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Martin County spill photo 4. Tap water in a home downhill from Massey-operated surface mines and underground slurry injection sites in Mingo County, WV. Now, 700 families are suing the company. Photo by Melissa Farlow; printed in Time Magazine on 23 March, 2008.
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Tap water in a home downhill from Massey-operated surface mines and underground slurry injection sites in Mingo County, WV. Now, 700 families are suing the company. Photo by Melissa Farlow; printed in Time Magazine on 23 March, 2008.
Top 20 Producers of MTR Coal, 2002-2006 Based on database compiled by Appalachian Voices and satellite base maps produced by Skytruth, 2007. Visit http://www.ilovemountains.org/myconnection for more information on data sources.
Top 20 Producers of MTR Coal, 2002-2006 Based on database compiled by Appalachian Voices and satellite base maps produced by Skytruth, 2007. Visit http://www.ilovemountains.org/myconnection for more information on data sources.
There Are Many Factors Determining Coal Prices, But Recent Inflation is Driven By Appalachian Trends From: EIA Coal News and Markets, 28 March, 2008 $110/ton in Northern Appalachia!
And Recent Production Trends Indicate Little Capacity For Appalachian Mines To Respond to Price Spikes Virginia Coal Production, 1880 - 2007
Coal Production in the Appalachian Basin, 1850-2007 & USGS Projections Based on Estimates of Economically Recoverable Reserves
From: William Wolf, 2006. Presentation to the 15th Annual MEMS Conference. www.minecon.com/Proceedings06/Sess2Wolf.pdf
From: William Wolf, 2006. Presentation to the 15th Annual MEMS Conference. www.minecon.com/Proceedings06/Sess2Wolf.pdf
From: William Wolf, 2006. Presentation to the 15th Annual MEMS Conference. www.minecon.com/Proceedings06/Sess2Wolf.pdf
From: William Wolf, 2006. Presentation to the 15th Annual MEMS Conference. www.minecon.com/Proceedings06/Sess2Wolf.pdf
Measuring Appalachian Coal Reserves bst = billion short tons Economically Recoverable Reserves (46bst in 2007) 20bst in 2007based on USGS (Milici, 1997) 16bst in 2007based on Global Energy, 2006 Mined Out Reserves Technically Recoverable Reserves 40bst in 2007based on Global Energy, 2006 54bst in 2005EIA, 2006 Demonstrated Reserve Base 102bst in 2005 Averitt,1974 All Coal Resources ???
How Good Are the Estimates That We’re Using For Energy Planning? “Present estimates of coal reserves are based upon methods that have not been reviewed or revised since their inception in 1974... …only a small fraction of previously estimated reserves are actually minable reserves.” - National Academy of Sciences, 2007
The EIA has over-projected Appalachian coal production for the last 11 years MMST per Year
But even EIA’s extremely optimistic forecasts have declined a lot over the last 12 years 200 million tons/year drop in 2015
How Is Coal Supply Related to Mountaintop Removal? “… coal mines of the future will encounter a range of new or more difficult mining and processing challenges as more easily accessed coal seams are depleted and the industry turns to less accessible reserves. Surface operations will mine deeper seams that require increased stripping ratios and multiple benches...” - National Academy of Sciences, 2007
While you won’t find anything about it in their filings to SUCs, energy companies are well aware of the risks to their customers from the controversy around mountaintop removal and 404 permits…
Measuring All US Coal Reserves bst = billion short tons Economically Recoverable Reserves (61bst in 2007) 85-90bst in 2007based on Global Energy, 2006 100-120?bst in 2006NAS, 2007 Mined Out Reserves Technically Recoverable Reserves 268bst in 2005EIA, 2006 Demonstrated Reserve Base 493bst in 2005 Averitt,1974 All Coal Resources ???
From: William Wolf, 2006. Presentation to the 15th Annual MEMS Conference. www.minecon.com/Proceedings06/Sess2Wolf.pdf
Imports and Exports of Steam Coal Source: Energy Information Administration, Annual Coal Report, 1996 - 2007 Imports Exports 2002
The Future of Rail Transportation “…we should expect the “new normal” [in coal transportation] to be a pretty lengthy state of increasing costs, tight capacity, and related service performance challenges.” - The New Normal: Why Businesses Should Redesign Now, and Not Wait for Freight Rates and Service to Get “Back to Normal” by Lee Clair and Dean Wise. April, 2005.
“We are headed for a time of excitement and turmoil in the coal industry unlike anything we have seen before. Renewed interest in coal as a fuel source could increase demand by as much as 4% per year during the next twenty years, but very little attention is focused on the ability of the U.S. coal-chain infrastructure and reserve base to support such an expansion.” - Gary L. Hunt, President, Global Energy Advisors