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Old 11-04-2008, 07:45 AM
 
Location: Indiana Uplands
26,406 posts, read 46,575,260 times
Reputation: 19544

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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mike Peterson View Post
Audio: Obama Tells SF Chronicle He Will Bankrupt Coal Industry | NewsBusters.org

Listen again around 56 second mark.

"If someone wants to build a coal fired plant they can it's just that it will bankrupt them..."
Once again you neocons don't look at the big picture. The big coal companies will still make tons of money and people will still be employed due to the fact that we have MANY MANY coal plants that operate in this country. The point is we shouldn't be continuing to build so many NEW coal plants when other renewable technologies, nuclear, and natural gas are far cleaner. A diverse energy portfolio is the best way to protect consumers in the long-term, not the continued reliance and over-reliance on coal.
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Old 11-04-2008, 07:49 AM
 
Location: Indiana Uplands
26,406 posts, read 46,575,260 times
Reputation: 19544
Quote:
Originally Posted by magellan View Post
I'm not the one who is bringing this up the day before the election, even though Obama's statements have been out for over a year.

And it's not to "upgrade" their facilities, it's to build new traditional coal powered plants. In fact, you can get grants from the Feds now to build sequestration systems that would make you virtually free and clear of needing offsets. They're looking at building one near us right now:

Holland BPW next coal power plant may have no greenhouse gases - Grand Rapids News - The Grand Rapids Press Online - Michigan Newspaper - MLive.com (http://www.mlive.com/grpress/news/index.ssf/2008/08/holland_bpw_next_coal_power_pl.html - broken link)

But let's face it. Most of you guys don't want an honest debate on greenhouse gas emissions and alternative energy. This is just a last minute attempt to claim that Obama will kill a bunch of jobs.

Let's meet back up on Thursday and have a real debate about it.
I agree. The big problem is sequestration of CO2 is an unproven technology, and is expensive. However, we must address CO2 due to the fact that we are facing a continuation of the warming trend in global average temperature. The more we diversify to renewables that are cleaner the better off we will be.
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Old 11-04-2008, 08:12 AM
 
Location: Grand Rapids Metro
8,882 posts, read 19,852,535 times
Reputation: 3920
Quote:
Originally Posted by Noahma View Post
I am not sure how much more clear we can get, even using his own words you obama nuts try to pass it off.

Again here is what he SAID-

"So if somebody wants to build a coal-powered plant, they can; it’s just that it will bankrupt them because they’re going to be charged a huge sum for all that greenhouse gas that’s being emitted."
How selective of you not to highlight the first part of that statement. He's not going to shut down and bankrupt coal plants that are operating now, and those plants will be able to use the offset program and still make a hefty profit. Prices may go up for consumers initially, but as alternative energy (especially with government incentives that pretty much everyone in congress is for) will help fill the gap and make it more affordable as the scale increases. The focus is on getting away from building any new coal power plants. Does that equal fewer new jobs in the coal industry for the future? Yes.

Just as a side note, hundreds of thousands of Michiganians are now voluntarily enrolled in "Green Generation" programs, where they actually pay extra on their electric bills to support alternative energy.
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Old 11-04-2008, 08:23 AM
 
69,368 posts, read 64,101,577 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by magellan View Post
How selective of you not to highlight the first part of that statement. He's not going to shut down and bankrupt coal plants that are operating now, and those plants will be able to use the offset program and still make a hefty profit.
Sorry, but your telling me that he's not going to shut down the current plants, but will stop new, more environmentally friendly ones from being built? Yeah, that sounds great.. lets keep those dirty ones operating but dont dare build any new cleaner ones..
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Old 11-04-2008, 08:28 AM
 
Location: Indiana Uplands
26,406 posts, read 46,575,260 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by pghquest View Post
Sorry, but your telling me that he's not going to shut down the current plants, but will stop new, more environmentally friendly ones from being built? Yeah, that sounds great.. lets keep those dirty ones operating but dont dare build any new cleaner ones..
Or we could build a nuclear plant, and close a very old coal plant.
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Old 11-04-2008, 08:43 AM
 
Location: Grand Rapids Metro
8,882 posts, read 19,852,535 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by pghquest View Post
Sorry, but your telling me that he's not going to shut down the current plants, but will stop new, more environmentally friendly ones from being built? Yeah, that sounds great.. lets keep those dirty ones operating but dont dare build any new cleaner ones..
As I understand it, the more environmentally friendly ones won't need as many offsets, because their emissions will be much lower. If your power generation source has zero emissions, you don't even need offsets.

HowStuffWorks "How Carbon Trading Works"

It's the ones that are going to need huge offsets, like a traditional coal fired plant, that will be economically unfeasible to build. And for a coal company that is looking to build a $300 Million plant with clean coal technology, there are now available and will be more government incentives available to make it an economic reality.

Interestingly, I believe many coal plants are already being upgraded to greatly reduce SO2 emissions. I don't know how that affects carbon offsets though. GraniteStater?
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Old 11-04-2008, 08:57 AM
 
Location: Indiana Uplands
26,406 posts, read 46,575,260 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by magellan View Post
Interestingly, I believe many coal plants are already being upgraded to greatly reduce SO2 emissions. I don't know how that affects carbon offsets though. GraniteStater?
Reducing SO2 and NOx is not related to reducing CO2. Finding ways to reduce SO2, NOx, and mercury are the best ways to reduce air pollution, and also neurotoxins. Mercury is a neurotoxins, and most emissions of mercury come from coal plants.
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Old 11-04-2008, 09:03 AM
 
12,669 posts, read 20,445,519 times
Reputation: 3050
Quote:
Originally Posted by kentuckydad95 View Post
God-forbid someone actually care about the enviroment and be in politics. On a sidenote, the coal companies have made billions while not caring about the earth nor the workers removing the coal. To hell with the coal companies. There are plenty of other forms of energy.
This has nothing to do with the coal companies! It has to do with the people that work at them in the rural towns that rely on the jobs in the areas that these mines are in.
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Old 11-04-2008, 09:07 AM
 
12,669 posts, read 20,445,519 times
Reputation: 3050
Quote:
Originally Posted by GraniteStater View Post
Once again you neocons don't look at the big picture. The big coal companies will still make tons of money and people will still be employed due to the fact that we have MANY MANY coal plants that operate in this country. The point is we shouldn't be continuing to build so many NEW coal plants when other renewable technologies, nuclear, and natural gas are far cleaner. A diverse energy portfolio is the best way to protect consumers in the long-term, not the continued reliance and over-reliance on coal.

You tell that to the people that have no other resources for decent paying jobs in their areas. tell them to move and do something else with their lives.
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Old 11-04-2008, 09:12 AM
 
Location: Indiana Uplands
26,406 posts, read 46,575,260 times
Reputation: 19544
Quote:
Originally Posted by Miborn View Post

You tell that to the people that have no other resources for decent paying jobs in their areas. tell them to move and do something else with their lives.
???
The big coal companies use such incredibly large pieces of machinery now to remove coal that total employemnt is actually down in a number of areas.
This isn't the 1950s anymore. West Virginia has many Interstate Highways. People don't have to be "trapped" in remote rural Appalachia if they want to leave. Many of the "coal counties" in southern WV now have between 1/3 and 1/2 of the populations now compared to 75 years ago. The free market has spoken and technological and innovation to big machinery has taken place.
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