Coal Discussed At Energy Summit
Laramie, WY – West Virginia Governor Joe Manchin and officials from 10 other states are calling upon Capitol Hill to provide a detailed road map to guide U.S. energy policy away from a dependence on foreign oil.
The group discussed America's energy future today at Stonewall Resort in Roanoke, West Virginia. The event was called "Advancing Domestic Resources in an Era of Carbon Challenges."
Wyoming Gov. Dave Freudenthal talked to reporters and echoed the summit's key theme: as long as coal remains this country's most abundant fossil fuel, it must play a central role in U.S. policy.
Coal is accused of being the chief culprit in the greenhouse gas debate.
Also under fire in Eastern states is mountaintop removal mining, where layers of earth are blasted away to expose coal seams and then dumped in the valleys below.
Speakers at the summit said cleaner and renewable sources must be part of the mix. But they also argued such alternatives cannot replace coal as the fuel behind about half of the nation's electricity.