Posted on 10/02/2022 10:19:30 PM PDT by Olog-hai
The clamor of second graders breaking away from lessons to form lunch lines has gotten quieter in a rural New Mexico community, where families losing coal jobs have been forced to pack up and leave in search of work.
At Judy Nelson Elementary, 1 in 4 students have left in an exodus spurred by decisions made five years ago to shutter a coal-fired power plant and mine that sit just up the road from the school in a largely Navajo community. The plant and mine had provided electricity to millions of people across the southwestern U.S. for nearly a half-century.
The San Juan Generating Station burned its last bit of coal Thursday. The remaining workers will spend the coming weeks draining water from the plant, removing chemicals and preparing to tear down what has long been fixture on the high-desert horizon.
It’s part of the latest wave of coal-burning units to be retired as New Mexico and other states try to fight climate change by requiring more carbon-free sources of electricity. President Joe Biden also has pledged to cut greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2030. […]
Realities of shuttering the San Juan plant are setting in for surrounding communities, including the Navajo Nation, where poverty and joblessness already are exponentially higher than national averages. Hundreds of jobs are evaporating along with tens of millions of dollars in annual tax revenue used to fund schools and a community college.
“A lot of the Native American families have multi-generations living in the home so it doesn’t just affect the husband and wife. It affects their children and their grandchildren,” said Arleen Franklin, who teaches second grade at Judy Nelson. Her husband purchases equipment for a coal mine that feeds another power plant scheduled to close in 2031. …
(Excerpt) Read more at apnews.com ...
Judy Nelson must be turning over in her grave.
Another species in nature is known to commit mass suicide: lemmings.
Yeah but the same maggots that took their jobs away are the white people who forced the Washington Redskins to change their name. It all balances out in the end. ROTFL! Sarc/
Makes me think that there is another group moving to MAGA. Native American/Indian
The local congressman said instead of high paying oil gas and coal jobs, the Indians could sell art and pottery.
Hoax? Pretty much reality when there’s
people that are driven further into
government dependency.
DesertRhino wrote:
“
The local congressman said instead of high paying oil gas and coal jobs, the Indians could sell art and pottery.
“
Who’s that local congressman?
I was referring to lemmings in this subthread. Disney pushed the little critters off a cliff during one of their migrations to make it look like they were drowning themselves due to an alleged frenzy caused by population explosion.
I believe that the Navajo’s are conservatives - i drove by that power house in 1984 - i could see the smoke cloud for miles - i remember thinking that “wow that’s on the res”
I learned many years later that this was a good deal for the tribe - l think all it needed was some help getting the pollution control (MACT) technology installed - but the reality is that the “Lets Go Brandon Crowd” does not want to help conservatives of any color.
Lets go Brandon crowd means Biden supporters
No worries Sorry for the misinterpretation.
They may be moving now, but I suspect a majority of them voted for democrats who then shut the coal plant down.
They deserve what they voted for.
They closed the Navajo power plant in Page, AZ few years ago.
By Obama rules. Trump tried to save it, but could not.
That plant combined with Black Mesa coal mine provided something like 70% of Hopi tribe income and like 30% of Navajo tribe.
I am not sure, I would presume that the taxpayers are funding the tribes now.
One or two workers got job in IT!
Could they at least still mine the coal? There’s a shortage of that worldwide too. Even if we don’t burn it ourselves, there are plenty of buyers out there and that would preserve at least some solid paying jobs for the community.
Clean up your voter fraud or lose everything.
Uh, Sharon, that would be the Democrat Party you voted for.
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