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Author: Dorothy Kosich
Posted: Monday , 20 Aug 2007
Long a champion of Nevada gold mining, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, also a long-time environmentalist, declared his opposition to any new U.S. coal-fired power plants.
RENO, NV
Just days before he is scheduled to testify on Mining Law reform before the House Energy and Mining Subcommittee, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid publicly declared his strong opposition to construction of any new coal-fired power plants in the United States.
Reid's remarks came during a keynote address to the Nevada Clean Energy Summit Saturday.
The son of a Nevada gold miner and long-time champion of hardrock mining, Reid will be testifying in Elko Tuesday about H.R. 2262, the most recent version of a cause near and dear to House Natural Resources Chairman Nick Rahall, reform of the 1872 Mining Law. Rahall also is a long-time champion of coal miners who make up a large part of his West Virginia constituency.
Meanwhile, two of Northern Nevada's biggest industries, gaming and gold mining-as well as a substantial chunk of the region's population--rely on electricity generated by coal-fired power plants. While southern Nevada largely consumes hydroelectric power, Reid explained that the state still imports half its power from outside Nevada.
Nevertheless, Reid's stance against new coal-fired power plants may not be warmly received by some Senate Democrats, who are fighting hard for energy-related legislation promoting coal usage and technology.
For instance, presidential candidate Senator Barack Obama of Illinois represents one of the top 10 U.S. coal producers. The longest-serving member of the U.S. Senate is President Pro Tempore Robert C. Byrd of West Virginia, a relationship Reid said he highly values. Coal is now mined in Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington and Wyoming.
Reid told the summit attendees that he did much soul-searching before he decided to oppose the building of new coal-fired power plants. A proposal to build a new coal-fired power plant in White Pine County, Nevada, motivated him to devote considerable time and energy to research coal-generated power.
His concern was heightened by what Reid feels that is the competition for resources between energy security and global warming. In the meantime, with 16 grandchildren, Reid told his audience that he deeply cares about their future in a world damaged by "this voracious appetite we have for fossil fuel."
Despite claims of the coal sector to the contrary, Reid insisted "there's no clean coal technology. There's cleaner coal technology." In Reid's view and that of several key staff members, clean coal technology simply does not now nor will ever exist.
During a brief news conference after his address, Reid declared, "there isn't a coal plant in America that's clean." He also told reporters that the first stage of a new, modern coal plant burns an average of 7 millions of coal yearly.
In his address, Reid claimed that U.S. power companies want continued reliance on coal because they don't want to substantially invest in renewable energy sources.
Nevada, in particular, is a treasure trove of renewable energy sources just waiting to be effectively and efficiently utilized. "The wind blows all the time. The sun shines all the time," Reid said, adding that geothermal is another constant presence in the Silver State.