http://wvmetronews.com/2017/06/05/president-trump-fulfills-campaign-promises-for-west-virginia/
Last November, Donald Trump captured a whopping 69 percent of the vote in West Virginia, compared with 26 percent for Hillary Clinton. One of the reasons Trump dominated here is that he promised to bring back coal jobs.
Politicians’ campaign promises should be viewed skeptically. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, coal’s share of electricity generation has dropped to 30 percent and is now number two behind natural gas. Coal’s portion of the nation’s energy portfolio is half what is was 30 years ago.
Natural gas use is expanding because of the enormous supplies that are now accessible through hydraulic fracturing. While eastern U.S. coal seams are getting smaller and harder to reach, the country is just beginning to reap the benefits of the shale boom for gas and oil.
So coal will never be what it was. However, we still have plenty of the mineral. The West Virginia Coal Association estimated last year that the state has 51 billion tons of recoverable reserves. We also have the technology, experience and workforce to mine coal, but the last eight years have been tough.
Coal production has dropped by almost half. Shutdowns and layoffs have devastated communities. Folks who own or work at car dealerships, convenience stores and diners have suffered. Some school systems in coal counties have had to lay off teachers because of declining tax revenue.
The dramatic drop in severance tax collections has put a severe strain on the state budget. We’re less than a month away from the start of the new fiscal year and the Governor and lawmakers are still trying to figure out a spending plan.
Meanwhile, there has been some encouraging news recently. During President Trump’s announcement last week that the U.S. is pulling out of the Paris climate deal, he referenced a study by the National Economic Research Association which said the accord would have cost America as many as 2.7 million jobs by 2025. One part of that study said coal’s output would drop by another 20 percent during that same time.
Earlier this year, Trump scrapped the Clean Power Plan, which would have made it impossible to build any new coal fired power plants, while shuttering many of those still on-line.
Those two moves fulfill campaign promises he made while visiting coal country, and they represent a dramatic shift from the previous administration which targeted coal for extinction while propping up alternative fuels favored by environmentalists.
Unfortunately, supporters of the President’s actions are being labeled as climate change deniers or worse. How could the U.S. turn its back on something agreed to by 195 other counties, they ask?
The answer is twofold: A closer examination of the agreement shows it wasn’t much of a plan at all. The U.S. got the worst end of the deal and even if every country met all of its promises for carbon reduction, the increase in global temperatures would only be slowed by 0.17 degrees Celsius by 2100.
And second, frankly, it’s difficult for folks here who are struggling to keep their jobs and pay their bills to get behind a poorly understood international plan on the climate agreed to by an unpopular President during a visit to Paris.
West Virginia’s economy will ultimately shift away from coal, but for the near future it remains vital. The President’s actions on Paris and the CPP at least give coal miners and their communities a fighting chance to compete.
Last November, Donald Trump captured a whopping 69 percent of the vote in West Virginia, compared with 26 percent for Hillary Clinton. One of the reasons Trump dominated here is that he promised to bring back coal jobs.
Politicians’ campaign promises should be viewed skeptically. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, coal’s share of electricity generation has dropped to 30 percent and is now number two behind natural gas. Coal’s portion of the nation’s energy portfolio is half what is was 30 years ago.
Natural gas use is expanding because of the enormous supplies that are now accessible through hydraulic fracturing. While eastern U.S. coal seams are getting smaller and harder to reach, the country is just beginning to reap the benefits of the shale boom for gas and oil.
So coal will never be what it was. However, we still have plenty of the mineral. The West Virginia Coal Association estimated last year that the state has 51 billion tons of recoverable reserves. We also have the technology, experience and workforce to mine coal, but the last eight years have been tough.
Coal production has dropped by almost half. Shutdowns and layoffs have devastated communities. Folks who own or work at car dealerships, convenience stores and diners have suffered. Some school systems in coal counties have had to lay off teachers because of declining tax revenue.
The dramatic drop in severance tax collections has put a severe strain on the state budget. We’re less than a month away from the start of the new fiscal year and the Governor and lawmakers are still trying to figure out a spending plan.
Meanwhile, there has been some encouraging news recently. During President Trump’s announcement last week that the U.S. is pulling out of the Paris climate deal, he referenced a study by the National Economic Research Association which said the accord would have cost America as many as 2.7 million jobs by 2025. One part of that study said coal’s output would drop by another 20 percent during that same time.
Earlier this year, Trump scrapped the Clean Power Plan, which would have made it impossible to build any new coal fired power plants, while shuttering many of those still on-line.
Those two moves fulfill campaign promises he made while visiting coal country, and they represent a dramatic shift from the previous administration which targeted coal for extinction while propping up alternative fuels favored by environmentalists.
Unfortunately, supporters of the President’s actions are being labeled as climate change deniers or worse. How could the U.S. turn its back on something agreed to by 195 other counties, they ask?
The answer is twofold: A closer examination of the agreement shows it wasn’t much of a plan at all. The U.S. got the worst end of the deal and even if every country met all of its promises for carbon reduction, the increase in global temperatures would only be slowed by 0.17 degrees Celsius by 2100.
And second, frankly, it’s difficult for folks here who are struggling to keep their jobs and pay their bills to get behind a poorly understood international plan on the climate agreed to by an unpopular President during a visit to Paris.
West Virginia’s economy will ultimately shift away from coal, but for the near future it remains vital. The President’s actions on Paris and the CPP at least give coal miners and their communities a fighting chance to compete.