Saving U.S. Coal - Archives
by
Bill Reid, Managing Editor, CoalZoom

From a peak in 2008, our great American coal industry production has declined from 1.172 billion tons per year to an estimated 679 million tons in 2019. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) forecasts that production in 2020 will be 603 million tons. Moody's has forecast that coal's share of electricity generation will fall by 2030 to 11% with 25% of production being for export, thus requiring production of 375 million tons of coal.

This sharp decline is due to the War on Coal introduced by the Obama administration and an abundance of cheap natural gas. The War on Coal is over but its remnants are still having a devastating effect on the industry. Power generators are claiming that CO2 is a pollutant and generators using coal are being shut down.

According to leading gas driller, Range Resources Corporation, in their company presentation of October 23, 2019, to support sustainable growth natural gas prices will soon require pricing above $3.00/MM Btu, the point that coal can successfully compete with gas. Thus, the threat from gas will eventually disappear. The threat from the remnants of the War on Coal will also subside. Thus, the greatest single threat remaining to the American coal industry will be the CO2 Endangerment Finding.

CoalZoom in partnership with the Center for the Study of Carbon Dioxide and Global Change is launching a campaign, Saving U.S. Coal, with the key element being the overturning of the CO2 Endangerment Finding. A proposal entitled The Greening of Planet Earth Confirmed: Repealing the 2009 EPA CO2 Endangerment Finding can be reviewed by clicking here. Also, a personal message and plea for support of this endeavor from Fred Palmer, Senior Fellow for CO2 Policy at our Center, can be viewed here.

The CO2 Endangerment Finding was determined by President Obama's EPA in 2009 when it was claimed that CO2 emissions resulting from the combustion of carbon-based fossil fuels were a "current threat" to human health and welfare. The so-called Endangerment Finding was not the result of scientific study but instead was the result of flawed computer models. EPA also failed to take into consideration the very significant benefits that result from CO2 emissions.

For the U.S. coal industry to survive, the CO2 Endangerment Finding must be repealed quickly. Please take the time to read the documents linked above and consider joining us in our efforts at Saving U.S. Coal. There is no time to lose!