Plans are afoot to build giant new coal terminals on the West Coast to ship this lucrative commodity to China. But activists want to stop this, in part because coal produces huge amounts of carbon dioxide when it’s burned. Federal climate policy is silent on this potentially large source of emissions, so the debate is happening at the local level. …
Environmental Groups Upset About Coal Trains
Environmental groups in the Spokane area are upset with proposals that could see dozens of trains loaded with coal destined for the Far East move through the city every day. They fear that coal dust and increased diesel emissions will damage human health, while increased rail traffic will make for more dangerous intersections, among other hazards. Read full story here.
Letter: Coal the wrong track – Helena Independent Record, Oct. 3, 2011
and community. The impacts to the health and well-being of Montanans will be myriad and substantial. Most apparent is the climate crisis. With the exception of the fossil-fuel industry, which, like the tobacco industry before it, is manufacturing doubt about the harmfulness of their products (oil, gas and, dirtiest of all, coal), people are noticing the “weird” weather accompanying the …
Seeking a Pacific Northwest Gateway for Coal
Bellingham, Washington, is admired for its green power purchases, its innovative building efficiency program, and the “buy local” ethos of its bustling Saturday farmers’ market. But the fossil energy world now has its eye on this small coastal city just 20 miles (32 kilometers) south of the Canadian border. Read the full story here.
Orient Express: Will Montana become a coal colony? – July 28, 2011
The IR recently wrote about the lawsuit against the decision (of a bare majority) of the Land Board to lease Otter Creek valley for strip-mining by Arch Coal Inc. (Missouri). This decision was made without evaluating environmental and health impacts to our climate and community. The impacts to the health and well-being of Montanans will be myriad and substantial. Most …
Guest Editorial: Exporting Montana coal doesn’t fuel prosperity, March 17, 2011
America is moving away from coal. As we have started using energy more efficiently (such as with compact fluorescent light bulbs and more building insulation) and to use cleaner sources of energy (such as wind power), our demand for coal has started to decline. Read the full story here. By ED GULICK, Chair of the Billings-based Northern Plains Resource Council. …
Coal quandary as state plans to send dirty fuel overseas
Just as Washington is weaning itself off coal, two companies are pushing to make the state a leading exporter of the fossil fuel. That possibility has sparked a fierce debate: If coal is so dirty that Washington won’t use it, should the state really serve as a conduit for shipping it overseas? Read the full story.
EDITORIAL: Counting rail cars
Ninety-eight, ninety-nine, one hundred, one hundred one, one hundred two. The final car, a bulk carrier, rumbled past and the barrier lifted. Until Marysville is once again bisected by the moving wall of BNSF. Read the full story here.
Coal on a Roll
When Warren Buffett and his fellow Berkshire Hathaway director Bill Gates visited the Black Thunder coal mine last November, they did their best to keep a low profile. This is not an easy thing to do, however, when a fleet of nine private aircraft touches down at a small county airport like the one in Gillette, Wyoming, which bills itself, not …
Groups sue Millennium over alleged Clean Water Act violations
Vancouver and Longview citizens groups announced Tuesday they will sue the owner of a proposed coal dock in West Longview, contending that Millennium Bulk Terminals is violating the federal Clean Water Act by handling coal without a permit. Read the full story here.
