Feature Stories
New IEA Report Shows the World is Burning More Coal than Ever
December 16, 2016
Global coal use may be slowing down due to global warming regulations, but the world is still using more coal than ever before, according to a report by an international energy agency. Politicians and environmentalists around the world heralded the
Tech Entrepreneurs Begin Galactic Gold Rush with Plans for Space Mining
December 14, 2016
While Elon Musk and other billionaire entrepreneurs grow increasingly closer to the finish line of a heated race to determine who will be the first to send humans to Mars, another type of space exploration company has emerged with a
Barrick Gold Moving Cortez Hills Mine Into the Future with Digital Reinvention of Mining
December 14, 2016
Barrick Gold Corp. is moving Cortez Hills Mine into the future of the industry with a “digital reinvention” of mining. The company announced in September that it partnered with Cisco to bring “cutting-edge technology” into the industry. “We are proud
King Coal Comeback? Trump Win Brings Hope for Miners
December 8, 2016
The rumblings within the coal industry in southern Indiana might not be from the blasting in nearby mining operations. There are whispers about once closed mine pits re-opening. And, there are innuendos that coal companies are becoming liquid and getting
Huge Changes Expected Under Trump Administration as EPA Celebrates 46 Years
December 7, 2016
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) began operating 46 years ago after former President Richard Nixon proposed it as a way to address mounting pollution concerns across the country. EPA celebrated its 46th anniversary Friday, just weeks before President-elect Donald Trump
Donald Trump Says He Wants to Help Coal Miners. But Does Congress?
December 2, 2016
Few pockets of America have been more fervently in support of President-elect Donald Trump than coal country. During his campaign, a hard-hat-wearing Trump made explicit appeals to miners, promising to reverse the recent and precipitous decline of the eastern coal
How American Coal Could Come Back Leaner and Cleaner
November 28, 2016
It’s been a wild month for the U.S. coal industry. When the Paris climate agreement entered into effect on November 5, Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton both thought they had signed the death warrant of the American coal industry. Just
Montana Tech Uses Mine Water from Orphan Boy Copper Mine to Heat Buildings
November 28, 2016
Walking through a dark tunnel, lit only by the dim headlamp on his hardhat, Scott Rosenthal, department chair of Montana Tech’s Mining Engineering Department, gives a fairly bland assessment of the school’s latest project. “It’s unique, but when you see
Trump’s Plan to Bring Back Coal Country Places EPA in Crosshairs
November 16, 2016
President-elect Trump’s plan to bring back the coal industry will likely start by scrapping the Environmental Protection Agency’s climate change agenda, according to a newly appointed member of his transition team. The agency would be dialed back to focus strictly
A President Trump Spells Sudden Optimism for Coal in Pennsylvania
November 16, 2016
In recent years, coal communities and power plants, coal’s biggest clients, knew which way the industry was headed. As the power sector’s reliance on coal has waned — and it shuttered coal-fired plants and embraced other fuels — many mining
