User:Mtbibby/Coal mining in Kentucky
Coal was discovered in Kentucky in 1750. Since the first commercial coal mine opened in 1820 coal has gained both economic importance and controversy regarding its environmental consequences. As of 2010 there are 442 operating coal mines in the state. [1]
History
[edit]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]
As of the year 2001 8.36 billion tons of coal have 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.
Economic impact
[edit]
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.[11]
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.[12] This has also made Kentucky one of the largest consumers of energy per capita in the nation.[13] The state's average retail price of electricity is 5.43 cents per kilowatt hour, the 3rd lowest rate in the nation.[14] In 2004 coal fired power plants produced approximately 92 percent of the electricity generated in Kentucky.
Environmental impact
[edit]- Mountaintop removal mining
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 "holler 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,[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).[16] 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).[17] 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.[18] The coal industry asserts that surface mining techniques, such as mountaintop removal, are safer for miners than sending miners underground.[19]
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.[20] Furthermore, vegetation removal and soil compaction from mining equipment both contribute to stronger and more frequent flooding from storm runoff.[21] 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.[22] These threats do not appear to go away after mining has ceased nor after land reclamation has taken place.
- Coal ash pollution
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.[23]
Differences between Western and Eastern Coalfields
[edit]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.[24] Concerns over acid rain have meant that Eastern coal has become preferable to Western coal.
Coal Mining in Kentucky Politics
[edit]Both Republican and Democratic candidates in the 2011 gubernatorial race 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. [25] 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 EPA over control of mining permits. [26] Beshear's support of the state's coal industry has brought criticism of the governor as being too lax on the issue. [27] 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. [28]
Coal extraction and remaining reserves by county
[edit]| 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 |
| 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 |
A list of coal fired power plants in Kentucky
[edit]| 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 | ' | ' | ' |
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ 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
- ^ 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/
- ^ http://www.kentuckycoal.org/documents/CoalFacts08.pdf
- ^ 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.
- ^ "Most Requested Statistics - U.S. Coal Industry". National Mining Association.
{{cite web}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help);|format=requires|url=(help); Missing or empty|url=(help); Text "http://www.nma.org/pdf/c_most_requested.pdf" ignored (help) - ^ "Most Requested Statistics - U.S. Coal Industry" (PDF). National Mining Association. Retrieved December 1, 2007.
- ^ "Online KY Coal Facts". Kentucky Office of Energy Policy, Division of Fossil Fuels & Utility Services. Retrieved December 28, 2009.
- ^ Banerjee, Neela (2006-10-28). "Taking On a Coal Mining Practice as a Matter of Faith". The New York Times. Retrieved 2006-10-28.
- ^ M.A. Palmer; E. S. Bernhardt; et al. (2010). "Mountaintop Mining Consequences" (HTML). Science. 327 (5962): 148–149. doi:10.1126/science.1180543. Retrieved 2011-03-25.
{{cite journal}}: Explicit use of et al. in:|author=(help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ M.A. Palmer; E. S. Bernhardt; et al. (2010). "Mountaintop Mining Consequences" (HTML). Science. 327 (5962): 148–149. doi:10.1126/science.1180543. Retrieved 2011-03-25.
{{cite journal}}: Explicit use of et al. in:|author=(help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ M.A. Palmer; E. S. Bernhardt; et al. (2010). "Mountaintop Mining Consequences" (HTML). Science. 327 (5962): 148–149. doi:10.1126/science.1180543. Retrieved 2011-03-25.
{{cite journal}}: Explicit use of et al. in:|author=(help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "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
- ^ http://www.coaleducation.org/Ky_coal_facts/coal_resources/ky_resources.htm
- ^ http://www.coaleducation.org/Ky_coal_facts/coal_resources/ky_resources.htm
Category:Coal mining in the United States Category:Mining in Kentucky Category:Economic geology