Coal price hikes boost electric rates, more increases coming

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080428/ap_on_bi_ge/electricity_rates ^

[chessplayer]

Consumers struggling with high gas prices, rising food costs and falling home values have something new to worry about: Sharply rising electricity rates due to a surge in coal prices over the past year.

[kms61]

somebody explain to me how EXPORTING coal helps us become energy independent.

[utherdoul]

helps to offest the costs of importing oil? Do we export coal enviormental regulations prohibit us from burning?

[vietvet67]

http://constitutionallyright.com/2008/01/24/bill-clintons-felonious-land-grab/

[kromike]

Let’s all live at Al Gore’s mansion.

[Jacquerie]

Exporting is good because the higher prices paid are incentives to mining companies to keep mining.

To keep the coal here would require confiscation of the mines by government and nationalization of the coal companies. Our government makes hash out of every industry it touches. I prefer they leave world prices alone.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

The government damned near confiscated the nation’s coal mines courtesy Jimmah Cahtah’s federal coal mine law of 1978. 95 percent of the less than 200,000 ton/year mines closed as a result.

[RJS1950]

Exporting is not the problem. The problem goes back to the price of fuel since all coal is transported to destination by train and/or truck and the cost of fuel has skyrocketed. Too many people in this country forget that those commodities and food products all have to be transported over a distance usually bigger than most of Europe. The price of fuel directly impacts most of what we eat and otherwise consume. Raise the cost of fuel and you raise the cost of most everything we use on a daily basis.

[RJS1950]

Very true and if our current prez had any nads at all he would sign an EO to open them back up and open up potential oil fields for drilling as well. With the mood of the general public going very sour on fuel prices these days what politician is going to risk tar and feathering to side with the environmental idiots? Doing anything, even if the effect is only reachable in the long term will be seen as a positive and will help.

[RJS1950]

By the way, clinton closed most of the rest by EO in the late 90s, all the while working a deal to buy coal from his China buddies.

[Jacquerie]

So Carter killed smaller operators? Tell me more about that law.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

The law federalized inspection and regulation of all coal mines, many of which had been regulated by the states. It was relatively easy for the big mines to comply with the new regs but the small mines were put out of business by mandates that didn't work in every location. GS-15s from the Department of the Interior, Office of Surface Mining would arrive by the truckload and nit pick every step of our process. Huge fines could be assessed outside the court system for questionable "violations." Inspectors would find an acre of prime farm land in the middle of a field which meant we had to mine around this. All water leaving the mine site had to pass through a sed pond, which wasn't always possible. The thrust of the law was environmental, yet they're still tearing off the tops of mountains in West VA and E. KY. The big operators would shut down one operation and ship from another when they got into a dispute with OSM. Small miners had one mine and all the additional costs of compliance killed off the small guys, family operations, many of them, while the Peabody and AMAX mines continued to meet payroll. I like to think the small guys kept things honest and competitive. Not now...
I was mine manager of a < 200,000 ton/year mine and had to deal with federal a**holes almost weekly. I cannot tell you what a relief it was when Jimmah Cahtah was kicked out and the Gipper took office. The Federales began to take a new attitude but by that time, the 60,000 ton guys were belly up.