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| History | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2>
Just two years after the first coal was discovered in the United States in 1750 explorer Thomas Walker discovered coal in what would become Kentucky and used it to heat his camp fire. Although his discovery came in the Eastern Coalfield it would be another 150 years before commercial coal production occurred there. In 1820 the first commercial coal mine in Kentucky opened in the Western Coalfield in Muhlenberg County. In its first year the mine produced 328 tons of coal. By 1843 the state produced 100,000 tons of coal produced, and by 1879 the state produced one million tons of coal, all coming from the Western Coalfield.[2]
In 1900 the first commercial coal was opened in the Eastern Coalfield in the community of Betsy Lane in Floyd County. Coal mining experienced rise and fall throughout most of the early to mid 20th century. The two World Wars made for periods of boom. The first was followed with a severe bust, brought on by the end of the Great War and then continued by the Great Depression. Following World War II, the drive toward mechanization and the Korean War pushed the industry even higher. However, railroads and households soon began shifting from coal to oil and gas for their energy needs, and the industry yet again experienced a downturn.[3]
By 2001 8.36 billion tons of coal had been extracted from Kentucky, 5.78 billion tons coming from the Eastern Coalfield and 2.58 billion tons coming from the Western Coalfield.[4] As of 2004 around 13% of total coal reserves have been extracted from the Western Coalfield, although much of the remaining 87% of reserves are not reachable with current technology. Around 19% of coal reserves have been extracted from the Eastern Coalfield.[5]
Two phenomena have resulted in a major reduction in the number of mine workers and number of mines in Kentucky[5]. First, increased mechanization in both Kentucky coal fields has reduced the need for labor.[6] This has become even more pronounced with the emergence of strip mining. Secondly, acid rain regulation found in the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendment has made Kentucky coal, with its medium to high sulfur content, less desirable. That amendment requires companies to either remove the sulfur through scrubbers or switch to low-sulfur coal, found in Western states like Wyoming or submit to fines for their sulfur production.[7]
While comparably higher in sulfur content, the Eastern Kentucky coal does have a higher carbon density than Wyoming coal, so less of it has to be burned to produce the same amount of electricity, thus producing less per capita carbon dioxide emissions. Eastern coal remains widely used across the United States.
The Western Coalfield has been hit much harder by acid rain regulations. Whereas about half of Eastern coal is high in sulfur content, nearly all Western coal falls into this category. In recent years the state government has been seeking to land so called "coal to gas" operations that convert coal into liquid fuels that closely resemble either natural gas or petroleum.
[edit] Tags:Coal,United States,Thomas Walker,Kentucky,Muhlenberg County,Betsy Lane,Floyd County,Acid Rain,1990 Clean Air Act,Scrubbers,Toyota,Georgetown,Louisville,Western Coal Fields,Illinois,Indiana,Eastern Mountain Coal Fields,Pennsylvania,Alabama,Republican Party,Democratic Party,2011 Gubernatorial Election,David Williams,Bobby Holsclaw,Phil Moffett,Steve Beshear,U.s. Environmental Protection Agency,Butler County,Daviess County,Henderson County,Hopkins County,Mclean County,Ohio County,Union County,Webster County,Bell County,Boyd County,Breathitt County,Carter County,Clay County,Elliott County,Greenup County,Harlan County,Jackson County,Johnson County,Knott County,Knox County,Laurel County,Lawrence County,Lee County,Leslie County,Letcher County,Mccreary County,Magoffin County,Martin County,Morgan County,Owsley County,Perry County,Pike County,Whitley County,Wolfe County,Big Sandy Power Plant,Louisa,Cane Run Station,Coleman Station,Hawesville,Cooper Power Station,Somerset,Dale Power Station,Winchester,E. W. Brown Generating Station,Harrodsburg,East Bend Generating Station,Florence,Elmer Smith Station,Owensboro,Ghent Generating Station,Warsaw,Green River Generating Station,Central City,Green Station,Henderson Station,Henderson,Mill Creek Station,Paradise Fossil Plant,Robert Reid Power Station,Shawnee Fossil Plant,Paducah,Spurlock Power Station, | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Economic impact | 2>
Kentucky's coal driven low electric rates help land major employers such as Toyota's assembly plant in Georgetown
Employment in the coal industry followed a steady decline from the 1980s up until the 2000s, evening out at around 18,000 for the past decade. As of 2009, 18,850 Kentuckians were directly employed in the coal industry, less than 1 percent of the total workforce.[8][9] Yet, when accounting for jobs indirectly involved in the industry, that number becomes much larger, nearly 73,000. This number includes education and service industry jobs in mining communities, employment from construction, transportation and manufacturing work that touches the mining industry, as well as jobs stemming from banks, law offices and engineering firms that did business with the mining industry.
Coal’s total economic impact is significant, with over 125.96 million tons of coal produced in 2006, making Kentucky 3rd in the nation for coal production.[10] The state supplies 10.6% of the country with coal for power plants, giving it the nation’s second largest market share.[10]
Arguably coal’s biggest economic impact has been low electric rates in Kentucky, which gives the state a competitive advantage in attracting industry, including those with heavy energy demands such as aluminum smelters and automotive plants.[11] This has also made Kentucky one of the largest consumers of energy per capita in the nation.[12] The state's average retail price of electricity is 5.43 cents per kilowatt hour, the 3rd lowest rate in the nation.[13] In 2004 coal-fired power plants produced approximately 92 percent of the electricity generated in Kentucky.
[edit] | Tags: Environmental impact | 2>
Mountaintop removal mining
A strip mine in Martin County
Starting in the 1960s coal seams in both Kentucky coal fields have been increasingly accessed via a method known as Mountaintop Removal Mining, which is a form of surface mining that involves the topographical alteration and/or removal of a summit, summit ridge, or significant portion of a mountain, hill, or ridge in order to obtain a desired geologic material. The process involves blasting with explosives to remove up to 400 vertical feet (120 m) of overburden to expose underlying coal seams. Excess rock and soil laden with toxic mining byproducts are often dumped into nearby valleys, in what are called "hollow fills" or "valley fills."
This method allows, through the use of explosives and large machinery, more than two and a half times as much coal can be extracted per worker per hour than in traditional underground mines,[14] thus greatly reducing the need for workers. In Kentucky, for example, the number of workers has declined over 60% from 1979 to 2006 (from 47,190 to 17,959 workers).[15] thus greatly reducing the need for workers. In Kentucky, for example, the number of workers has declined over 60% from 1979 to 2006 (from 47,190 to 17,959 workers).[15] The industry overall lost approximately 10,000 jobs from 1990 to 1997, as MTR and other more mechanized underground mining methods became more widely used.[16] The coal industry asserts that surface mining techniques, such as mountaintop removal, are safer for miners than sending miners underground.[17]
Yet, the environmental implications of mountaintop removal have been widely accepted as an eminent threat to Kentucky communities and ecosystems. Valley fills have been found to cause the permanent loss of critical ecosystems through water pollution and the burial of headwater streams.[18] Furthermore, vegetation removal and soil compaction from mining equipment both contribute to stronger and more frequent flooding from storm runoff.[18] As for human health in counties involved in mountaintop mining, there is are elevated rates for mortality and lung cancer as well as for chronic heart, lung and kidney disease.[18] These threats do not appear to go away after mining has ceased nor after land reclamation has taken place.
Coal ash pollution
Mounds of coal ash located across the street from a residential neighborhood in Louisville
Ash is the waste product of coal that has been used to boil water. Typically it is stored in pills next to the power plant and then recycled through use in cement mixing. A major problem is that the mounds of coal ash are rarely covered and easily become airborne. When coal is burned into fly ash the uranium and thorium in the unburned coal are concentrated at up to 10 times their original levels. Fly ash uranium sometimes leaches into the soil and water surrounding a coal plant, affecting cropland and, in turn, food. People living within a "stack shadow"—the area within a half- to one-mile (0.8- to 1.6-kilometer) radius of a coal plant's smokestacks—might then ingest small amounts of radiation. Fly ash is also disposed of in landfills and abandoned mines and quarries, posing a potential risk to people living around those areas.
Power plant emissions of CO2, SO2, and Mercury
In 2003, Kentucky emitted 143 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions, ranking it 13th in the nation overall.[19]
[edit] | Tags: Differences between Western and Eastern Coalfields | 2>
Kentucky's two major coal fields are separated by around 180 miles. The Western Coal Fields is part of a larger field which extends into Illinois and Indiana, while the Eastern Mountain Coal Fields is part of the Appalachian coal basin which extends from Pennsylvania to Alabama. Bituminous coal deposits in the eastern coal field are lower in sulfur content, averaging between 1 and 2 percent by weight. Coal deposits from the western part of the state are slightly lower in heat content but higher in sulfur, averaging between 3 and 4 percent sulfur.[20] Concerns over acid rain have meant that Eastern coal has become preferable to Western coal.
[edit] | Tags: Coal mining in Kentucky politics | 2>
Both Republican Party and Democratic Party candidates in the 2011 gubernatorial election have expressed their desire to maintain Kentucky coal. All three Republican primary candidates, David Williams, Bobby Holsclaw, Phil Moffett, have stated that they support not only the Kentucky coal industry but also the practice of mountaintop removal.[21] On the other side, incumbent Steve Beshear has been outspoken in his criticism of federal intervention in Kentucky's coal industry, even joining the Kentucky Coal Association in a lawsuit against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency over control of mining permits.[22] Beshear's support of the state's coal industry has brought criticism of the governor as being too lax on the issue.[23] In February 2011, some even went so far as to take part in a four-day sit-in protest in the governor's outer office. Following the sit-in, hundreds of others gathered outside the state Capitol to promote mountaintop removal legislation.[24]
[edit] | Tags: Western Coalfield | 3>
County
Millions of tons of coal extracted
Millions of tons of coal remaining
Butler County
30.2
353.29
Daviess County
62.33
1,205.66
Henderson County
76.12
6,700.53
Hopkins County
781.80
7251.20
McLean County
19.73
3536.95
Muhlenberg County
749.83
3224.18
Ohio County
266.72
1291.11
Union County
332.21
5,842.56
Webster County
317.11
5,688.73
[edit] | Tags: Eastern Coalfield | 3>
County
Millions of tons of coal extracted
Millions of tons of coal remaining
Bell County
302.69
2589.32
Boyd County
19.93
590.82
Breathitt County
208.47
3695.26
Carter County
18.61
464.74
Clay County
61.87
1412.37
Elliott County
9.87
296.58
Floyd County
459.68
3248.72
Greenup County
10.42
184.03
Harlan County
917.66
6045.80
Jackson County
11.31
353.25
Johnson County
97.56
1224.32
Knott County
329.90
3725.30
Knox County
75.51
1230.91
Laurel County
35.95
336.14
Lawrence County
26.81
1971.06
Lee County
8.49
347.00
Leslie County
259.17
3036.31
Letcher County
558.17
2576.46
McCreary County
55.34
334.29
Magoffin County
55.77
1857.56
Martin County
391.28
2537.41
Morgan County
15.22
818.96
Owsley County
10.02
554.10
Perry County
593.36
2409.98
Pike County
1420.07
8551.56
Whitley County
91.40
804.64
Wolfe County
7.16
429.60
[edit] | Tags: List of coal-fired power plants in Kentucky | 2>
Name
Location
MW Capacity
Annual CO2 emissions
Annual SO2 emissions
Annual NOx emissions
Annual Mercury emissions
Big Sandy Power Plant
Louisa
1,097
6,830,275 tons
46,476 tons
13,851 tons
281 pounds
Cane Run Station
Louisville
645
3,853,535 tons
17,122 tons
6,791 tons
96 pounds
Coleman Station
Hawesville
521
3,404,057 tons
10,899 tons
5,320 tons
110 pounds
Cooper Power Station
Somerset
341
1,931,758 tons
Dale Power Station
Winchester
195
1,186,544 tons
E. W. Brown Generating Station
Harrodsburg
739
3,978,892 tons
45,191 tons
6,683 tons
161 pounds
East Bend Generating Station
Florence
669
4,671,336 tons
3,947 tons
5,400 tons
86 pounds
Elmer Smith Station
Owensboro
445
2,846,615 tons
2,525 tons
7,045 tons
59 pounds
Ghent generating Station
Warsaw
2,000
12,933,318 tons
49,913 tons
14,318 tons
413 pounds
Green River Generating Station
Central City
189
1,169,616 tons
Green Station
Central City
528
3,923,035 tons
Henderson Station
Henderson
365
2,467,124 tons
Mill Creek Station
Louisville
1,717
10,089,535 tons
25,464 tons
12,594 tons
361 pounds
Paradise Fossil Plant
Central City
2,558
15,497,610 tons
83,926 tons
43,022 tons
490 pounds
Robert Reid Power Station
Central City
96
438,984 tons
9,280 tons
1,097 tons
Shawnee Fossil Plant
Paducah
1,750
10,527,302 tons
35,815 tons
18,216 tons
180 pounds
Spurlock Power Station
Maysville
1,346
8,105,061 tons
38,877 tons
8,125 tons
300 pounds
Trimble County Generating Station
Bedford
514
4,107,397 tons
830 tons
3,981 tons
203 pounds
Tyrone Generating Station
Versailles
135
468,036 tons
3,192 tons
955 tons
Wilson Station (Power Plant)
Wickliffe
440
3,758,819 tons
9,306 tons
5,773 tons
131 pounds
TOTAL
N/A
16,290
102,656,885
'
'
'
[edit] | Tags: References | 2>
^ http://www.coaleducation.org/Ky_coal_facts/
^ http://www.coaleducation.org/coalhistory/timeline.htm
^ Kleber, John E. (1992). The Kentucky Encyclopedia. University Press of Kentucky. By the mid 1950s, surface mining became the response to lower coal prices and lower demand. The process involved fewer workers and no “mining” in the traditional sense. It was during this time that the first strip mine control bill was enacted.Kleber, John E. (1992). The Kentucky Encyclopedia. University Press of Kentucky.
^ url=http://www.uky.edu/KGS/coal/production/kycoal01.htm
^ http://www.uky.edu/KGS/coal/production/kycoal01.htm
^ a b c http://www.coaleducation.org/Ky_coal_facts/coal_resources/ky_resources.htm
^ http://www.kltprc.net/books/contextofchange/Chpt_9.htm
^ http://www.nma.org/pdf/c_employment_state_region_method.pdf
^ http://www.workforcekentucky.ky.gov/
^ a b http://www.kentuckycoal.org/documents/CoalFacts08.pdf
^ http://www.maced.org/coal/electricity.htm
^ http://www.eia.gov/state/state-energy-profiles-analysis.cfm?sid=KY
^ "The Facts", America's Power, accessed June 2008.
^ "The Facts", America's Power, accessed March 2011.
^ a b "Most Requested Statistics - U.S. Coal Industry" (PDF). National Mining Association. http://www.nma.org/pdf/c_most_requested.pdf. Retrieved December 1, 2007.
^ "Online KY Coal Facts". Kentucky Office of Energy Policy, Division of Fossil Fuels & Utility Services. http://www.coaleducation.org/Ky_Coal_Facts/default.htm. Retrieved December 28, 2009.
^ Banerjee, Neela (2006-10-28). "Taking On a Coal Mining Practice as a Matter of Faith". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/28/us/28mountains.html. Retrieved 2006-10-28.
^ a b c M.A. Palmer; E. S. Bernhardt; et al. (2010). "Mountaintop Mining Consequences". Science 327 (5962): 148–149. doi:10.1126/science.1180543. http://www.sciencemag.org/content/327/5962/148.summary. Retrieved 2011-03-25.
^ "Texas, Wyoming lead in emissions", USA Today, June 2, 2007.
^ http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/coal/st_coal_pdf/0576n.pdf
^ http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D9MRHNNG0.htm
^ http://www.kentucky.com/2010/10/19/1485386/coal-industry-beshear-administration.html
^ http://www.kentucky.com/2011/02/15/1635734/standing-up-to-king-coal-protesters.html
^ http://www.kentucky.com/2011/02/15/1635902/environmental-activists-end-sit.html
v
t
e
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Categories: Coal mining in the United StatesMining in KentuckyEconomic geology
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