The EPA is about to issue stringent carbon emissions standards on coal that will prevent the building of any new coal-fired facilities in the United States. It will soon limit facilities already built. Many existing plants will shut down as opposed to upgrading at great expense – it won’t be worth the expense only to have the EPA throw more and more rules at them, which you know they will.
The new rule requires double the containment of greenhouse gases that all but two new coal plants are capable of achieving.
The rule will require any new power plant to emit no more than 1,000 pounds of carbon dioxide per megawatt of electricity produced. The average U.S. natural gas plant, which emits 800 to 850 pounds of CO2 per megawatt, meets that standard; coal plants emit an average of 1,768 pounds of carbon dioxide per megawatt.
At the present time, 45% of the electricity in the United States comes from coal. A more gradual transition from coal to natural gas would have eased the economic consequences which the left insists will be insignificant. Coal is cheap but is blamed for extensive pollution.
Obama believes that the benefits will offset the losses, which is what he has repeatedly said during his ongoing alternative energy fiascos. We will see but his past “successes” do make one wary.
The green movement to end fossil fuel usage has been underway since long before Obama came into office but he, with his EPA, have put it on steroids.
Congress refused to pass a cap and trade system so Obama’s EPA is bypassing them with rules that greatly over extend the legitimate power of any government agency. The Constitutionality of these rules is in question.
Natural gas is a good and inexpensive energy source and Obama appears to be supporting natural gas production at the moment.
I say “appears” because he is ending their subsidies and goes back-and-forth on the fracking. He will not lease public lands which are replete with natural gas. He has also slowed permits for natural gas drilling.
Remember this Obama coal and gas quote -
“..You know, when I was asked earlier about the issue of coal, uh, you know —Under my plan of a cap and trade system, electricity rates would necessarily skyrocket. Even regardless of what I say about whether coal is good or bad. Because I’m capping greenhouse gases, coal power plants, you know, natural gas, you name it — whatever the plants were, whatever the industry was, uh, they would have to retrofit their operations. That will cost money. They will pass that money on to consumers…”
He is no lover of gas, don’t be fooled.
The greenies on the left, with whom Obama is aligned, are opposed to natural gas and all fossil fuels. What happens after the election? I think we will see very little natural gas drilling.
Obama is nuts and will go back on his word regarding natural gas, right after he disarms us. If he likes natural gas so much, why has he done nothing but delay and stop natural gas production until election year? Remember when he promised to drill and build nuclear plants in 2008?
With the near-immediate disappearance of coal, we will have fewer carbon emissions and will only have to worry about energy costs, jobs lost, carbon monoxide and blowing up.
Read more: Washington Post
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