New Political Leadership’s Impact on the Coal Industry
Hopkins also shared his opinion of the effect on the coal industry of recent changes in leadership in Washington.
"Overall, the choices could have been a lot worse," he said. "Carol Browner, the new ‘Energy Czar,’ is in a new position created by this administration. Her job is now to coordinate energy and environmental policy of all the other agencies. She is a former EPA administrator and served in that position from 1993 to 2001, which is the longest tenure in history. She has worked for former Vice President Albert Gore in the past and has been called a ‘Gore Protégé.’ This could be an issue for the coal industry if she exerts her wishes upon the other directors and environmental cabinet secretaries."
He pointed out that Jackson, the new head of the EPA, has a reputation in New Jersey as a consensus builder. However, she did encourage New Jersey to institute a moratorium on building coal power plants.
Of Steven Chu, the new energy secretary, Hopkins said: "He is an advocate of shifting away from fossil fuels. He is on record as saying in 2008, ‘my worst nightmare... [is] if the world continues to use coal in the way we’re using it today... that’s a pretty bad dream.’ He has no Washington experience and could be overwhelmed by the Washington culture."
He also addressed the contrast between Chu and Ken Salazar, the new secretary of the interior, concerning their attitudes toward the use of coal to generate energy.
"On January 22, Salazar said, ‘As we move forward into that energy future, it will be important for all of us to understand that our oil, gas, and coal resources are very much a part of the equation of the future,’" Hopkins said. "He is in favor of further expansion of clean coal technology."
The change in political leadership in Congress could also have a strong impact on the coal industry, he said.
"The most interesting recent development in Congress involves Congressman Harry Waxman of California wrestling the chairmanship of the House Energy and Oversight Committee away from former chairman John Dingall of Michigan," said Hopkins. "Waxman is a strong opponent of coal and uranium as fuel sources. He is a strong environmentalist and wants coal-fired power plants to capture and bury all of their ‘greenhouse gases.’ He filed a bill in 2008 that would require just that. He is the one person that should be watched closely by the industry."
What Lies Ahead
Now more than ever, U.S. power plants need to ensure that they are handling their facilities’ coal ash storage properly in order to protect human health and the environment. The EPA’s recent announcement sends a strong signal that in the near future the new administration will probably require utilities to implement much stricter procedures related to the management of coal ash.
—Angela Neville, JD, is POWER’s senior editor.
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