OPINION: On the verge of greatness

Alternative fuel is all the rage at the Democratic National Convention, where a goody bag offered to reporters included a wind turbine lapel pin. But the real future of energy may not play out in Denver this week. The real future of energy may be playing out in Colorado Springs, and that future may be coal. Just consider the most promising turn of economic development in the recent history of Colorado Springs.

The phrase "economic development" seems to befuddle a great many residents and leaders of Colorado Springs. Others actually fear the phrase, as it has too often been used as a precursor to the phrase "tax and spend" in the name of risky investments.

But the phrase "economic development" should instill neither confusion nor fear. Genuine, sustainable economic development results from a low tax base, a business-friendly climate of minimal regulation, and a constructive and enthusiastic spirit of cooperation. There's nothing magic about long-term economic development for any community. It works only when people work together to produce something of value that improves the human condition.

The textbook example of this seems to be surfacing in Colorado Springs, where a public/private partnership with a can-do attitude appears on the verge of creating a new entrepreneurial billionaire whose work might clean up the air and go a long way toward resolving the energy crisis.

Local physicist Dave Neumann and the Colorado Springs Utilities' Drake power plant teamed up a few months back to test Neumann's invention, a device both parties hope will efficiently clean up coal emissions. America has nothing even approaching a shortage of coal, and we don't have to import it from countries that hate us. The industry employs solid, hard-working, small-town, family-values Americans and lots of coal-train engineers.

As far as cost goes, coal is about as efficient as fuel gets. But there has long been a canary in the mine. Coal is a messy, environmental hazard that some scientists theorize has contributed to the warming of the earth. Whether coal genuinely threatens the health and welfare of Mother Earth remains a topic for debate. What isn't up for debate is the fact that coal cannot continue as an efficient and reliable fuel source if we don't clean up its act.

The threat of coal emissions causing permanent harm to our planet has resulted in a political climate that's making the fuel less viable by the day. It won't be long before Congress imposes oppressive carbon taxes that would undermine the low cost of coal. Both candidates for president are self-described "environmentalists," so no matter who wins, coal is in trouble.

And that's where Neumann's invention comes in. If it works, and it doesn't cost too much to procure or operate, the good reputation of coal will be restored. Environmentalists will have a hard time convincing mainstream Americans to disavow coal if the emissions are clean.

Windmills, solar farms and nuclear power plants all offer great promise for a future less dependent on fossil fuels. But nobody alive today is likely to have grandchildren who will see the day that America relies only on the sun and the wind to power the country. And construction of nuclear power plants, if it becomes politically viable, could take decades.

"If we think renewables are going to solve our energy dependency, that's an incredible mistake," said Neumann, a veteran of the Air Force Space Command.

But the clean burning of coal appears to be with us right here and now. Neumann's invention, five years in the making, uses a secret chemical formula to clean up sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide and particulates. Other inventions to clean up coal emissions have been too bulky and expensive to catch on. Neumann's invention is less than a tenth the size of competing equipment and it costs two-thirds less.

City officials say early results have exceeded all expectations, and the device has outperformed anything else on the market.

Congratulations to Neumann, and to the Colorado Springs Utilities for working together in an invention that could change the world. It costs the city virtually nothing to lend its plant to the project, and the utility was so confident that it invested $1 million in the project - an investment that will almost certainly pay off many times over in coming years. If Colorado Springs wants to grow and prosper by making a better world, community leaders need look no further than the public private partnership between CSU and Dave Neumann.