Is the coal rush coming to an end? The Wall Street Journal seems to think so, in their article: Coal’s Doubters Block New Wave Of Power Plants They highlight a number of examples that we broke on It’s Getting Hot in Here, such as the blocking of the Everglades coal plant or the Minnesota IGCC coal plant.
A key quote from the article caught my eye and I realized that we have progressed so far in this campaign. We may not have put a price on carbon yet, but we have damaged the future of Big Coal.
In the wake of the fading coal proposals, and others that are expected to follow, Citigroup downgraded the stocks of coal-mining companies last week, noting that “prophesies of a new wave of coal-fired generation have vaporized.” On Monday, Steve Leer, chief executive of Arch Coal Inc., said some of the power plants he had expected to be built “may get stalled due to the uncertainty over climate concerns.” Read it here.
We can take some credit where credit is due, with youth activists across the country taking aim at halting the grim advance of Big Coal and their relentless assault on our landscapes, lungs, and climate. However, groups like the Rainforest Action Network, with their No New Coal campaign…and scientific leaders like Dr. Jim Hansen speaking out against coal have taken a toll on Big Coal’s effort to force the construction of New Coal Plants in the window before we manage to pass a national climate policy.
Well, the fight is certainly not over…and groups like Mountain Justice are fighting to preserve their communities from the ravenous demands of the coal plants that have already been built and polluting for 20, 30, 60 years or more. We still need to phase out coal to preserve our climate, clean our air, save our mountain communities, and pass on a planet worth having. But at least we have stuck a blow for a more just and sustainable future and we should recognize it.
Do you think we are having an impact and blunting or halting the coal rush, at least in the United States? How much further will we have to go, in order to complete this effort and pass a national moratorium on all new coal construction?
Subscribe by Email!
Subscribe by RSS!
Share on Facebook
There are a number of struggles currently being waged against proposed coal plants, and some of those will be tough fights, but I think that our days of worrying about new coal plants are indeed coming towards a close. I think it would be wise to begin to focus our defenses on other forms of dirty energy now, specifically nuclear power and ethanol, as we are seeing those proposals continue to increase.