- Details
The West Virginia Coal Association issued the following statement regarding yesterday’s (7/16/15) release by the federal Office of Surface Mining of the revised Stream Buffer Zone Rule.
“The unrelenting assault on coal by the Obama Administration continued today, with the issuance by the federal Office of Surface Mining (OSM) of new revisions to the existing Stream Buffer Zone (SBZ) rule,” said Jason Bostic, vice president of the West Virginia Coal Association. “The OSM claims this new rule provides ‘regulatory certainty.’ How can a 1200-page rule that blurs different statutes offer clarity or certainty?”
- Details
The Greenbrier has reached maximum capacity for WVCA’s Annual Meeting on August 6 – 8, 2015. If you’ve not already done so, we ask those who have rooms reserved for the meeting to please return your event registration forms, which are attached, to Sandi at the Association office as soon as possible so we can insure good counts for each of our events. The Saturday Brunch will be featuring a very special surprise guest so you want to incorporate that event into your family’s attendance plans. In addition to the fun-filled, family- focused three days we will have informative programs and special recognitions for our 100th Anniversary, including our very own photographers being available for photos during the whole weekend. Please call Sandi at the Association, 304-342-4153.
- Details
Support Changes to WV’s Water Quality Standards that will Help Stabilize the Coal Industry
WHEN: July 21, 2015, from 6 to 8 p.m.
WHERE: Coopers Rock Training Room at DEP headquarters in Kanawha City, Charleston.
The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection has FINALLY proposed revisions to the state’s water quality standard for SELENIUM.
- Details
CHARLESTON – The West Virginia Coal Association issues the following statement regarding today’s release by the federal Office of Surface Mining of the revised Stream Buffer Zone Rule.
“The unrelenting assault on coal by the Obama Administration continued today, with the issuance by the federal Office of Surface Mining (OSM) of new revisions to the existing Stream Buffer Zone (SBZ) rule,” said Jason Bostic, vice president of the West Virginia Coal Association. “The OSM claims this new rule provides ‘regulatory certainty.’ How can a 1200-page rule that blurs different statutes offer clarity or certainty?”
“And most egregious of all is the charade of a robust public comment process put forward by OSM in the crafting of this rule,” Bostic said. “The OSM performed a regulatory sleight of hand by requesting input from the states, then essentially slamming the door to that input while they moved to rewrite the law itself. In fact, nine out of ten states that were requested to provide input formally pulled out of the process as it moved forward without them.
“At its core, this appears to be an insidious attempt by OSM to blur the Surface Mining Act with the Clean Water Act to accomplish what EPA has previously failed to do – trample the responsibility of the states to develop their water quality standards.”
“It is also clear that the OSM’s estimate that ‘only’ 200 mining jobs would be lost due to the implementation of this plan has about as much validity a carnival sideshow palm reading. Several recent studies have shown the huge discrepancies between Obama Administration estimates of economic impact and the reality once these policies are implemented. “
“OSM arrogantly made the statement that the rule is ‘intended to protect the people of the coalfields.’ To that, we call on our congressional and state elected leaders to protect our coal miners from a runaway federal agency that is trying to replace a statute with a regulation developed in secret and wrapped in bureaucratic intrigue.”
- Details
|
Commodity Region/Fuel |
Avg. BTU |
SO2 |
Price |
Price/mmBTU |
|
Central Appalachia |
12,500 |
1.2 |
$54.80 |
$2.19 |
|
Northern Appalachia |
13,000 |
3 |
$58.05 |
$2.23 |
|
Illinois Basin |
11,800 |
5 |
$40.55 |
$1.73 |
|
Powder River Basin |
8,800 |
0.8 |
$12.10 |
$0.69 |
|
Uinta Basin |
11,700 |
0.8 |
$39.35 |
$1.68 |
|
Natural Gas (Henry Hub) |
n/z |
0.01 |
n/a |
$2.79 |
Coal production in the U.S. fell sharply for the week ending July 4. And the decline from last year steepened, with production off 16.6% from last year’s levels according to the latest report from the Energy Information Agency (EIA) for the week.
Join Friends of Coal
Be part of West Virginia's coal industry future. Together, we can continue building a stronger, more prosperous Mountain State by supporting our miners and communities.
West Virginia Coal Association
The West Virginia Coal Association has been the voice of the coal industry for over 100 years, advocating for safe, responsible mining practices and supporting the communities that depend on coal.
Join the FOC
Become a Friend of Coal and download our app to stay connected and support the industry.
Recent Press
