Cheap Coal Drives China’s New Coal Boom
Coal conversion has become profitable in China because of an unusual combination of low coal and higher gas and petrol prices. An existing coal conversion plant in Ningdong © Getty Water-guzzling coal-conversion projects are springing to life in arid western China, setting the stage for the large-scale deployment of what was previously a niche industry.
Trump Interior Sec: Ending War on Coal Necessary for Environmental Reasons, Jobs, National Security
Interior Secretary: Ending War on Coal Necessary for Environmental Reasons, Jobs, National Security Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke said Monday at the White House that ending the war on coal was important for environmental reasons, jobs and national security.
US coal companies reportedly ask White House to remain in UN Paris climate pact
Two of the top U.S. coal companies reportedly asked the White House to back down on President Trump’s vow to pull out of the landmark Paris climate pact, arguing that the deal could protect its global interests.
Cloud Peak Energy and Peabody Energy executives told White House officials over the last few weeks that staying in the climate deal may give U.S. negotiators a change to advocate for coal in the future, Reuters reported Tuesday.
“The future is foreign markets, so the last thing you want to do if you are a coal company is to give up a U.S. seat in the international climate discussions and let the Europeans control the agenda,” a U.S. official familiar with the talks told Reuters. “They can’t afford for the most powerful advocate for fossil fuels to be away from the table.”
Richard Reavey, Cloud Peak’s vice president of government affairs, said staying in the accord and trying to create a “reasonable path forward” on fossil fuel technologies is a reasonable stance.
Officials said the coal industry wants to ensure the Paris deal provides a financial role for storage technology as well as role for low-emission coal-powered plants. The industry also hopes the agreement would protect multilateral funding for global coal projects through international bodies like the World Bank, Reuters reported.…
Trump Readies ‘Energy Independence’ Order To Repeal Obama Climate Policies
‘A pro-growth and pro-environment approach’
Source: Trump Readies ‘Energy Independence’ Order To Repeal Obama Climate Policies…
Paper: Fight against ‘climate change’ finds an unlikely ally — Trump – His support of fracking will cause lower emissions
YESTERDAY by: Pilita Clark, Environment Correspondent Is Donald Trump about to become a leading force in the global effort to combat climate change? It seems unlikely, considering the US president has called global warming a “hoax” concocted by China (http://next.ft.com/content/35803636-a82a-11e6-8898-79a99e2a4de6) to hurt US industry and vowed to unpick the Paris climate accord that is supposed to curb rising temperatures. However, new data from the International Energy Agency showing that carbon emissions from burning fossil fuels have remained flat for three years in a row, despite a growing global economy, suggest Mr Trump might play a bigger climate role than expected. One reason emissions have stalled is that the shale revolution hailed by Mr Trump has led to a surge in cheaper natural gas that has pushed out coal in the US. The shale boom has already 3/17/2017 Fight against climate change finds an unlikely ally: Donald Trump https://www.ft.com/content/ab9bd972-0a6a-11e7-97d1-5e720a26771b 2/6 helped drive down gas prices and may accelerate as Mr Trump moves to ease drilling regulations and spur what Fatih Birol, IEA executive director, called a “de-bottlenecking” of gas infrastructure…
Coal mining begins seeing revival as Trump gives industry hope
Wise County, Virginia – A long-awaited revival is under way in this beleaguered Central Appalachia community where residents see coal as the once and future king.
Trucks are running again. Miners working seven days a week cannot keep up with current demand. Coal mines, long dormant after the industry’s collapse, are now buzzing again with antlike activity.
“We load coal every day for the power plant in Virginia City,” explained Rick, a long-time supervisor for a major local operation who did not want to give his last name. “There’s one shipment a week for Georgia Power, and one for Tennessee Eastman.”
The past month has seen a resurgence of the coal industry that once formed the backbone of the region’s economy, and locals credit President Trump’s aggressive, pro-energy agenda.
Crippled by a slew of factors, from changing times, an emphasis on renewable energy, and the Obama administration’s harsh penalties on coal-fired power plants, the area’s economy took a devastating hit over the past eight years. Many of the people living in these mountains had nearly given up hope that the area could ever recover.
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The production of coal reached its peak in 2008. But then President Obama came into office and rolled out a series of regulations that he said were designed to protect America’s streams and waterways from the pollution the mining emitted.
Those regulations crippled the industry and left many in the region out of well-paying jobs.
For those whose livelihood depended on the industry, the most important thing that Trump has given them is hope.
“It was almost impossible due to the EPA regulations to open another deep mine,” said Rick.
Just a few decades ago, when unions were strong in Wise County, the area leaned Democrat. But once the economy bottomed out and many were left without jobs, this corner of Virginia found itself feeling left behind.
Nowadays, many homes in Wise County are adorned with Trump signs. This now-Republican stronghold is betting on a better future under the Trump administration.…
SCOTT PRUITT’S BACK-TO-BASICS AGENDA FOR THE EPA
The new administrator plans to follow his statutory mandate—clean air and water—and to respect states’ rights.
ILLUSTRATION: KEN FALLIN
Scott Pruitt, whom the Senate confirmed Friday, 52-46, doesn’t fit either mold. His focus is neither expanding nor reducing regulation. “There is no reason why EPA’s role should ebb or flow based on a particular administration, or a particular administrator,” he says. “Agencies exist to administer the law. Congress passes statutes, and those statutes are very clear on the job EPA has to do. We’re going to do that job.” You might call him an EPA originalist.
Not that environmentalists and Democrats saw it that way. His was one of President Trump’s most contentious cabinet nominations. Opponents objected that as Oklahoma’s attorney general Mr. Pruitt had sued the EPA at least 14 times. Detractors labeled him a “climate denier” and an oil-and-gas shill, intent on gutting the agency and destroying the planet. For his confirmation hearing, Mr. Pruitt sat through six theatrical hours of questions and submitted more than 1,000 written responses.
When Mr. Pruitt sat down Thursday for his first interview since his November nomination, he spent most of the time waxing enthusiastic about all the good his agency can accomplish once he refocuses it on its statutorily defined mission: working cooperatively with the states to improve water and air quality.
“We’ve made extraordinary progress on the environment over the decades, and that’s something we should celebrate,” he says. “But there is real work to be done.” What kind of work? Hitting air-quality targets, for one: “Under current measurements, some 40% of the country is still in nonattainment.” There’s also toxic waste to clean up: “We’ve got 1,300 Superfund sites and some of them have been on the list for more than three decades.”
Such work is where Washington can make a real difference. “These are issues that go directly to the health of our citizens that should be the absolute focus of this agency,” Mr. Pruitt says. “This president is a fixer, he’s an action-oriented leader, and a
OOPS! Former Obama EPA Chief denies ‘War on Coal’ next to a ‘Coal Sucks’ poster
Office of Senator DeLeon
Conversation with former EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy
California Senate
February 8, 2017
Also see Daily Caller: http://dailycaller.com/2017/02/09/former-epa-chief-denies-war-on-coal-while-sitting-in-front-of-a-coal-sucks-poster/
Excerpt: The head of the EPA under President Barack Obama vehemently denied politicians and environmentalists waged a “war on coal.”There’s just one problem. She was sitting in front of a “coal sucks” poster in the office of California’s top state senator. Former EPA chief Gina McCarthy huddled with Democratic lawmakers in Sacramento Thursday to advise them on how the state could move forward with policies aimed at fighting global warming while the Trump administration dismantled Obama’s environmental agenda.…
Former EPA Chief Denies War On Coal While Sitting In Front Of A ‘Coal Sucks’ Poster
The head of the EPA under President Barack Obama vehemently denied politicians and environmentalists waged a “war on coal.”
There’s just one problem. She was sitting in front of a “coal sucks” poster in the office of California’s top state senator.
Former EPA chief Gina McCarthy huddled with Democratic lawmakers in Sacramento Thursday to advise them on how the state could move forward with policies aimed at fighting global warming while the Trump administration dismantled Obama’s environmental agenda.
McCarthy took over EPA in Obama’s second term and oversaw the implementation of the president’s “Climate Action Plan,” which included sweeping regulations on power plants and natural gas wells. Republicans and coal supporters say these regulations were part of the administration’s “war on coal.”
Coldest Winter In Decade Causes Energy Shortages Across Southeast Europe
As freezing weather triggered energy shortages across southeast Europe at the start of the year, Bulgaria’s refusal to export power was typical in a region where everyone had to fend for themselves.
Nations from Greece to Hungary hoarded power last month in response to the coldest winter in a decade, exposing the weakness of the region’s power markets, which should enjoy unrestricted flows. Temperatures in the Balkans and surrounding countries are expected to drop below freezing again next week.…