Wyoming’s population grew slightly last year as most counties experienced an uptick in residents, a new study reveals.

Citing statistics from the U.S. Census Bureau, the Wyoming Economic Analysis Division reported last week that the state's total population rose to 581,381 as of July 2022, an increase of 1,898 or 0.3% from July 2021. The rate of growth was a little under the 0.4% increase in population nationwide.

Wyoming's embrace of Project Bison is one part of a much larger bet on traditional carbon capture utilization and storage technologies (CCUS).

Unlike direct air capture (DAC) technology, which pulls carbon from the atmosphere and can exist anywhere in the world, CCUS systems are placed atop smokestacks at power plants and other industrial emitters, capturing CO2 at the point of emission.

In 2021, a record high 36 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide were released into the atmosphere, according to the International Energy Agency. Even if global emissions cease tomorrow, our world will continue to warm.

A livable future will depend on removing C02, and Wyoming has positioned itself as a leader in the growing carbon capture and storage industry through the establishment of the largest carbon removal facility in the world.

KEMMERER, Wyo.—Wyoming’s retiring coal assets and political support for new nuclear power made the state an attractive option for the site of TerraPower’s Natrium reactor. Kemmerer beat out Gillette, Glenrock and Rock Springs for the Natrium plant, which is set to open in 2028. Mayor William (Bill) Thek and others said TerraPower chose Kemmerer due to the community’s ardent approval of the project.

KEMMERER, Wyo.—In late 2019, Teri Picerno heard that the Naughton coal power plant outside of Kemmerer would close in the coming years. The news was devastating for the local bar owner and 42-year resident of the small Wyoming coal town.

Members of the new gas and diesel price working group, along with an energy industry stakeholder, shared ideas for long-term solutions to Wyoming’s higher fuel prices Friday, with many stating there wasn’t much the group could do in the short term.

A solution to address Wyoming’s soaring gas prices is unclear, but energy industry stakeholders who spoke to a newly formed working group agreed about one thing: the need to increase supply.