Two policemen guard an entrance of Lisheng coal mine while a post reads, “No entry except for rescuers,” in Xiangtan county, in south China’s Hunan province, Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2010. A fire in the Lisheng coal mine in central China killed at least 25 workers, and search efforts continued for at least three others trapped underground, state media reported Wednesday. (AP Photo)
At least 25 workers were killed and three others trapped earlier this week in a fire in a coal mine in central China. A report from Reuters contained a couple of interesting things:
“Rescue work was extremely difficult, with too much toxic gas in the shaft after the fire,” Xinhua quoted Wang Shuhe, deputy head of State Administration of Coal Mine Safety, as saying.
The report added that the coal mine was privately-run and had 180 employees. It was being upgraded to double annual output to 60,000 tonnes.
And:
Compared with other manual jobs, Chinese coal miners can earn relatively high wages, tempting workers and farmers to take jobs in rickety and poorly ventilated shafts.
Here’s another photo:
In this photo released by China’s Xinhua News Agency, rescuers work at the Lisheng Coal Mine following Tuesday’s deadly fire, in Tanjiashan Town of Xiangtan, in central-south China’s Hunan Province, Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2010.
This week, I wanted to give a quick roundup of coverage of the Science journal article about mountaintop removal, so Coal Tattoo readers can see what other media outlets were saying about it.
So here goes:
– The Louisville Courier-Journal.
Well … you get the picture. Please post other links of other coverage you see.
Also, I wanted to pass on this editorial from the Herald-Dispatch down in Huntington, commenting on EPA’s approval of the Hobet 45 permit:
The decision by the Environmental Protection Agency to allow a mountaintop removal coal mine in Boone and Lincoln counties may signal how government regulators and the coal industry will move forward from this point.
If that’s the case, neither the coal industry nor opponents of mountaintop removal mining are likely to be happy, but the EPA may be navigating a methodical, middle ground approach that makes sense under the circumstances.
From the standpoint of West Virginia’s economy, it’s encouraging to see that the EPA is willing to discuss with coal operators ways they can move forward with their plans and keep people working. From each case, the coal operators can gain a better understanding of what’s acceptable and what’s not.
From an environmental perspective, the EPA is taking a look at the environmental impacts of mountaintop removal mining and working to minimize any damages.
Neither side in this passionate battle over mountaintop removal mining is “winning,” per se, but the stalemate may be over.
And a few other coal-related items from the week and beyond:
– West Virginia Public Broadcasting reports on state lawmakers considering new water quality standards in response to the death of Dunkard Creek.
– One miner was killed and eight others were stranded after a coalmine collapsed with a huge blast in the Marwar area of Pakistan.
– Interesting piece from the Daily Yonder about coal’s legacy.
Two sad notes this week …
One is about the passing of Keith Pitzer of the Friends of Cheat. Here’s a notice from the Cumberland Times-News and an item from the West Virginia Highlands Conservancy. Keith was one of the folks who always had time to help me in my reporting, and was never upset if the story didn’t come out exactly the way he hoped it would. This story from my 2004 series on the AML program is one example.
And my old buddy Bruce Boyens pointed out this item from the Daily Yonder, about the death of singer Phyllis Boyens-Liptak. A native of Labota, W.Va., she was probably best known for playing Loretta Lynn’s mother, Clary, in the 1980 movie Coal Miner’s Daughter.
Finally, Coal Tattoo music consultant Tony Oppegard (he doesn’t know about the title … but heck, I can’t really give him a raise) pointed out this article from the Denver Post, which reports about how renewed interest in Woody Guthrie has brought revived attention to his song about the Ludlow Massacre.
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A study shows coal from particular seams in China causes high rates of lung cancer in women (it is used for cooking and house heating); good report in Wired
http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2010/01/nasty-coal/
[...] Blogs @ The Charleston Gazette – » Friday roundup, Jan. 8, 2010 blogs.wvgazette.com – view page – cached Two policemen guard an entrance of Lisheng coal mine while a post reads, “No entry except for rescuers,” in Xiangtan county, in south China’s Hunan province, Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2010. A fire in the Lisheng coal mine in central China killed at least 25 workers, and search efforts continued for at least three others trapped underground, state media reported Wednesday. [...]
WALL STREET JOURNAL–January 9, 2010
White House, EPA at Odds Over Coal-Waste Rules
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB126300256672322625.html
(Excerpt)
The office of President Barack Obama’s regulatory czar, Cass Sunstein, has held nearly 20 meetings with industry groups since October to discuss the potential impact of proposed EPA rules to treat coal ash and other coal byproducts as hazardous waste, according to White House records. Mr. Sunstein directs the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs within the White House Office of Management and Budget.
January 10, 2010
http://billingsgazette.com/news/state-and-regional/wyoming/article_4bd17e58-fd97-11de-b09d-001cc4c002e0.html
(Excerpt)
CASPER — A terrible economy curbed energy demand throughout the United States in 2009, slowing coal production in Wyoming for the first time in more than a decade.
After posting a record 467.2 million tons of coal in 2008, statewide production fell about 7 percent to 433.5 million tons in 2009, according to a Casper Star-Tribune estimate. The U.S. Energy Information Administration estimates Wyoming production slipped even further, to 427.4 million tons — close to 2006 levels.
Video: Scientists Stand Up Against Mountaintop Removal
(2:12 minutes)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GezdVFyP_s
Buying-out a longterm contract is not cheap, especially so, a complete buy-out. It would be interesting to know what the contract was for and what replacement coal was being bought.
For sure, 2010 will be the year of coal spot market sales and not longterm contracts.
January 6, 2010
http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/decker-coal-accepts-buy-out-of-coal-supply-contract,1108623.shtml
(Excerpt)
GILLETTE, Wyo. – (Business Wire) Cloud Peak Energy Inc. (NYSE: CLD) announced an agreement that Decker Coal Company, in which Cloud Peak Energy is a 50% partner, has accepted a buy-out offer from an eastern utility company for a coal supply contract originally scheduled through 2012.
The customer’s contract accounted for approximately 30 percent of production for 2010 and the majority of the production for 2011 and 2012. The arrangement is mutually beneficial to both the utility and the Decker Joint Venture as it allows the utility to avoid purchasing coal it no longer requires, and Decker to pursue more favorable sales opportunities. Decker Coal Company currently holds no firm sales contracts beyond 2011, but continues to seek market opportunities for the approximately 42 million tons of non-reserve coal held by the Company.
A room-and-pillar operation producing 3.5 million tons a year — I don’t think so.
January 9, 2010
http://www.mydailysentinel.com/pages/full_story/push?article-Hearing+set+on+mining+request%20&id=5509348&instance=secondary_news_left_column
(Excerpt)
What is known is Gatling, Ohio, began extracting coal from its Yellowbush Mine on Jan. 29, 2009. The room-and-pillar underground mining operation has a 1,410 foot slope into the mine. Last year a spokesperson with Gatling said when the mine was operating at full capacity, the company hoped to produce 3.5 million marketable tons of coal per year. No word on whether the recession of 2009 had an affect on that goal.
Last January, a company spokesperson said there were approximately 30 coal miners currently working at the site which was then still under construction. It was predicted when fully operational that number should run from 120-150 miners, but again, no word on how the 2009 recession affected those numbers.
Last year during a Meigs County Chamber of Commerce Luncheon, Sam Hatcher of Gatling, Ohio LLC said the company would invest $75 million into the Yellowbush Mine project. Hatcher told Chamber members wages for those working at the facility would range from $22 an hour to $40 an hour for some positions, including a 90/10 medical plan.
Last year Gating, Ohio LLC was also a large contributor to Racine’s First Party in the Park where it offered tours of its Yellowbush Mine which Hatcher last year predicted to have a life of around 20 years.
This is what the future looks like.
January 11, 2010
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703535104574646600280362462.html?mod=googlenews_wsj
(Excerpts)
China’s surging demand for steel this year is expected to dominate the landscape of the steel industry as never before.
Already the world’s largest producer by far, the country is expected to rev up production by nearly 10%. But the higher output likely won’t exceed demand, pushing prices higher world-wide for steel, its raw materials and even coal.
Steelmakers, which idled dozens of mills and cut production as the global economy slowed, are now ramping up. Rio Tinto, which sells the most iron ore to China, is restarting production. Iron ore is a key ingredient in making steel. Arcelor Mittal, the world’s largest steel producer, is raising prices, as is China’s largest steelmaker Baosteel Group Corp.
—
Iron-ore spot prices, at about $110 a metric ton, have been climbing toward their highest level in more than a year. Coal prices for steel mills and electricity production have surged by more than 30% as the Chinese last year curbed production due to environmental concerns. Copper, aluminum and zinc prices also have risen.
“The recovery of all commodities has exceeded expectations,” says David Butler, analyst at J.P. Morgan Cazenove.
Australian ports are becoming congested again, with coal ships in line on the ocean, waiting to load and unload.
—
The downside for ArcelorMittal and other steelmakers is that raw-material prices will likely rise as the companies compete with Chinese steel mills to secure the coal and iron ore needed to fuel and feed steel plants.
This week, Australia and China signed a $3 billion coal deal, the largest buyout by a Chinese firm in Australian mining history. The purchase of Australia’s Felix Resources Ltd. by Yanzhou Coal Mining Co. could open the door to more acquisitions this year.
January 9, 2010
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/10/opinion/10friedman.html
(Excerpt)
Yes, climate change is a concern for Beijing, but more immediately China’s leaders know that their country is in the midst of the biggest migration of people from the countryside to urban centers in the history of mankind. This is creating a surge in energy demand, which China is determined to meet with cleaner, homegrown sources so that its future economy will be less vulnerable to supply shocks and so it doesn’t pollute itself to death.
In the last year alone, so many new solar panel makers emerged in China that the price of solar power has fallen from roughly 59 cents a kilowatt hour to 16 cents, according to The Times’s bureau chief here, Keith Bradsher. Meanwhile, China last week tested the fastest bullet train in the world — 217 miles per hour — from Wuhan to Guangzhou. As Bradsher noted, China “has nearly finished the construction of a high-speed rail route from Beijing to Shanghai at a cost of $23.5 billion. Trains will cover the 700-mile route in just five hours, compared with 12 hours today. By comparison, Amtrak trains require at least 18 hours to travel a similar distance from New York to Chicago.”
China is also engaged in the world’s most rapid expansion of nuclear power. It is expected to build some 50 new nuclear reactors by 2020; the rest of the world combined might build 15.
“By the end of this decade, China will be dominating global production of the whole range of power equipment,” said Andrew Brandler, the C.E.O. of the CLP Group, Hong Kong’s largest power utility.
In the process, China is going to make clean power technologies cheaper for itself and everyone else. But even Chinese experts will tell you that it will all happen faster and more effectively if China and America work together — with the U.S. specializing in energy research and innovation, at which China is still weak, as well as in venture investing and servicing of new clean technologies, and with China specializing in mass production.
This is a strategic inflection point. It is clear that if we, America, care about our energy security, economic strength and environmental quality we need to put in place a long-term carbon price that stimulates and rewards clean power innovation. We can’t afford to be asleep with an invigorated China wide awake.
That article about the Gatling, Ohio operation is kind of confusing.
What’s your take? Was the company overly optimistic in their projections for underground mining (via room-and-pillar) and now they want to want to use surface mining to go at it from above?
That just doesn’t sound right.
Still bleak, but slightly less so.
http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/coal/quarterly/qcr_sum.html
(Excerpt) While demand for coal increased [12%] between the second and third quarters of 2009 [and coal production also rose by 2.3%], the average price of coal delivered to the electric power sector fell slightly from $2.25 per million Btu to $2.24 per million Btu. This new price is about 5 percent higher than it was during the third quarter of 2008, when it was $2.14 per million Btu.
Electric Power Sector Coal Stocks, 2006-2009 (through September)
http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/coal/page/coalnews/coalmar.html
Chart: National Monthy Coal Production: 2007, 2008 and 2009 (through November)
http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/coal/page/coalnews/coalmar.html
Table: Production by State
http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/coal/weekly/weekly_html/wcpmonth.html