resource continues to expand , but two other very large reservoirs have barely been tapped . The shallower Burket / Geneseo Shale has been completed in less than two dozen wells and is productive across many of the same counties as the Marcellus . The deep Utica Shale may offer similarly gigantic reserves and productive capabilities as the Marcellus but has only been tested in a handful of high-volume wells . Vast , untapped reserve potential exists in the Mountain State from these organic-rich shales and will continue supplying needed energy well into the next century . •
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