What advantages does gas present as a fuel for generating electricity?
A. Gas use for generating electricity contributes to: • A cleaner environment Electric generators in many regions are under heavy pressure to reduce emissions as a clean-air measure. Large electric plants emit over 90 percent of the nitrogen oxides (NOx) from stationary sources in the Northeast, for instance, complicating the region’s compliance with federal ground-level ozone standards (to which NOx is a precursor). Dependence of electric utilities on coal also results in acid rain, air toxic emissions, and particulate problems that are a continuing focus of new federal and state environmental regulations. In contrast, natural gas combined-cycle facilities produce only a fraction of coal’s emissions–typically, less than one percent of the sulfur dioxide and particulates, and 20 percent of the nitrogen oxides. • Efficient energy use Gas combined-cycle electric generation is 45-50 percent efficient, while coal-generation efficiency levels hover around 30-35 percent. Additionally, coal
