Salazar and Coal

Today I sat in on a speech/Q&A session with the US Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar. Salazar gave a long winded speech to start things off, and although he is not the best speaker in the world, he did inspire some shivers with the contents of his speech—I really enjoyed what he had to say. He spoke of the energy transition America is currently embarking upon, and he said that momentum is building to effectively combat climate change. He said that since the Kyoto Treaty in 1997, climate change mitigation has not been of any priority to American leadership—in fact, the problem itself was hardly acknowledged during the Bush administration, let alone enacted upon. He said that this is no longer the case, and America is now finding ways to address the issue, and develop and implement clean energy technology. He finished his speech with a Native American proverb, saying that “we do not inherit the earth from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children.” Overall, his speech reinforced my feeling that the Obama administration truly holds international diplomacy and climate change action as a high priority. Even though the US has little to offer the negotiations in the form of specific reduction targets (because congress has failed to completely pass anything as of yet), he wants to contribute to these negotiations in the most positive and constructive manner that’s possible.

Following his speech, Salazar took some questions from the crowd. For the majority of the questions, I thought that he did a fine job, and my personal buzz (for lack of a better term) from his speech was maintained. Then, the last public question was asked, and it was in regards to Appalachia and the abuse the natural environment has taken from mountain-top removal coal mining (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5F2Hvi1yDLY). He said some nice things about strategizing about recovery from this problem and finding ways to revamp the suffering regional economies in these areas. However, right at the end of his answer he interjected, “but let me clarify something about coal…” He subsequently went on a tangent about how coal is an absolutely necessary part of our energy future, as it is one of our most abundant resources in America. He recognized that coal is a very controversial topic from an environmental standpoint, and that it does not burn cleanly. However, he said that as long as it is available, it needs to be utilized: “It is not a matter of whether or not coal will be utilized as an energy source, but instead a matter of finding ways to clean up or sequester the emissions” (or something very close to that—that was a slight paraphrase). To me, this was a very problematic way to end his presentation. He ended by advocating for Carbon Capture and Sequestration (CCS) technology, and advocating for the use of coal. This stance is similar to that of Saudi Arabia and other oil-exporting countries—it’s just that he is talking about coal instead of oil, as both are carbon-emitting fossil fuels. In my opinion, CCS is the equivalent of putting a band-aid on a gushing wound. It is a way to allow our societies to continue to burn fossil fuels (business as usual), while pretending that we are addressing the problem.

But let’s address this issue while putting climate change aside for a moment. Without taking carbon dioxide into account, coal offers up some other very nasty ingredients, and holds extremely problematic implications. For instance, burning coal for electricity generation emits several very nasty substances into the air, the most famous of the two being mercury and cyanide. In fact, coal-fired power plants in Montana are the leading source of mercury pollution in our fine state—“The Last Best Place”. To me, this presents a problem in itself, as mercury is a neurotoxin (poisonous to the brain). It can be extremely dangerous and damaging to small children and pregnant females. However, beside the fact that I don’t like the idea of a neurotoxin being freely emitted into our skies, I am particularly disturbed by one well documented side-effect of this mercury pollution. In August, the United States Geological Survey released the results from a widespread, nine-year study that they led across the US, measuring mercury levels in our waterways. (Please read about the study here.) The study found that mercury pollution in American waterways is far more widespread than previously thought, and every fish sampled—every fish—was found to contain traces of mercury within its system. The study also cited coal-fired power plants as the leading source of mercury pollution in the United States, as air-borne mercury dissolves into water, creating methylmercury. Eventually, the methylmercury makes its way up the food chain and concentrates in fish (biomagnification). As a native Montanan, this is absolutely an abomination to me. I grew up fly-fishing the rivers and streams in the Gallatin Valley, and my personal feelings and values that lean towards environmentalism are absolutely a direct result of this upbringing. I learned to love the rivers, love the fish, and love being a part of these pristine natural places. I remember distinctly when I caught my first good-sized trout (about a 14-inch Brown) out of the Gallatin River on a Caddis Fly imitation. To celebrate the catch, my father killed the fish (although we are normally catch-and-release fishermen), and we took it home and ate it. It was this experience, among many others, that established within me a deep connection to the natural and beautiful places of Montana—those are the experiences that developed my passions in environmentalism, and eventually led me here, to Copenhagen, Denmark.

So you’re telling me that if someday, I take my son to the Gallatin River and attempt to recreate that moment with him—you’re telling me that if I eat a trout caught out of Montana waters with my son, that I will be feeding him a neurotoxin? The thought makes my stomach turn. What could be more sacred than clean water? What could be more sacred than someday sharing a freshwater trout with my son? I would like to think nothing, but I am proven wrong every day.

Coal cannot have a place as part of our energy future. I understand that it needs to be part of the transition process and can’t be fazed out immediately, but America needs to find a way to replace it as an energy source—permanently.

I apologize if that was a bit long-winded for a blog. It’s just that this subject is something that is very personal and important to me, and I felt like giving it some time. Please, keep the feedback coming. I enjoy the comments—good or bad, in agreement or dissent.