Coal....No So Bad After All

So again, here we are, listening to the president talk about global warming. Really? Is there not more important problems going on right now? People on the left talk about global warming and that "it's a fact that it is happening". If it is just a facts, then where are these facts? Why aren't we seeing scientific proof in front of our eyes every day. People on the left also talk about getting rid of coal. So I decided to research how important coal is as a resource here in the country.

From the website of US Energy Information Administration, here is what I found. "The US holds the world's largest estimated recoverable reserves of coal and is a net exporter of coal. In 2011, our nation's coal mines produced more than a billion short tons of coal and more than 90% of this coal was used by US power plants to generate electricity. While coal has been the largest source of electricity generation for over 60 years, its annual share or generation declined from 49% in 2007 to 42% in 2011 as some power producers switched to lower-priced natural gas."

But wait, there's more. "Coal is produced in 25 states spread across three coal-producing regions. In 2011, approximately 72% of production originated in five states: Wyoming, West Virginia, Kentucky, Pennsylvania and Texas. Most of our coal is used to generate electricity. The U.S. has more than 1400 coal fired electricity generating units in operation at more than 600 plants across the country. Together, these power plants generate over 40% of the electricity produced in the U.S. and consume more than 900 million short tons of coal per year."

http://www.eia.gov/energy_in_brief/article/role_coal_us.cfm

Getting rid of coal will not only destroy the economy in those areas that produce it, but because it is cheap, producing energy any other way will cause our energy bills to increase. I'm all for clean energy as well, but take another look at coal.

So, what about the environment? Please do your own research on coal. Check out what I found on the website of the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity:

http://www.cleancoalusa.org/

We share the Obama administration’s commitment. As an industry, we are committed to a clean energy future with coal – and that future involves the use of advanced technologies to further reduce emissions including the capture and safe storage of CO₂.

We have a long history of deploying clean coal technologies to reduce air emissions – while at the same time providing affordable, reliable electricity to meet growing energy needs.

Because of those continued investments in clean coal technology, new coal plants built today have greater than 90 percent removal for SO₂, NO_x and mercury. It’s that same innovation in technology that the industry is using to bring another new generation of advanced clean coal technologies to the marketplace as a cost-effective solution to meeting climate change concerns.

Today, coal-based electricity companies are working with the federal government, states, academia and private labs to develop, demonstrate and deploy the next generation of advanced technologies that will make it possible to reduce emissions to near-zero levels and capture and store greenhouse gases. To learn more about these cutting-edge technologies, check out our clean coal technology glossary.

Continued innovations require funding, but studies show we’ll see a return on our investments. AnAmerican Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity-funded study (PDF) entitled “DOE Clean Coal Technology Programs Offer Highest Return on Investment” reports that by 2020, American taxpayers will see a return of $13 for every dollar the government invests in these technologies.

So before you lefties decide that you want to get rid of coal, make sure coal is not helping to produce your electricity. Think twice about the energy you are using the next time you "plug in" that Prius.

 

KW