"If there is a war on coal, environmental forces may have just won the Battle of Midway."

[Pirate Smile]

A Win for Clean Air in the Southeast—and a Blow to Coal
Posted by Bryan Walsh Thursday, April 14, 2011 at 4:15 pm

Yesterday Tom Fanning, the CEO of the majority coal-powered utility Southern Company, made a few headlines when he told the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in a speech that the Obama administration has "virtually declared war on coal," continuing:

-snip-
Whether you think a "war on coal" is a good thing or a bad thing depends on your feelings about the number one source of electricity in the U.S.—I'm on the James Hansen side myself—there's no doubt that environmental regulations and concern over public health will continue to squeeze the coal industry. And the Obama Administration really is leading the way—today the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a landmark deal with the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) to resolve alleged Clean Air Act violations at 11 of the company's coal-fired power plants in Alabama, Kentucky and Tennessee. As a result, TVA will phase out 18 units at older, coal-fired power plants and install updated pollution controls on three dozen additional units. The agreement—which will cost TVA an estimated $3 billion to $5 billion in new investments—will permanently retire 2,700-MW of coal power, and reduce TVA's nitrogen oxide (NOx) and sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions by 69% and 67% from 2008 levels. The EPA estimates that the changes will prevent approximately 1,200 to 3,000 premature deaths, 2,000 heart attacks and 21,000 asthma attacks each year, resulting in $27 billion in annual health benefits.

If there is a war on coal, environmental forces may have just won the Battle of Midway. EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson—who has come under intense pressure from conservatives in Congress—sounded a note of triumph when she spoke to reporters this afternoon:

-snip-
But there's no getting around the fact that the TVA deal represent a real blow to coal—and if the EPA gets its way its way, it may not be the last. The agency is set to push tighter regulations under the Clean Air Act on traditional pollutants—including the first-ever restrictions on mercury emissions—which will likely force utilities to either retire old coal plants or spend big money to install pollution control systems, as TVA has done. But cleaning the air won't be free, and critics are already complaining about the cost of the TVA upgrades, which the company says will result in the loss of 300 to 400 jobs. Republican Representative John Duncan of Tennessee blasted the settlement in a statement:

Read more: http://ecocentric.blogs.time.com/2011/04/14/a-win-for-clean-air-in-the-southeast%e2%80%94and-a-blow-to-coal/#ixzz1JYlaGkxR

[secondwind]

1. Wait til that fella Mackey (?) hears about this!

[kristopher]

2. Utility CEO critical of EPA says "Coal under attack" "Push nuclear"

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=115x287615#288016

Southern Co. chief Tom Fanning urges nuclear push

WASHINGTON -- Japan's nuclear catastrophe should not derail the construction of new nuclear power plants in the U.S., Southern Co. President and CEO Tom Fanning said Wednesday.

"What's happened in Japan recently has made me more convicted than ever that we need to develop this generation of nuclear for America," Fanning said in a major energy policy speech to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

<snip>

Fanning, addressing an audience of business advocates at U.S. Chamber headquarters across from the White House, was also critical of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for what he says are aggressive regulations that sidestep the role of Congress is setting national energy policy, and will lead to higher electricity prices for customers.

"The existing coal industry is under attack by some in America," Fanning said. "Decisions are being made today that will limit our ability long term to use coal and therefore negatively impact the nation's economic well-being."...
http://blog.al.com/sweethome/2011/04/southern_co_chief_tom_fanning.html


Coal and nuclear, nuclear and coal - two sides of the same centralized coin.

[DCKit]

3. Add that "$27 billion in annual health benefits" to the cost of "cheap" coal...

and most forms of alternative energy become economically competitive.

Funny how that works.

[Keith Bee]

4. Don't frack with us!

K&R for Battlestar Galactica geeks like myself

[cutlassmama]

5. Wonder how this will affect that wonderful new show on SpikeTV called "coal"?

[PVnRT]

6. The guy who supports clean coal has declared war on coal? Huh?

Then again, it's the Chamber of Commerce, and they're around the bend anyway.