Coal is the Largest Component of Electric Production Across the Nation and Experiencing a Huge Resurgence

Coal the Foundation of the Industrial Revolution

Many things led to the amazing transformation of the human experience that has occurred over the last two centuries:  Newton’s Physics, the development of the scientific method and the global rebirth of democracy among others.  But arguably, one innovation has transformed the human capacity to work, build, and create on a scale and at a pace never before seen in human history - the steam engine.  The steam engine, which was invented to pump water out of coal mines, marks the beginning of the industrial revolution.  Its purpose, then and now, is to harness the solar energy bound in fossil fuels.  Coal and the other fossil fuels come from the carbon residue of plants.  Millions of years ago, these plants absorbed and stored the energy of the sun as they grew.  They died and were then compacted by geologic forces into a soft rock (coal), a liquid (oil), or a gas (natural gas) that is so packed with carbon that these fuels provide more heat energy when burned than any other substance, releasing the energy of the sun captured in their lifetime.  These fuels have powered the modern era.  The hot fire of coal powered the first locomotive and many industrial machines that increased human productivity beyond imagination. Electricity provided the ability to transport this power over long distances, so that  machines could accomplish more work than ever before.  Once again, it was coal that turned the engine that generated the electricity, and it still does. 

Coal Powers the Nation

Many people think of coal as a historic fuel, significant before oil became king, but not significant in the 21st century.  While it is true that coal has played a greatly diminished role in home heating and manufacturing, the use of coal in electric power plants has increased to record highs.  Many folks are surprised by the fact that coal fired power plants supply one half of the electricity in the U.S. electric grid.  The electric grid is an astonishing achievement on a massive scale, managed 24/7 so cleverly that most of us expect that the electricity will always be there, and it pretty much always is.  The grid is like an opened circuit that must maintain a balance between too much energy in the system and too little.  From the people managing the grid to guys firing up a gas plant on a hot day, thousands of people across the country are at the ready so the lights will be working when you get home.  Coal is big, big business, which makes coal and utility companies some of the most influential in the nation. 

150 Proposed Plants

Almost no new coal plants have been built in the past 20 years.  Natural gas burning plants have been cheaper to build and cheaper to run.  But, natural gas prices almost doubled after hurricane Katrina, exposing many utilities to higher generation costs and volatility due to fluctuating prices.  Anticipating continued growth in demand and needing generation capacity to meet that demand, new coal plants appeared to be the best choice at the lowest cost.  Utilities across the nation proposed 150 new coal burning power plants.  A few of these are already under construction, many are well along in the permitting and approval process, and 59 proposed plants have been abandoned or delayed due to permitting difficulties, lack of financing, escalating construction costs, concerns about possible greenhouse gas emissions regulations, civil protest over public health issues, or some combination of these. 

Energy policy has moved forward touting coal as the solution, but it is policy grounded in tunnel vision.  There are far better ways to meet our need for electricity than building new coal plants.  They are clearly the worst choice from a pollution and public health perspective, they are the worst choice from a greenhouse gas perspective, they are the worst choice in terms of degrading the natural environment through extraction and processing of coal, and contrary to industry claims, they are not the best choice in terms of providing the cheapest electricity to the consumer.  In this Coal Impact Guide, we present detailed information which suggests that the vast resources, both private and public, going into new coal plants would be better spent if they were used to save some of the massive amounts of energy wasted in the U.S. every day, and to promote and develop clean renewable energy sources, many of which are already cost competitive with coal plants today.

• See efficiency and renewables sections.

Backed by Powerful Forces

Consider that whatever you pay each month for electricity is paid, more or less, by every household in this country.  Every business that rents office space or owns a manufacturing plant is likewise paying a substantial amount for electricity.  Altogether, the utility sectors income dwarfs the gross domestic product of all but a handful of nations.  Investor-owned utilities (70% of total market) realized Operating Income of $63 billion in 2007 and they control a commodity considered an absolute necessity. It is not surprising that coal and utilities are among the most influential corporations and special interest lobbies in the nation, at both national and state levels. 

If the coal and utility companies have an opinion about U.S. energy policy, say dealing with greenhouse gas emissions by making huge private and public investments in an unproven and untested cluster of new technologies collectively called carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) or continuing to blow the tops off of Appalachian Mountains, they will most certainly have an audience in the halls of power.  The large coal and utility companies are not disinterested parties, they are for-profit companies.  It is not their job to decide what the best choices are for America.  It is their job to identify and promote policies that will increase their profits and protect their shareholders’ value. 

• Imagine being an elected or appointed official and the utility provider tells you that a piece of legislation will increase customer rates or decrease reliability.  Would you want to risk being the person identified later as the one who raised electric bills or caused a blackout?  The utilities have tremendous leverage when they make these arguments, yet the consequences they threaten have rarely happened.
• See influence section