The Trump administration on Monday outlined a coordinated plan to revive the mining and burning of coal, the largest contributor to climate change worldwide.
Coal use has been declining sharply in the United States since 2005, displaced in many cases by cheaper and cleaner natural gas, wind and solar power.
But in a series of steps aimed at improving the economics of coal, the Interior Department said it would open 13.1 million acres of federal land for coal mining and reduce the royalty rates that companies would need to pay to extract coal. The Energy Department said it would offer $625 million to upgrade existing coal plants around the country, which have been closing at a fast clip, to extend their life spans.
The Environmental Protection Agency said it would repeal dozens of regulations set by the Biden administration to curb carbon dioxide, mercury and other pollutants from coal plants. The agency would also revise a regulation limiting wastewater pollution from power plants that the industry considers costly.
In what has become a familiar tableau, miners in hard hats stood as a backdrop as administration officials gathered at the Interior Department and repeated a phrase that President Trump said he now expects of any employee who discusses the black, combustible rock: “Clean, beautiful coal.”
The announcements came days after Mr. Trump told the United Nations General Assembly that the United States would “stand ready to provide any country with abundant, affordable energy supplies if you need them,” referring to liquefied natural gas, oil and coal. Mr. Trump has promoted the coal industry ever since campaigning frequently with coal miners 2016.
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The post ‘Mine, Baby, Mine’: Trump Officials Offer $625 Million to Rescue Coal appeared first on New York Times.
