"Coal, the most polluting and costly fossil fuel, has been on a rapid decline over the past 30 years, with the US halving its production between 2008 and 2023, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA). This is an industry that matters to our country, interior secretary Doug Burgum said in a livestreamed press conference on Monday morning, alongside representatives from the other two departments. It matters to the world, and it's going to continue to matter for a long time."
"Coal plants provided about 15% of US electricity in 2024 a steep fall from 50% in 2000 the EIA found, with the growth of gas and green power displacing its use. Last year, wind and solar produced more electricity than coal in the US for the first time in history, according to the International Energy Agency, which predicts that could happen at the global level by the end of 2026."
"The Trump administration is hell-bent on supporting the oldest, dirtiest energy source. It's handing our hard-earned tax dollars over to the owners of coal plants that cost more to run than new, clean energy, said Amanda Levin, director of policy analysis at the national environmental non-profit Natural Resources Defense Council. This is a colossal waste of our money at a time when the federal government should be spurring along the new energy sources that can power the AI boom and help bring down electricity bills for struggling families."
The White House will open 13.1m acres of public land to coal mining and provide $625m to support coal-fired power plants through initiatives by the Departments of the Interior, Energy, and the EPA. Coal production in the US halved between 2008 and 2023, and coal's share of electricity fell from 50% in 2000 to about 15% in 2024 as gas and renewables grew. Wind and solar produced more US electricity than coal last year. The administration cites rising energy demand from expanding AI data centers as justification for prioritizing coal revival. Environmental groups call the subsidies costly and counterproductive compared with cleaner alternatives.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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