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There Is a Big Free-Market Demand for Coal

Via The Wall Street Journal: I disagree with the letter writers of Jan. 20 and Feb. 1 who say that coal is dying and that the free market killed it. The International Energy Agency predicts coal usage will increase world-wide at least through 2035 and that coal will surpass oil as the world’s leading energy […]

ND Files Lawsuit Against EPA Regarding Clean Power Plan

Via KFYR 5:  Coal has been referred to as North Dakota’s “old faithful,” Coal produces 80 percent of the state’s electricity, and since it’s an inexpensive way to produce energy, it keeps power costs low. However, the Obama Administration wants to cut down on greenhouse carbon emissions through the EPA’s Clean Power Plan. Last week […]

Why the CPP Is so Bad for Rural America

Via EnergyBiz.com: IN AUGUST, THE U.S. Environmental Protection Agency unveiled the final version of a plan to reduce carbon dioxide emissions 32% by 2030. Dubbed the Clean Power Plan, EPA’s blueprint is one of those ambitious initiatives — a big overreach, some say — that will have extensive and long-term consequences, some of which we […]

Parties Clash Over How to Allocate Carbon Allowances in MO.

Via E&E News: JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — No matter the politics or point of view on U.S. EPA’s Clean Power Plan, utilities and other parties in Missouri working on a state compliance strategy unanimously favor a “mass-based” plan to cap power plant carbon dioxide emissions and trading of emissions allowances. But there is far less […]

Views on Coal Mining Clash in Senate Hearing on Stream Protection Rule

Via Kentucky.com: An ongoing cultural battle between coal mining and environmental groups played out in a Senate hearing Wednesday over an Obama administration proposal to mitigate the impacts of coal mining activity on streams. The hearing, in the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, afforded an opportunity for mining interests and their mostly Republican supporters […]

Senators Say Coal Rules are Illegal ‘Power Grab’

Via The Bluefield Daily Telegraph: WASHINGTON – Sen. James Inhofe, R-Oklahoma, calls tougher rules on the coal industry a “power grab” by federal mining regulators who want more leverage over states. He and other senators grilled the director of the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement for more than an hour Wednesday over a […]

NMA Supports Senate Measures to Block OSM’s “Rule in Search of a Purpose”

National Mining Association (NMA) President and CEO Hal Quinn today praised a Senate oversight hearing for exposing the fatal flaws in the Office of Surface Mining and Reclamation Enforcement’s (OSM) so-called Stream Protection Rule (SPR) and urged passage of legislation to block its implementation: “The SPR is a massive rule in search of a purpose. […]

Coal States Challenge Obama’s Clean Power Plan

Via The Daily Signal: CHARLESTON, W.Va.—The Mountain State has its back against the wall, and time is running out. Leading a coalition of more than two dozen coal states, West Virginia is asking the Supreme Court for an emergency stay of President Obama’s new regulations governing the coal industry. West Virginia and 26 other states […]

Protecting Coal Mining From the Stream Protection Rule

Via The Cato Institute Blog:  On Wednesday, February 3, the Senate Environment and Public Works committee will hold a hearing on a new “Stream Protection Rule” being proposed by the Department of the Interior’s Office of Surface Mining (OSM) that looks to be another nail being hammered into the coal industry’s coffin by the Obama […]

Coal Generation Plays Key Role in Midwest

Via The State Journal-Register: A recent article in the SJ-R stated a national figure for coal-powered generation of 30 percent. While that may be true nationally, it is not valid for the Midwest. Coal generation in the MISO (Mid-Continent Independent System Operator) area provides 50 percent to 60 percent of the energy used in this […]