Coal-fired power plants that have scrubbers continue to emit pollutants. These can include oxides of nitrogen that cause acid rain and that increase ground-level ozone and haze. Mercury and carbon dioxide are also emitted. A little dirty secret of the coal industry: Most coal-fired power plants have not included systems to remove most pollutants. So-called "clean coal" is a deceptive advertising slogan that should be recognized to be as wrong-headed as promoting "healthful cigarettes." The demise of coal is the result of years of deception. These years should have been devoted to earnest efforts to develop technologies for sequestering carbon dioxide.
11
Progress has a sad cost.
If an article like this can be researched and published, then our leaders can provide transitional relief!
When cars began to replace horse powered vehicles in the early 20th century, jobs were lost and entire industries failed. (Buggy whips, anyone?)
There should be a focus on retraining and helping the people caught up in this wrenching change, but with a cruel mindless REPUBLICAN congress focused on lobbyist money, forget it!
And many of these hapless coal miners voted for these politicians, in the concept of "free market and government interference!"
If an article like this can be researched and published, then our leaders can provide transitional relief!
When cars began to replace horse powered vehicles in the early 20th century, jobs were lost and entire industries failed. (Buggy whips, anyone?)
There should be a focus on retraining and helping the people caught up in this wrenching change, but with a cruel mindless REPUBLICAN congress focused on lobbyist money, forget it!
And many of these hapless coal miners voted for these politicians, in the concept of "free market and government interference!"
15
I'm sorry, but those windmills are very expensive to build and maintain, impossible to save when they catch fire, and created way more emissions during their manufacture than they will ever save. Plus the birds. The poor birds.
3
LOOKS like a lot pollution comming out of the smoke stack of Coal power plant in photo of rail cars. Power plants have scrubbers and only water vapour is emitted. Why is there no concern for bird's killed by windmills? Windmills are shut down when wind speeds are to fast. Windmills overspeed and burn or collapse in high winds.
3
Not all coal power plants h ve scrubbers and they aren't 100% effective. Of course the amount of CO2 per pound of fuel is higher than for natural gas. Besides water vapor, all combustion, clean or not emits CO2, definitely a pollutant.
If you are truly concerned about birdkills - then - contribute to the ASPCA's spay&neuter program for housecats - which are the number one killer of birds in this country.
14
If you want to see the evolution of wind power, ride the Sunset Limited to Palm Springs, site of the San Gorgonio Pass wind farm. Last time I was through, I counted at least 4 generations of wind turbines.
Bird kill is a function of blade speed, tower design, and site selection. We've gotten a lot smarter about all these.
Bird kill is a function of blade speed, tower design, and site selection. We've gotten a lot smarter about all these.
2
There are several problems with this article that should be pointed out so that readers are more fully informed. First, there is a typo about the size of the wind farm discussed: 200 acres is far too small; the number is more likely 200,000. It would be more responsible to also mention the number of wind turbines and the installed capacity. Also where is the wind farm to be built--"near Carbon County" is meaningless. Will it be built on federal land, state land, private land, some combination?
Also, it is essential to tell readers that Anschutz is a very well-known oil and gas company that has been a leader in more risky, frontier projects for decades. This adds a whole different dimension to the wind farm. There is a link here to the enormous project proposed some years ago by T. Boone Pickens, whereby wind farms through the high plains wind belt would power a significant part of the nation, allowing natural gas to be used as a transport fuel instead of for power generation.
The idea that policies existing today will result in "closing the remaining coal-fired plants" in the U.S. is nonsense. Too many of these plants are crucial for baseload power in a number of states; they can be replaced by natural gas over time but not by today's wind and solar technology.
Finally, the windy braggadocio by Mr. Goggin that Wyoming has enough wind power resources to power the entire U.S. should be smiled at with tolerance but not taken seriously.
Also, it is essential to tell readers that Anschutz is a very well-known oil and gas company that has been a leader in more risky, frontier projects for decades. This adds a whole different dimension to the wind farm. There is a link here to the enormous project proposed some years ago by T. Boone Pickens, whereby wind farms through the high plains wind belt would power a significant part of the nation, allowing natural gas to be used as a transport fuel instead of for power generation.
The idea that policies existing today will result in "closing the remaining coal-fired plants" in the U.S. is nonsense. Too many of these plants are crucial for baseload power in a number of states; they can be replaced by natural gas over time but not by today's wind and solar technology.
Finally, the windy braggadocio by Mr. Goggin that Wyoming has enough wind power resources to power the entire U.S. should be smiled at with tolerance but not taken seriously.
5
The handwriting has been on the wall for a very long time, and yet the coal industry and its thousands of employees, instead of focusing on transition and retraining, have doubled down on scraping every last dollar out of this lost cause. Who is responsible if you shun the lifeboats when you know without a doubt that the ship is going down. And unfortunately, after a decade of Republican Congressional deadlock, there is no half-way adequate safety net for those who inevitably will suffer the greatest displacement and deprivation.
17
In Obama's zeal to kill coal, he ignored the people directly affected by his actions.
1
What is President Obama to do when the Republican Congress remains deadlocked and largely indifferent to the needs of Americans who fall somewhere outside the filthy rich top 1%?
26
Responsible people, politicians or not, are responsible for reduction of coal mining and combustion due to the higher percentage of pollutants emitted, CO2 (prominent greenhouse gas), metals, and soot. The people affected by continued reliance on coal burning is all of us.
10
"Although wind power has traditionally been more expensive than fossil fuels ..." Depends on what you mean by "traditionally," Ms. Davenport. A much smaller, ten-year-old wind farm in the state due north of Wyoming, where I live, produces power at half the cost of the coal-fired plants at the largest coal generating operation in the state. This simple fact is reflected in the main utility's annual report, from a corporation that is as anti-renewables as they come.
9
Wyoming, and all states where dry farming is not profitable, should invest in land reclamation and bring back the buffalo herds. The demand for vacation experiences in a natural environment could bring back some jobs. Zoos are going out of style. Wyoming could become the American destination vacation. The state needs to think about what future demands will bring. Wyoming is a beautiful state and it could capitalize on its above ground resources for its future.
12
Comments suggesting government should own wind farm production and mean-spirited comments about the man who does, ignore the fact that entrepreneurs take the risks and build on the ideas. Society benefits from far-sighted people like Phil Anschutz investing to make a profit. How many companies have politicians built? They do not know how and they lack initiative. They take our money in taxes but do inefficient things with it. Thank private enterprise and stop grousing!
6
Oh yeah... Like the Tennessee Valley Authority.
12
Yes, coal miners are losing their jobs through no fault of their own. That is exactly why we need a robust government-administered social safety net to assist workers who need to transition from one occupation to another as our economy changes.
Instead we denigrate that social safety net as "free stuff" for "lazy slackers." I'm just guessing, but I would be willing to bet that Kullin Orcutt works at least as hard - probably harder - than Philip F. Anschutz. Yet Mr Orcutt is struggling financially while Mr. Anschutz is a billionaire who is getting even richer.
Reagan sold a lot of people a bill of goods when he convinced them tax cuts for the rich would trickle down; instead most of those tax cuts are locked away in tax-free off-shore bank accounts owned by billionaires like Mr.Anschutz.
We need to raise taxes, fund infrastructure projects and jobs programs, hire cops, firemen, teachers, librarians, trash collectors and other government workers. We need to pay these people a living wage, and we need job training and occupational placement programs for people who lose their jobs through no fault of their own.
Instead we denigrate that social safety net as "free stuff" for "lazy slackers." I'm just guessing, but I would be willing to bet that Kullin Orcutt works at least as hard - probably harder - than Philip F. Anschutz. Yet Mr Orcutt is struggling financially while Mr. Anschutz is a billionaire who is getting even richer.
Reagan sold a lot of people a bill of goods when he convinced them tax cuts for the rich would trickle down; instead most of those tax cuts are locked away in tax-free off-shore bank accounts owned by billionaires like Mr.Anschutz.
We need to raise taxes, fund infrastructure projects and jobs programs, hire cops, firemen, teachers, librarians, trash collectors and other government workers. We need to pay these people a living wage, and we need job training and occupational placement programs for people who lose their jobs through no fault of their own.
50
Big yes to creating new re-training and new occupation education along with interim support. That is as big of an infrastructure challenge as renewing our utility and transportation inrrastructure.
8
Raising taxes hurts the middle class and poor most of all; the social safety can only bear so much. Even if only raising taxes on the top 20%-25% of earners won't be enough to balance the scale.
Let capitalism work as it should; by lowering the corporate tax rate to stop inversions, companies will bring jobs back home and invest in human capital that pays taxes to fund the necessary infrastructure projects. (Damn, coming across as a supporter of Chump...)
'Helicopter money' is neither a living wage nor a 'clean' alternative to the flawed program that exists.
Let capitalism work as it should; by lowering the corporate tax rate to stop inversions, companies will bring jobs back home and invest in human capital that pays taxes to fund the necessary infrastructure projects. (Damn, coming across as a supporter of Chump...)
'Helicopter money' is neither a living wage nor a 'clean' alternative to the flawed program that exists.
1
"Capitalism" has never worked anywhere in the world without significant support from whatever government it is attached to, especially in the US where it relies heavily on subsidies, lobbyists to influence legislation to benefit its needs, and a system heavily weighted in its favor in every regard - look no further than the debacle trade policies brought to the working class to the huge advantage of the 1%. Infrastructure repair alone would be enough to employ the vast majority of workers displaced by the transition to cleaner energy, it would generate vast amounts of income taxes and increased revenue into the marketplace and would be a win-win for everyone, including the capitalists. Look at the incredible benefits the GI Bill after WWII returned for each dollar spent. Equalizing social security tax contributions, removing tax loopholes that allow millionaires to pay fewer tax dollars than I do, and being honest about the fact that government contracts feed capitalist profits to a huge extent right now and with little return historically (think the war in Iraq and contractors) will go a long way to fixing things. All we're saying is make that money work for the people who pay for it and who need it, the working people, not the 1% who only harp about how WE'RE the ones who want something for nothing. For shame!
4
It is good to see the end of coal, and for that matter, eventually the end of all fossil fuel extraction. But wind and solar are to diffuse and erratic to be an adequate replacement. Only nuclear, fission now and - maybe - fusion later, can provide an adequate 24/7 replacement. Nuclear power, despite the irrational fear and media hype, has had a great safety record when one compares it to other large scale means of producing electricity. And the new designs are better yet.
14
The latest studies by reliable sources agree that we can make a quick, affordable transition to reliable renewable energy. The conventional wisdom, oft repeated, that renewables are not reliable or that we need better battery technology has been proven incorrect over and over in the last five years. The New York Times needs to accurately report this science!
http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2016/012516-rapid-affordable-energy-...
January 25, 2016
"The United States could slash greenhouse gas emissions from power production by up to 78 percent below 1990 levels within 15 years while meeting increased demand, according to a new study by NOAA and University of Colorado Boulder researchers"
National Renewable Energy Lab- Western Wind and Solar Integration Study
http://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy13osti/55588.pdf
"The study found no technical barriers to accommodating the integration of 35% wind and solar energy on a subregional basis if adequate transmission
was available and certain operational changes could be made."
http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2016/012516-rapid-affordable-energy-...
January 25, 2016
"The United States could slash greenhouse gas emissions from power production by up to 78 percent below 1990 levels within 15 years while meeting increased demand, according to a new study by NOAA and University of Colorado Boulder researchers"
National Renewable Energy Lab- Western Wind and Solar Integration Study
http://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy13osti/55588.pdf
"The study found no technical barriers to accommodating the integration of 35% wind and solar energy on a subregional basis if adequate transmission
was available and certain operational changes could be made."
5
I grew up in Carbon County, Utah. The story there is similar.
My dad helped build one of several big coal fired power plants. They're all closed now. My wife's dad was a coal miner all his life. The mines he worked in are closed. I worked for the natural gas company. A bigger corporation bought them. I was thrown out in a staff reduction move before that happened.
Renewable energy is both inevitable and necessary. We can't argue against that. But we can argue against the way it's being done. I know about Phillip Anschutz. He's also big supplier of natural gas. As far as I'm concerned, he hides his horns under that cowboy hat and a cloven hoof in his boots.
The big difference in the way things are now and the way they used to be is that we used to share in the wealth and we don't now. My dad and my wife's dad were protected by unions. When I first went to work for the natural gas company, they valued employees. People worked there for the benefits. We thought there was job security. There was a union vote while I was there ... it lost, but I voted for them.
We're moving renewable energy, but the 1% - people like Anschutz - are sucking all the wealth out of it. They're becoming the new royalty. And we're the serfs.
It's interesting that a Venezuelan company is developing the wind power. Venezuela currently has the largest proven oil reserves in the world but their people are starving to death due to food shortages. I guess this company has extra cash they don't need.
My dad helped build one of several big coal fired power plants. They're all closed now. My wife's dad was a coal miner all his life. The mines he worked in are closed. I worked for the natural gas company. A bigger corporation bought them. I was thrown out in a staff reduction move before that happened.
Renewable energy is both inevitable and necessary. We can't argue against that. But we can argue against the way it's being done. I know about Phillip Anschutz. He's also big supplier of natural gas. As far as I'm concerned, he hides his horns under that cowboy hat and a cloven hoof in his boots.
The big difference in the way things are now and the way they used to be is that we used to share in the wealth and we don't now. My dad and my wife's dad were protected by unions. When I first went to work for the natural gas company, they valued employees. People worked there for the benefits. We thought there was job security. There was a union vote while I was there ... it lost, but I voted for them.
We're moving renewable energy, but the 1% - people like Anschutz - are sucking all the wealth out of it. They're becoming the new royalty. And we're the serfs.
It's interesting that a Venezuelan company is developing the wind power. Venezuela currently has the largest proven oil reserves in the world but their people are starving to death due to food shortages. I guess this company has extra cash they don't need.
34
The most common reason for Venezuelans to emmigrate and start companies overseas is not because they have "extra cash", it´s actually the opposite.
Because of rampant corruption, growing crime rates (I actually know more than 5 farm owners that have been kidnapped and killed in the last 3 years), the highest inflation rate in the world (according the IMF, this year we´re aiming upwards 700%), plus a government that has sistematically attacked private enterprise and applies the constitution at its convenience, it´s extremely hard to progress as a businessmen, if you want to stay honest and stay safe.
So no, we don´t have "extra cash." We´re using our live savings and putting in 70-hour weeks of hard work on this proyect.
And if you´re asking yourself why I speak like I know this project personally....well, I do because Im Juan´s 23-year old daughter.
So now, I´d like to ask you to read more about foreign countries and the hardships people face there, before you judge them. And also, have a little more faith in humanity. There´s people out there struggling too, just like you. Maybe if ya´ll focused in finding common ground instead of highlighting what makes you different, your country wouldn´t be in this situation in the first place.
Because of rampant corruption, growing crime rates (I actually know more than 5 farm owners that have been kidnapped and killed in the last 3 years), the highest inflation rate in the world (according the IMF, this year we´re aiming upwards 700%), plus a government that has sistematically attacked private enterprise and applies the constitution at its convenience, it´s extremely hard to progress as a businessmen, if you want to stay honest and stay safe.
So no, we don´t have "extra cash." We´re using our live savings and putting in 70-hour weeks of hard work on this proyect.
And if you´re asking yourself why I speak like I know this project personally....well, I do because Im Juan´s 23-year old daughter.
So now, I´d like to ask you to read more about foreign countries and the hardships people face there, before you judge them. And also, have a little more faith in humanity. There´s people out there struggling too, just like you. Maybe if ya´ll focused in finding common ground instead of highlighting what makes you different, your country wouldn´t be in this situation in the first place.
11
As I recall the Venezuelan government, which owns all of those oil reserves, was and is a very socialized form of government which used oil revenues to subsidize the living standards of its citizens. Leaving the related corruption issues out of the equation, the government did little or nothing to reinvest in its people related infrastructure. Because of the drop in oil prices, the current result is food riots and a government which is emulating the Cuban government before some of the Cuban government changes.
The bottom line is we see two forms of extremes taking place; the end result is the people get screwed. People, you need to be involved in the political process at all levels. No government process over the long term will benefit its citizens unless the citizens participate in the process.
The bottom line is we see two forms of extremes taking place; the end result is the people get screwed. People, you need to be involved in the political process at all levels. No government process over the long term will benefit its citizens unless the citizens participate in the process.
4
We could also help power the country with all the photons falling on the desert southwest. The only thing stopping us is vested interests in the carbon industry. All new construction should be mandated for extreme energy efficiency which would give our construction economy a huge boost. The path is clear, we just have to elect the right leaders.
12
Don't you mean the left leaders?
7
And not leaders on the political "right".
2
This is where the bar is set:
"...Wind power in Texas consists of many wind farms with a total installed nameplate capacity of 17,713 MW[1] from over 40 different projects. Texas produces the most wind power of any U.S. state.[2] Wind power accounted for 11.7% of the electricity generated in Texas during 2015.[3]
The wind resource in many parts of Texas is very large. Farmers may lease their land to wind developers, creating a new revenue stream for the farm. The wind power industry is also creating thousands of jobs for local communities and for the state. Texas is seen as a profit-driven leader of renewable energy commercialization in the United States. The wind boom in Texas was assisted by expansion of the state’s Renewable Portfolio Standard, use of designated Competitive Renewable Energy Zones, expedited transmission construction, and the necessary Public Utility Commission rule-making.[4]... (wiki)
See also:
"...
List of wind farms in the United States
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_wind_farms_in_the_United_States
This page was last modified on 19 June 2016, at 02:46.
..."
This page was last modified on 29 May 2016, at 04:20.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wind_power_in_Texas#Statistics
"...Wind power in Texas consists of many wind farms with a total installed nameplate capacity of 17,713 MW[1] from over 40 different projects. Texas produces the most wind power of any U.S. state.[2] Wind power accounted for 11.7% of the electricity generated in Texas during 2015.[3]
The wind resource in many parts of Texas is very large. Farmers may lease their land to wind developers, creating a new revenue stream for the farm. The wind power industry is also creating thousands of jobs for local communities and for the state. Texas is seen as a profit-driven leader of renewable energy commercialization in the United States. The wind boom in Texas was assisted by expansion of the state’s Renewable Portfolio Standard, use of designated Competitive Renewable Energy Zones, expedited transmission construction, and the necessary Public Utility Commission rule-making.[4]... (wiki)
See also:
"...
List of wind farms in the United States
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_wind_farms_in_the_United_States
This page was last modified on 19 June 2016, at 02:46.
..."
This page was last modified on 29 May 2016, at 04:20.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wind_power_in_Texas#Statistics
5
Many commenters have said it, but it can't be said enough: Only government can ease the pain of transition. Many of the New Deal ideas are directly appropriate to our jobs situation. Not only coal mining, but manufacturing, steel, oil (soon), and thousands of other jobs are in jeopardy in our fast changing world. The WPA, the CCC, etc. type organizations could be upgrading our crumbling infrastructure into one that is state-of-the-art and world leading. Our schools could become brilliant learning centers again. And the jobs to do this could be both well-paying and highly educational... and impossible to export! Come on America, we know how to do this.
12
"....he moved to Shelby, Mont., for a job at a privately run prison."
What a joke.
What a joke.
6
I didn't see a mention about Wyoming's tax on wind. The state legislature is considering upping the wind tax at the power production level. Wind companies are of course balking and saying that it will not be economical for them to operate in Wyoming. Wyoming's wind tax would be the highest in the nation.
2
On that wind tax. So the state owns the wind now? Please explain.
3
How typical of GOTP "leadership," as in GOTP Governor, Matt Mead, who could and should have seen this handwriting on the wall years ago, yet, as we would expect, claims he "doesn't believe in man made climate change," opposes the "climate change agenda of President Obama," and hasn't done a thing to put Wyoming into the vanguard in clean energy production. "la, la, la, la, I can't hear you" is the ideological GOTP mantra when the crushing scientific evidence is literally frying the planet - and the citizens of these states are struggling because of that willfull blindness. Mead should have been listening, one would think, to the GOTP billionaire plutocrat who stands to profit handsomely from this clean energy investment . Perhaps Mead should have insisted that Wyoming's universities and community colleges step up to help those miners whose lives have been fractured by the inevitable collapse in filthy coal mining, by providing new infrastructure and clean energy training. He still could, albeit very late in the game.
13
The sad truth is that coal miners have a very long history of being treated as less than equal workers in the US and that has created a legacy not much different from that of sharecroppers in the South. Retraining certainly but relocation means breaking up families and communities that have existed for many, many decades. Where would they go? What would they do when even a college graduate struggles to find employment in a downsized world. It is not there isnt plenty of work to be done, but the government--local, state and federal-- are going to have to create jobs unless they want these coal regions to continue to slide into further decline. There is already terrible drug use and early disability for workers who have been left behind.
8
Wind and solar don't need water to produce electricity and don't produce waste.
Birds don't fly into wind turbines and solar panels.
Birds don't fly into wind turbines and solar panels.
1
Finally! The end of coal in the United States? The rise of serious quantities of competitively priced renewables? Let us hope. This may be Obama's most lasting legacy.
The great irony is that it's Anschutz that seems to be leading the way in Wyoming.
The great irony is that it's Anschutz that seems to be leading the way in Wyoming.
12
In the America of legend, the Mr. Smith Goes to Washington country, our prescient leaders, looking to the future and concerned about the fates of citizens working in dirty energy fields, would have been making plans for new industries to produce clean energy. (Like our dams, these industries might even be owned and operated by the government.)
Instead Washington is controlled by anti-evolution climate change deniers blindly devoted to those like the oil, gas and coal industry titans who brought them to --and keep them in--power.
Meanwhile, the poor miners who only want to be able to live decent lives and support their families, are thrown out of work with no place to go.
They are joining the growing stream of our citizens caught in the American Nightmare of chronic unemployment and its terrible effects on human beings living in a country with few safety nets.
Instead Washington is controlled by anti-evolution climate change deniers blindly devoted to those like the oil, gas and coal industry titans who brought them to --and keep them in--power.
Meanwhile, the poor miners who only want to be able to live decent lives and support their families, are thrown out of work with no place to go.
They are joining the growing stream of our citizens caught in the American Nightmare of chronic unemployment and its terrible effects on human beings living in a country with few safety nets.
10
The transition to clean energy is an example of "creative destruction" that characterizes the capitalist system. The transition is underway for many good reasons but that is little consolation for coal miners. Some public support for retraining and relocation is in order, but it's up to each individual worker to adapt to our rapidly changing economy.
12
Building a wind farm on 200 acres. Should be able to fit almost 10 wind turbines not 1000. Should be at least 200,000 acres maybe more. Anybody else up there this morning?
5
If Clinton had been smart, a big "if" given that she is not as "brilliant" as claimed by her supporters (most Grandmothers I know can type an email on a PC) rather than telling coal miners they would be pout of jobs, she could have proposed that renewable energy companies and manufacturers be given incentives to locate in coal country and give the workers a future, in a clean, safe industry run by credible companies, rather than criminal ones. It took be all of 10 seconds to think of that after I read her remarks that badly backfired on her. Can't discern any creativity in that campaign, but many threats of "strong" and "war". I'd rather see a home grown industry like that flourish, rather than munitions and missiles as we have now.
13
No reasonable incentives would justify the costs and difficulty of putting a high-tech manufacturing complex in the middle of Wyoming. Such a factory would not have easy access to major transportation routes (which mostly go over water), and it would not have the high-skills workers to build and operate the facility. Capitalism promises overall gains, not that those gains will go where you want them to.
It is worth remembering that "For every complex problem there is an answer that is clear, simple, and wrong."
It is worth remembering that "For every complex problem there is an answer that is clear, simple, and wrong."
4
What Hillary supports probably isn't a matter of smarts; it's a matter of what industry pays her more in contributions, speaking fees. She's resisted reigning in the fracking industry, despite ever increasing awareness of its risks to the environment and all living organisms and against public opinion.
The data are probably available to compare the overall contributions of the fossil fuel + Wall Street + the war industry vs contributions from renewable energy + social services and public health groups.
Sorry to be so cynical, but since Wyoming is Cheney's home, just wondering how he can capture the wind industry.
The data are probably available to compare the overall contributions of the fossil fuel + Wall Street + the war industry vs contributions from renewable energy + social services and public health groups.
Sorry to be so cynical, but since Wyoming is Cheney's home, just wondering how he can capture the wind industry.
1
Deflection and overly simplistic.
3
Where do we think the lung-blighting pollution in China and India - and here in the United States - comes from? Coal-fired power plants, that's where. Wyoming is a big state with few people. Wind power is perfect - abundant, and 100% clean. The irony of the story is that a conservative billionaire, a Republican donor, is investing heavily in the energy of the future. Clearly, he sees the carbon-less future of Carbon County.
42
Some years ago my wife and I visited a reconstruction of Louisbourg in Quebec. I was a reconstruction of a French colonial town destroyed by the British army and time. We were told that the reconstruction, to plans found in French archives, had been done by layed-off miners who were retrained to the various trades needed for the work.
Needless to say, this was government money, but the result was an important tourist attraction and a host of skilled tradesmen who found employment in house building and repair. The CCC in this country, years ago, did the same thing and there is much to build and rebuild here.
Needless to say, this was government money, but the result was an important tourist attraction and a host of skilled tradesmen who found employment in house building and repair. The CCC in this country, years ago, did the same thing and there is much to build and rebuild here.
32
I believe Louisburg is in Nova Scotia on northern Cape Breton Island; near the Miners Museum.
1
Wyoming, "Greatest Wind on Earth" hahaha. this article fails to point out that this economy of wind is not new at all in Wyoming. Turbines have been up within sight of I-80 East of Rawlins for at least two decades. how to quote a trucker, hauling the pieces of the Turbine, back in 2000 these gigantic turbines cost a million to produce and pay for themselves in six months. that is definitely lucrative. Now maybe the governor of Wyoming and West Virginia can get together and figure out their futures, "Wyoming, Beyond Coal"
3
The size of the project disturbance is hard to locate, but the Overland Ranch where the project is located- is 320,000 acres. This is from the company website.
2
The article mentions that the profits from the Wyoming wind industry were being taken out of state. It's just too darn bad the leadership in Wyoming didn't foresee this change and invest in wind energy. Instead, they've been fighting it all the way. Now they are going to pay the price. Maybe the great folks in Wyoming need new leadership.
31
One point sorely missing in this article, and in the comments so far. As we must move to alternative methods for energy development, the entire economic model must be changed. Does no-one notice who the two main players are here...a billionaire and foreign investment. These wind farms need to be collectives, where the local communities (in this instance, WY is the local community) own the wind farms, have a dominant say in the economic functioning - where the profits go and for what - and direct the ongoing growth and development. This is the proven model that Denmark and Germany have used - privatization is not the answer, with that model we will end up with the some dominating few controlling the new industries. The state, county and local governments and especially the people of WY should have control of this new energy plan and direction, not some corporate for-profit only outsider.
54
@Aaron,
I'll take private enterprise over politicians any day!
I'll take private enterprise over politicians any day!
1
We can't have it both ways. Wind power is not only good for our country, it is good for the world.
That said, nobody should be making ridiculous profits. And we need a safety net for displaced workers.
That said, nobody should be making ridiculous profits. And we need a safety net for displaced workers.
7
Good news. Nothing like Republican-leaning billionaires investing in alternative energy to convert the party from climate-change denialism. Watch to see how fast western state Republican congressmen climb onboard the alternative energy train.
5
Wyoming has some of the best natural beauty and environment for sightseeing and outdoor recreation of any state. Most of Yellowstone, the Grand Tetons and Beartooth range are in Wy. The Wind River Range offers some of the best camping and backpacking. Many areas of WY have great hunting and fishing. In the northeast, Devil's Monument and the western part of the Black Hills are wonderful places to visit. The Medicine Bow Mountains are underappreciated. And there is tremendous natural beauty just outside Cheyenne. Most of the state is cowboy country with all the mystique that brings. It has tremendous grasslands for raising healthy beef, bison and sheep. In addition to hay for the animals, it has a great future in growing sugar (beets), barley and wheat.
Wyoming could create its own version of the Civilian Conservation Corp, create thousands of jobs and improve the infrastructure of campgrounds, trails, foot bridges, lean-to and other shelters, etc.
Industries, like manufacturing in other states or fosil fuel extraction in WY, will run in cycles. Rather than fighting the decline of an industry, WY could devote its energy and investments into further developing touring and agriculture.
Wyoming could create its own version of the Civilian Conservation Corp, create thousands of jobs and improve the infrastructure of campgrounds, trails, foot bridges, lean-to and other shelters, etc.
Industries, like manufacturing in other states or fosil fuel extraction in WY, will run in cycles. Rather than fighting the decline of an industry, WY could devote its energy and investments into further developing touring and agriculture.
28
Wyoming's second biggest income after oil/gas/coal comes from tourism. WY has a 'rainy day fund' from oil/gas of over $7 billion which they never touch, for only 1/2 million people. WY itself could be re-training out of work coal workers.
Instead of relying of fossil fuels, WY could be known as the Serengeti of America and training people in tourism, and wildlife professions.
Instead of relying of fossil fuels, WY could be known as the Serengeti of America and training people in tourism, and wildlife professions.
5
“There’s enough wind in Wyoming to power the entire country,” said Michael Goggin, the senior director of research at the American Wind Energy Association.
Complete lie. Where are the prosecutors who are after Exxon?
Complete lie. Where are the prosecutors who are after Exxon?
6
You are correct that WY cannot supply the country, but I suspect a misquote or a misinterpreted quote. There is little doubt that AWEA knows the numbers regarding wind energy potential.
4
We need a new WPA. How many of these people could be put to work rebuilding our country's decrepit infrastructure? We have a critical need for that work, and a workforce in critical need of jobs. This is not rocket science. If only we had a functioning government...
43
What is not realized here by the so called pun dits is renewable energy will continue to warm the globe while aiding in zero population growth of [a] humans [b] animals and [c] plants all of which require carbon dioxide and water vapor initially to be converted to life while using minerals. Paul Ehrlich should be laughing at what is happening. Wind electricity [being given up in Europe as non-profitable], solar electricity, etc while running air conditioners will still warm the air - you can see it when standing next to air conditioner condenser run by solar panel power in my neighbor's yard. Read 21st century Global anthropogenic warming convective model .
It's not the heat that we generate that's important (it's a tiny fraction of what the sun continuously delivers to us); it's the extra carbon dioxide that we generate that reflects heat back at the surface instead of letting it escape into space. And the carbon dioxide from respiration is basically balanced by carbon dioxide uptake by plants.
4
As deeply as I sympathize with the families in Wyoming, W. Virginia and elsewhere who are losing their livelihoods because we are finally, finally, finally waking up to the inherently toxic nature of the coal and fossil fuel industries, let's face it -- this day has been coming for decades. (And thank heavens it's finally here.) Nobody wants to see communities wiped out because we're weaning ourselves from unsustainable, irresponsible energy sources. But why aren't the coal and petroleum companies, which have become obscenely wealthy on the backs of these families, doing more to transition their employees to this new (and frankly quite welcome) energy-production landscape? America should be leading the world in the creation and sale of smart, clean, sustainable solar, wind, tidal, and geothermal energy. Why aren't we?
68
One word-Reagan.
7
The answer is in government tax credits BC. If enough are provided big business will take the opportunity to invest in what you have listed
1
Oklahoma could be the same. Lots of sun, lots of wind.
The state of Oklahoma is a world of hurt right now because it has put all it's eggs in the oil basket - which is empty. The peak oil has come with a whimper not a bang.
That coal needs to stay in the ground forever - and petroleum is too valuable as chemical/polymer feedstock to be burn it.
My house runs on wind right no - yours probably can too.
https://www.psoklahoma.com/account/bills/manage/WindChoice/Residential.aspx
The state of Oklahoma is a world of hurt right now because it has put all it's eggs in the oil basket - which is empty. The peak oil has come with a whimper not a bang.
That coal needs to stay in the ground forever - and petroleum is too valuable as chemical/polymer feedstock to be burn it.
My house runs on wind right no - yours probably can too.
https://www.psoklahoma.com/account/bills/manage/WindChoice/Residential.aspx
8
@Ken Gallaher,
We haven't reached "PEAK OIL"! What we have right now is a glut of oil. That is why oil is close to $50 per gallon instead of close to $150 per gallon!
We haven't reached "PEAK OIL"! What we have right now is a glut of oil. That is why oil is close to $50 per gallon instead of close to $150 per gallon!
1
We have the wind, yes, but isn't a lot of the power going to be lost on the way to Las Vegas and California? Also I wish we had been proactive in a state economic development program to take advantage of the new technologies coming online so the life disruption of the displaced workers wouldn't be so severe! Seems like we would have a huge advantage using some of the clean energy here...
6
First no amount of wind energy will produce jobs like mining coal, and it is not just a skills gap. Nextm wind is heavily subsidized and these devices will not last as long as say, a coal powered plant. Cheap natural gas is replacing coal much more than any alternative energy source. Only the truth will set you free, these people must adapt and that might mean moving.
4
When you are employed in an extractive industry one can not have expectations of perpetual employment by that industry. Additionally humanity has come to realize that the continued use of fossil fuels is causing climate change which left unabated would lead to extinction of much of the life on this planet to include humanity. We have moved away from using CFCs in refrigerate, lead in paint and gasoline and asbestos in most insulation and brake linings when it was learned they caused harm. People lost jobs. As a people our government can and should provide assistance in transition to another form of livelihood. However, delaying action on stopping the use of environmentally harmful products in the name of preserving jobs should never be an option.
12
I'll bite: What is the service life of a coal fired power plant?
1
People who lament the lost jobs connected to coal mining should seriously consider the loss of jobs for charcoal makers and whalers who fished for whale oil. Coal mining put those hard-working folks out of business! I think capitalists call it creative destruction.
63
Let's not forget the guys who used to deliver blocks of ice to homes out of horse-drawn wagons back in the 19th century. The development of home refrigeration starting in the 1910s and 20s put all these guys out of a job. I'm sure politicians felt their pain while quietly buying stock in GE and Guardian (soon to be called Frigidaire) at the same time.
10
Wind farm is actually on 2000 acres - not 200
5
Great, the Superintendent of schools, yes, the head of the educational enterprise in Wyoming, appears to support pollution. Oh, about all that terrible regulation, she might take a trip to China and take a deep breath in that unregulated wonderland of smog.
52
"n Wyoming.... a state of 584,000 people, that change is happening at hyperspeed" 584,000 people? Cheaper and easier to close the state and relocate all of the people to South Dakota.
4
And some, I assume, are good people.
1
In the last half of the 20th century, the coal industry and the electric companies resisted any effort to invest heavily in any research to find a "clean" way to use coal. The congressional representatives (especially conservatives) did their best to stop or minimize any government investment in research to find ways to "clean" coal. Any research effort was half hearted and shortchanged. And of course the power companies wanted to build power plants as cheap as possible without having to invest large sums of money in the technology that would be needed to use coal.
Now the coal industry is reaping what shortsighted mentality has sown. And working families have to pay the price.
Now the coal industry is reaping what shortsighted mentality has sown. And working families have to pay the price.
26
In any case "clean coal" is a scam.
4
And an oxymoron.
5
At the turn of the 20th century (early 1900's), the number 1 industry in Connecticut was whaling. They adapted and survived and thrived as that industry withered. Wyoming and coal miners need to face the future and they will survive and thrive as well!
24
I am pretty sure you meant the turn of the 19th century, early 1800's. Connecticut was a heavy industry giant in 1900.
1
Actually, weaponry was Connecticut's major industry. Remington in Bridgeport, Winchester in New Haven and Colt in Hartford.
3
We have the productive capacity to feed, clothe and house every human being on the planet. We have the smarts and technology to rapidly shift from fossil fuels to clean, renewable energy. And it can all be done with less backbreaking labor than every before. In other words, more abundance and less work; more productivity and many fewer jobs.
Now we have to reimagine our political economy. Any politicians seem ready to tackle that job?
Now we have to reimagine our political economy. Any politicians seem ready to tackle that job?
16
We're saddled with a Senate in which fully 65% of the senators have never seen what a working congress looks like or how to start cooperating. They were elected by pinhead voters to "shake up Washington" or defund ACA or some other damn-fool bumper-sticker mentality where conservative ideology dictates that any compromise away from their ideals is a step below being a pedophile.
16
How can you call it a "working Congress" when they only work 3 days a week??? LOL
2
Being economically displaced is and will be a fact of life. It is how we help the displaced that matters. If you think things are getting bad for the working poor, just wait until driverless cars take over all driving jobs (trucks, taxi/Uber/lyft, bus etc). The job outlook will get a lot worse!
18
We continue to offer no serious plan to help retrain and relocate displaced workers. New ideas can rise only from discussions held to find solutions. We continue to have a laissez faire attitude toward job displacement. The winners take all.
28
Oh well, this is progress as long as it does not cost the U.S. taxpayer by subsidies etc. And oh, who cares about murdering several hundred if not thousands of birds each year. Bats don't count. Anyway, I was astonished by the part of the article saying up to 10,000 jobs could be affected. But just look at Appalachia: the democrat mantra is put everyone on welfare.
2
Because burning coal would be SO MUCH better for all those birds? For all life beyond birds? Think about what you're advocating.
11
Give me a break. That worn out meme has whiskers on it.
7
Bats on the short-grass prairie of Wyoming? I don't think so. Birds, however, might be a different problem.
1
The Wyoming Chamber of Commerce advertises the state as, "Wonderful Wyoming," as it desrves. When I was a kid there, my dad used to call it "Winderful Wyoming."
6
Some miners are born into the profession, generations worth. Many others follow the booms from state to state in hopes of good wages. Wyoming has been boom and bust, boom and bust, for a long time. I naively wonder why we take the busts so hard. We're born into it. Generations worth.
20
There isn't a wind farm anywhere in the world which makes a profit from selling electricity. This one will be no different. It's all a scam.
1
@sav
Providence
Actually not true. The economics are somewhat better than nuclear.
Providence
Actually not true. The economics are somewhat better than nuclear.
14
Once the turbines are up, the energy is free. How does that not start paying for itself?
17
With or without subsidies? A new nuclear plant or say a good one from the past?
1
I think the correct reply to Jillian Balow and the people of Wyoming is: Give us all a chance. This day has been coming for decades and way too many people kept their collective head in the sand.
Transitions are difficult no doubt for individuals but finally the terrible environmental damage to Wyoming and the general environment is nearly over. King coal is dead. Long live a sustainable new king.
Transitions are difficult no doubt for individuals but finally the terrible environmental damage to Wyoming and the general environment is nearly over. King coal is dead. Long live a sustainable new king.
71
Wind power, solar power and natural gas have doomed coal. But, not to worry, Trump said if elected he will disband the EPA and put put coal miners back to work.
Apparently, clean air, water and tuberculosis don't matter.
Apparently, clean air, water and tuberculosis don't matter.
39
Mostly natural gas, and of course new coal power can be clean to the air and water. Tuberculosis is a disease of the past why would you mention it.
We need more wind and solar, not more fossil fuel and nuclear. Our pols are paid off by the oil and gas lobby, causing the heating and destruction of our planet. Over money. Short term greed. Evil. Shell, Exxon, British Petroleum et al.
19
Looking at the picture of the Eagle Butte coal mine makes me think there could be a lot of jobs repairing the damaged land, as long as the coal mining companies aren't allowed to take their money and run, leaving behind a mess!
96
Yes, that was my thought too. Something Like The Butchart Gardens in Victoria, BC.
1
Take the money and run? Remember when the POTUS said he wanted to bankrupt all of the coal companies? While he got his wish. Too bad he didn't have the foresight to realize the clean up costs will not come on the shoulders of the taxpayers since the coal mines being shutdown.
3
They're going bankrupt. And many states, Wyoming conspicuously, allowed these companies to "self insure" on their remediation liabilities.
They took the money and they are doing the Trump.
They took the money and they are doing the Trump.
5
I flew into Las Vegas a week ago. Bright sun and not one solar pannel on a house roof to power those tens of thousands of air conditioners. Las Vegas doesn't need a 750 mile wind power line; it needs solar collectors.
122
Las Vegas doesn't need the power at all. That's what the Hoover Dam is for! And it's all renewable as long as the Colorado continues to flow.
3
@colona: Solar companies tried to set up in NV, and were crushed by the fossil fuel industry. This will be an ongoing result until the wind/solar/hydro providers get the same subsidy support as the fossil fuel industry. In fact, we are so far down the road to destruction, they need more support...globally. Look what Germany and Denmark have been able to do. and read the book, "This Changes Everything".
5
there was an article several weeks ago about the drop in capacity of the reservoirs powering many of the western dams, including Hoover. Not only are these hydro power plants producing a fraction of their intended outputs, they are causing massive losses of water.
4
Meanwhile, the state legislature, the last. bastion of the Old West, is doing its best to scare off wind energy -- including that Carbon County development -- by raising taxes on wind farms. Wyoming is the only state to have such taxes in the first place.
60
The GOP is still promoting "clean" coal... What a scam.....
63
You have no idea, but I bet you think CO2 is a dangerous pollutant.
At 400 PPM it is by pushing up our temperatures. Perhaps you didn't see that the CO2 level in Antarctica hit the highest level in FOUR million years.
3
And many centrist democrats in conservative leaning states
1