Published: July 2, 2019 |

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People in the coal industry are happy to see deregulation at the federal level, as they hope it will reverse declining trends.

Last week the EPA did away with the Obama-era Clean Power Plan. The policy was designed to control emissions with a blanket regulation across all states. Kentucky sued to say it was unconstitutional. The Supreme Court put everything on hold.

Now, the EPA introduced the ‘American Clean Energy Rule’ (ACE).

“What that does is gives power back the states and lets states essentially regulate how they produce what their power mix is,” explained Kentucky Coal Association President Tyler White. “This is a win. A big win not just for the coal industry but also for America’s energy dominance that we seek to maintain.”

But over the past years, coal mines and power plants have shut down in Kentucky. Recently, a Louisville plant was demolished after 61 years of use. Many have lost jobs because of it the shutdowns in Kentucky, and meeting environmental regulations has cost plants at least a half billion dollars.

When asked about whether the industry is weakened beyond the ability to make a comeback, industry leaders said there is still hope.

“No, we are not too far gone. Thirty percent of the nation’s mix is coal, seventy-five percent in Kentucky. It will be that way for a long time to come we just need to make sure we’re protecting that and understanding the value this fuel source brings to our nation,” White said.

Environmentalists would disagree, and have said ACE is a step back for both the climate and those who live near coal-fired power plants.

Some scientists argue the world must cut fossil fuel emissions to stave off the worst of global warming and the EPA’s own analysis that the new rule would result in the deaths of an extra 300 to 1,500 people each year by 2030, owing to additional air pollution from the power grid.

WKYT visited Big Rivers Electric DB Wilson Station in Ohio County. CEO Bob Berry said, “Obviously I’ve seen the utilities business change significantly over those 38 years.” Berry worked his way from janitor to CEO of Big Rivers.

Here’s his concern: Plants are built to last about 50 years. But every four to eight years, when Presidents change, so do the regulations.

“We can spend all this money and then go the other way then we spend all this money again and then we have to go in a different direction.”

Berry went on, “We need some certainty so we can properly plan and do what’s best for our membership and our end user.”

WKYT reached out to the Sierra Club but did not get a response.

Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.

Source: WKYT

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