Bill Text: WV HCR47 | 2012 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Recognizing the positive impact that a cracker facility would have on job creation in Kanawha County and the State of West Virginia
Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 7-4)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-01-31 - To House Rules [HCR47 Detail]
Download: West_Virginia-2012-HCR47-Introduced.html
HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 47
(By Delegates Armstead, Nelson, Brown, Guthrie, Hatfield,
Hunt, Lane, Poore, Skaff, Walters and Wells)
Recognizing the positive impact that a cracker facility would have on job creation in Kanawha County and the State of West Virginia.
Whereas, The vast reserves of natural gas located in the Marcellus and Utica formations are rich in byproducts, including ethane, which can be converted through an ethane cracker plant to ethylene, a key resource for the chemical industry; and
Whereas, The Legislature recognizes the positive impact that a cracker facility would have on job creation and economic investment in Kanawha County and the State of West Virginia; and
Whereas, West Virginia looks forward to a positive and long-term partnership with the natural gas and chemical industry that will employ thousands of West Virginians and make positive use of our vast natural resources to provide energy independence throughout the United States; and
Whereas, For a century, the Kanawha Valley has been one of the leading chemical manufacturing and development centers in the world with a trained and skilled workforce and critical infrastructure. The location of a cracker plant in the Kanawha Valley, using natural resources from West Virginia, would rejuvenate the chemical industry in the area. The Bayer Corporation plant in Institute, West Virginia, with ready access to water, rail, transportation and related infrastructure, is a prime and logical location for a cracker plant. The Kanawha Valley is home to world class research and development resources that can support the chemical industry and development of new and innovative chemical processes; and
Whereas, Construction of a new cracker plant will require capital investment ranging from $1 billion to $3 billion, will employ thousands of construction workers and 500 to 1,000 permanent workers, and for each direct job, will create five more jobs in support positions. Existing and new sources of natural gas and the possibility of growth in the chemical industry, represent generational opportunities for the Kanawha Valley and will promote a stable environment for the chemical industry in our state. Existing manufacturers currently located in the Kanawha Valley can experience substantial growth through the downstream development resulting from the operation of an ethane cracker. The regional economic development organizations, including the Charleston Area Alliance, have developed comprehensive economic development plans with a goal of enhancing chemical manufacturing in the Kanawha Valley and an ethane cracking facility would help to sustain and grow manufacturing in the Kanawha Valley and throughout the state; and
Whereas, Securing a supply chain of needed chemical resources and feedstock will promote unparalleled economic opportunities and an environment that provides job sustainability and growth in the Kanawha Valley and throughout the state; therefore, be it
Resolved by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That the West Virginia Legislature recognizes the positive impact an ethane cracker plant in the Kanawha Valley would have on the state, and urges those considering the location of a plant in the Valley to take full advantage of a reliable workforce, existing infrastructure and long and storied history of chemical production the Kanawha Valley provides and to locate such facility in Kanawha County.
