Father and Son in West Virginia speak out
"Am I going to get through?" - "Economy is hurt in the US, a lot of jobs are lost every day not only in this industry but everywhere" - "We need to move economy forward and it is not happening, we need to get back to work, and we are really worried about us" - "President is not creating jobs is destroying jobs" - "Operate a business or heating your house will become way expensive"
While President Obama aims
to crack down on coal-fired power plants, the coal industry finds lucrative and
booming markets abroad, even in developed countries such as Germany and Japan.
Obama's new proposal to
cut greenhouse gas emissions from U.S. coal-fired power plants will do little
to help the climate, because increasing amounts of coal are being burned
worldwide.
Coal consumption set a
monthly record in March, driven largely by rising demand from its top customer,
China, and other Asian countries, according to the most recent data from the
Energy information Administration.
The coal industry
criticized Obama's plan, saying additional regulations could raise energy
prices and shutter more power plants.
Coal faces a rosier future
abroad. Its demand will increase in every region of the world except in the
USA, according to a December report by the International Energy Agency. It
provides 40% of the world's electricity, similar to its U.S. share.
One less BIG player as a world
supplier could only means a Shortage in supply and will translate in increasing
on prices even in current market conditions, coal demand is rising even in
developed countries such as Germany and Japan that are cutting back on nuclear
power.
"The world will burn
around 1.2 billion more tons of coal per year by 2017 compared to today –
equivalent to the current coal consumption of Russia and the United States
combined," IEA's Maria van der Hoeven said in announcing the findings.
"Coal's share of the global energy mix continues to grow each year, and if
no changes are made to current policies, coal will catch oil within a
decade."
The coal industry
criticized Obama's plan, saying additional regulations could raise energy
prices and shutter more power plants.
"If the Obama
administration fails to recognize the environmental progress the industry has
made and continues to adopt more regulations, coal power could cease to exist
which would be devastating for our economy," Robert Duncan, president of
the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity, said in a statement. His
group says 15% of plants plan to close because of existing EPA rules and more
will be forced to follow with new limits.
