GasBuddy Blog

GasBuddy News Article

votes

Coal decline hits fuel's Western stronghold

Deseret News -- SHERIDAN, Wyo. — Hundreds of millions of tons of coal, packed into seams up to 60 feet thick, are still to be had beneath the rock-strewn hillsides speckled with snow that rise up along the remote Montana-Wyoming border.

Yet for Mike Cooley, the days of drilling explosives into the ground to blast the fuel from the earth are over, long before he ever expected. The 41-year-old thought his job as a "powderman" at the Decker strip mine would take him into retirement.

Now he's looking for new work, after he and 58 other miners were laid off from Decker in recent weeks to add to several hundred jobs reported lost in the past year from the nation's largest coal-producing region.

As a dispute over West Coast ports hobbles the industry's ability to reach booming markets in Asia, cheap nat

Read the Full Article

Submitted Jan 26, 2013 By: aservant

Back To News

Category: Daily News Article Discussions > Topics	Add to favorite topics

Author	Topic: Coal decline hits fuel's Western stronghold	Post a Reply Back to Topics

REPLIES (newest first)Ignore Short Messages

First

Next Last

52MPG Champion Author Dayton Posts:7,257 Points:1,740,730 Joined:Apr 2006	Message Posted: Jan 27, 2013 8:48:59 AM Ignore 52MPG Report Abuse It all comes down to Economics.
MadFueler All-Star Author Winston-Salem Posts:917 Points:171,535 Joined:Sep 2012	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 11:50:25 PM Ignore MadFueler Report Abuse Another case of legitimate markets being hampered by bottlenecks. Too bad coal can't be piped.
CdnLynx Champion Author Ontario Posts:1,020 Points:523,005 Joined:May 2008	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 11:39:18 PM Ignore CdnLynx Report Abuse Booming markets in Asia, will probably be drying up! China's gov't has officially admitted that they now have a serious air quality problem! The recent smog in Beijing and elsewhere in China, where the air was so thick with particulates, that they now, must admit it is killing their people! They are demanding cleaner air, suspect this will no longer be fueled by cheap dirty coal, but by natural gas!
gbs1 Champion Author Minnesota Posts:1,996 Points:741,625 Joined:Mar 2011	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:52:15 PM Ignore gbs1 Report Abuse They can thank Obama
nsdp Champion Author San Antonio Posts:1,117 Points:47,315 Joined:Jun 2012	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 4:55:39 PM Ignore nsdp Report Abuse Ralph Charcoal is made with wood and has no coal in it.
knutzAL Champion Author Alabama Posts:2,248 Points:372,680 Joined:Feb 2012	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 2:58:12 PM Ignore knutzAL Report Abuse KMA Washington. Bought and paid for, you are.
bwatchingu Champion Author Arkansas Posts:1,740 Points:600,645 Joined:Jan 2009	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 12:45:12 PM Ignore bwatchingu Report Abuse Politics
JamesCalvin Champion Author Lancaster Posts:3,181 Points:518,480 Joined:Nov 2011	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 12:40:56 PM Ignore JamesCalvin Report Abuse Why is the United States so behind the times on coal production?
RalphHightower Champion Author South Carolina Posts:3,299 Points:688,505 Joined:May 2011	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 12:40:20 PM Ignore RalphHightower Report Abuse I prefer to grill with coal instead of propane. Matter of fact, I'm a better cook using charcoal instead of gas.
Norm10 Champion Author British Columbia Posts:3,337 Points:162,700 Joined:Dec 2010	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 11:48:56 AM Ignore Norm10 Report Abuse Its called cheaper natural gas that is also better for the enviroment!
ktbaeohana Champion Author Las Vegas Posts:2,306 Points:422,000 Joined:Mar 2010	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 11:25:36 AM Ignore ktbaeohana Report Abuse watch and see.
EMoe57 Champion Author Jacksonville Posts:4,612 Points:1,015,065 Joined:Apr 2009	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 11:14:59 AM Ignore EMoe57 Report Abuse it may be painful, but you gotta change with the times.
PDQBlues Champion Author San Diego Posts:7,069 Points:1,447,350 Joined:Jan 2009	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 9:57:50 AM Ignore PDQBlues Report Abuse And the people are breathing cleaner air.
nsdp Champion Author San Antonio Posts:1,117 Points:47,315 Joined:Jun 2012	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 9:57:02 AM Ignore nsdp Report Abuse No $3.50 diesel has killed coal. That adds roughly $17.50/ton to the cost of mining and shipping Wyoming/Montana coal and the mines have all ready "high graded" the cheapest coal to mine. CPS San Antonio figures that the price of diesel would have to drop $2/gallon to make coal price competitive with natural gas as a fuel. That doesn't consider environmental costs. Coal is dead with sub $5 natural gas regardless of environmental regulations. Remember coal plants need 10,000 btus/kwh vs 6500-7200 btus per kwh for NG. Efficiency is the name of the game and coal can never catch up. [Edited by: nsdp at 1/26/2013 11:57:56 AM EST]
drillintheUSA All-Star Author Rochester Posts:878 Points:181,910 Joined:Apr 2008	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 9:20:02 AM Ignore drillintheUSA Report Abuse Here we see again, another example of where its clear that the Politicians control it all. They are not on our side. A 5+ year delay on things, the article states towards the end due to this BS: "But Ambre's plans to build and expand West Coast ports to load the fuel onto ships have become entangled in political opposition and bureaucratic red tape, forcing the company to push back its timeline to begin operating." That about sums it up. Same crap is going on in the Fracking Industry. Misinformation is all over the place. We've become the land of the fooled vs free. You can bet your paycheck that this current administration WANTS it this way. ~ DrillintheUSA ~
drillintheUSA All-Star Author Rochester Posts:878 Points:181,910 Joined:Apr 2008	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 9:19:22 AM Ignore drillintheUSA Report Abuse +1 enviroChemist:)
EnviroChemist All-Star Author Oklahoma Posts:719 Points:208,885 Joined:Oct 2011	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 8:03:45 AM Ignore EnviroChemist Report Abuse One promise Oboy made, and has fulfilled, kill the coal industry.
boldrph Champion Author Topeka Posts:18,371 Points:3,450,665 Joined:Oct 2002	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 8:01:33 AM Ignore boldrph Report Abuse nat gas rocks! the coal isn't going anywhere. who knows, maybe some day we'll be more responsible?
jiml1965 Champion Author Harrisburg Posts:3,030 Points:689,375 Joined:Jan 2011	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:50:01 AM Ignore jiml1965 Report Abuse it is a shame that politics are setting them up to fail
Wizrd03 Champion Author Illinois Posts:8,147 Points:1,631,360 Joined:Oct 2008	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:45:09 AM Ignore Wizrd03 Report Abuse "Driven by Asian demand, experts say, coal is projected to challenge oil as the world's top energy source within the next four years. The sole exception will be in the U.S." Thanks Obozo, for killing a source of cheap energy availlable to Americans and more American Jobs
craigsf38 Champion Author Rochester Posts:5,708 Points:1,509,280 Joined:Jun 2008	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:43:50 AM Ignore craigsf38 Report Abuse Interesting
Radar1992 Champion Author Florida Posts:1,320 Points:309,190 Joined:Dec 2011	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:43:20 AM Ignore Radar1992 Report Abuse Thanks to this administration for killing coal jobs....
must87searcher Champion Author Maryland Posts:8,977 Points:1,779,475 Joined:Apr 2008	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:40:50 AM Ignore must87searcher Report Abuse With changes there is also a cost. By changes to energy alternatives and other fossil fuels, the other fuels once used, like coal, is going to cost a number of people things. This is a bad time for unemployment.
radiorumor Champion Author Texas Posts:2,807 Points:752,885 Joined:Feb 2011	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:37:08 AM Ignore radiorumor Report Abuse yes
krobp46 Champion Author Milwaukee Posts:2,706 Points:540,120 Joined:Sep 2011	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:34:42 AM Ignore krobp46 Report Abuse Keep us posted
mnbeancounter Champion Author Minnesota Posts:4,732 Points:1,061,840 Joined:Oct 2009	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:33:44 AM Ignore mnbeancounter Report Abuse Too much big government intervention
beekeeper1 All-Star Author Indiana Posts:591 Points:532,220 Joined:Dec 2010	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:33:24 AM Ignore beekeeper1 Report Abuse Coal is cheap and there's plenty of it.
Robert44 Champion Author Columbus Posts:3,575 Points:1,219,065 Joined:Mar 2004	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:32:28 AM Ignore Robert44 Report Abuse Regime doing what they promise to cosl industry, destroy it!!!!!!
CSharpGuy Champion Author Colorado Springs Posts:9,467 Points:1,897,410 Joined:Jan 2008	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:31:35 AM Ignore CSharpGuy Report Abuse Coal was the cheapest energy source, until the Obumer set his sites on it.
buzzieNY Champion Author Buffalo Posts:2,887 Points:634,580 Joined:Jun 2011	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:30:59 AM Ignore buzzieNY Report Abuse Again, Too much government in our private lives.
Red7002011 Champion Author Mississippi Posts:3,327 Points:667,745 Joined:Jul 2011	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:30:13 AM Ignore Red7002011 Report Abuse Wow! 58 more out of job.
orphancarguyPE Champion Author PEI Posts:3,843 Points:734,015 Joined:Jan 2011	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:29:08 AM Ignore orphancarguyPE Report Abuse Clean coal; lovely oxymoron. Time for coal to join the whale oil industry and the buggy whip manufacturers association as historical relics from the past before we knew better.
bobdec Champion Author Miami Posts:8,959 Points:1,768,845 Joined:May 2008	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:28:40 AM Ignore bobdec Report Abuse Aother of the many reasons that Obama is killing this Country
Fhuang66 Champion Author Cleveland Posts:1,323 Points:911,680 Joined:Oct 2005	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:26:36 AM Ignore Fhuang66 Report Abuse We need to find another way to use coal.
ssect8 Champion Author Hartford Posts:7,989 Points:2,094,045 Joined:Jun 2006	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:26:10 AM Ignore ssect8 Report Abuse Too much government in our private lives.
INBwana Champion Author Indiana Posts:5,451 Points:695,010 Joined:Apr 2011	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:25:53 AM Ignore INBwana Report Abuse More job losses due to Government policies and intervention!!
turboz2012 All-Star Author Charleston Posts:677 Points:373,620 Joined:Feb 2012	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:25:45 AM Ignore turboz2012 Report Abuse Nothing new here. Obama promised this, at least he is keeping that promise.
BummerMan Champion Author Dallas Posts:1,286 Points:353,465 Joined:Apr 2011	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:25:42 AM Ignore BummerMan Report Abuse The EPA is driving up the cost of our energy and they don't know what they're doing.
fltdoc Champion Author Oklahoma Posts:8,874 Points:1,554,745 Joined:Oct 2008	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:25:36 AM Ignore fltdoc Report Abuse One of our richest sources of energy, vilified by Obama.
mrservonics Champion Author Boston Posts:2,724 Points:1,352,430 Joined:May 2005	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:23:58 AM Ignore mrservonics Report Abuse We need more coal dust!
savannahoaks Champion Author Rockford Posts:2,692 Points:634,260 Joined:Mar 2011	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:21:15 AM Ignore savannahoaks Report Abuse Another example of the EPA and bureaucrats killing jobs and industries in the US. The market is crying for coal and we can't supply because of lack of port capacity.
thomas41546 Champion Author Tennessee Posts:3,757 Points:2,256,715 Joined:Oct 2005	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:20:26 AM Ignore thomas41546 Report Abuse you want clean air, you have to sacrifice something.
JWHITE1937 Champion Author Massachusetts Posts:2,519 Points:996,030 Joined:Aug 2006	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:18:34 AM Ignore JWHITE1937 Report Abuse Who wants beautiful snow covered mountain tops?? Black is better?
mh44s Champion Author Madison Posts:4,384 Points:1,688,990 Joined:May 2006	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:18:26 AM Ignore mh44s Report Abuse Thanks to Obama.
johnnyg1200 Champion Author St. Louis Posts:4,151 Points:644,070 Joined:May 2011	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:18:22 AM Ignore johnnyg1200 Report Abuse This was promised to use over four years ago and we voted for it. We got what we asked for.
rippertoo Champion Author Tacoma Posts:5,750 Points:1,140,860 Joined:Jan 2010	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:18:17 AM Ignore rippertoo Report Abuse What is stoppiong this deal is the "PEOPLE" of Washington and Oregon don't want to trade miles of shoreline now used for recreation and parks for coal ports that will end up shipping a product to Asia that will end up being detrimental to our air quality here and also make global warming even worse than it is now. I feel sorry for those who may lose their jobs but we need to move forward, not backwards.
mustangdaver Champion Author Ontario Posts:2,586 Points:757,900 Joined:Aug 2005	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:16:51 AM Ignore mustangdaver Report Abuse sad
Point__man Champion Author Raleigh Posts:4,330 Points:876,720 Joined:Oct 2010	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:15:57 AM Ignore Point__man Report Abuse Unfortunate for miners in those areas, but it is an economic reality when markets shift Haven't there been more jobs created by Natural Gas exploration and extraction than those lost in the coal industry which was already in decline ? Hope all the coal mining employees can be placed in equivalent income producing jobs soon.
porotito Champion Author Houston Posts:2,150 Points:579,685 Joined:Dec 2010	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:15:27 AM Ignore porotito Report Abuse Go to the fracking industry...
Wally3023 Champion Author Pennsylvania Posts:2,025 Points:539,225 Joined:Sep 2011	Message Posted: Jan 26, 2013 7:15:06 AM Ignore Wally3023 Report Abuse Yup