In the town of Louisa, Kentucky, USA (Louisa), coal has long been living in the dominance of coal and Big Sandy coal-fired power plants provide a livelihood for local people, but now the coal industry is in trouble. Across the United States, due to the protest of the new regulations of the federal government and environmentalists, coupled with the gas companies to seize on the energy market, the coal industry has been besieged.
Last year, American Electric Power announced that the Big Sandy Power Plant to natural gas, a move triggered local protest. Kentucky Rep. Rocky? Adkins (RockyAdkins), critics say, U.S. power companies should not yield to the regulators and environmentalists.
According to The New York Times reports, coal and electric utility in a long time belong to the alliance camp, but in recent years, gradually moving towards split. The next few years, the United States more than 500 coal-fired power plant, expected to be 100 off; four years ago, coal provides nearly half of U.S. electricity, but the proportion has dropped to third.
The coal share decreased mainly because of new pollution control laws and regulations increase the cost of coal-fired power plants; In addition, with the surge in natural gas production, gas prices have plummeted. Occupied after a century of dominance, in the eyes of the federal government, state governments and power utilities company, the status of coal already changed.
Sierra Club "Beyond Coal" project manager Bruce? Nilles (BruceNilles) that they never imagined that the decline of the coal-fired power plants so quickly. "Beyond Coal" not only won the New York City Mayor Michael? Bloomberg (MichaelBloomberg) $ 50 million grant, while a gas company to provide $ 26 million. (1 U.S. dollar equals 6.37 yuan)
However, the coal industry did not wait to die, and all enterprises use lobbying, legislation, litigation, clean coal rally movement to fight back, coal and even become issues in the U.S. presidential election.
In Kentucky, due to the intervention of Adkins and other coal industry supporters, the big sandy power plants still operating. For the continued use of coal for power generation, power company has proposed a cost of $ 1 billion transformation plan, but at the same time requirements of the Kentucky state regulators approved electricity prices rose 30 percent, to cover the cost of renovation. This met with opposition from residents and businesses.
Big Sandy power plant daily consumption of 90 wagons of coal, but the recession of the Louisa Town, the coal industry was overwhelming. Coal sold to the American Midwest power plants declined due to lower market price of coal, local coal mines had closed down or off. Many family generations have to rely on coal for their livelihoods, and even floral supply company through a chain reaction by the Big Sandy power plant indirectly.
Under the actual pressure, coal producers, trade unions, land owners and railway companies to come together and demanded that the U.S. power company to abandon plans for disabled coal in the Big Sandy Power Plant, approved by the Kentucky Public Service Commission will raise the electricity price Big Sandy Power Plant transformation plan.
Big Sandy power plant emissions to the atmosphere every year a huge amount of pollutants, sulfur dioxide and mercury cause breathing and respiratory diseases. After the transformation, most of the pollutant emissions will be significantly reduced, but the power plant will continue to be the main source of carbon dioxide emissions in the region. Not only that, the Big Sandy used to store coal ash mine recently as the nation's 45 "high risk" of mine, one of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
In 1990, the U.S. Clean Air Act has been extensively revised, authorized the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency mercury, arsenic and other toxic air emissions. Since then, the Obama administration issued a new rule that would require most of the power plants to cut emissions. In April this year, the Sierra Club to put pressure on the Kentucky Public Service Commission that the Big Sandy power plant rehabilitation programs should not be approved.
