Fossil Eyes

They say Russian money is behind anti-fracking groups proselytizing against a chemically-enhanced oil and gas extraction process… pointing out the ground water and seismic damage caused by fracking. Economists are arguing that the recent plunge in the price at the pump is the result of an OPEC conspiracy to make US-frack-extracted oil too expensive to remain competitive, perhaps bankrupting the American companies which have taken advantage of the high price of oil to justify this expensive process. But as a result of this process, the United States is about to return to its once-heralded status as the number one producer of oil and gas in the world, and these oil & gas producing nations are doing what they can to stop the US.

Global warming experts are not unhappy with this turn of events, which they say should refocus energy on green alternatives, as the UN repeats that even if the optimistic new goals against greenhouse gasses are implemented worldwide, the damage from global climate change still is and will be devastating. Indeed, the motivation for building and implementing the relatively-more-expensive solar, wind and other alternative energy sources has dropped (other than in China) around the world as fossil fuel prices have moderated. But oil and gas still have a big nasty partner in the fossil fuel space: coal.

Global dependence on King Coal as the primary source of electrical power generation remains one of the largest contributors to greenhouse gasses, with the notion of “clean coal” being little more than shoving the effluents from coal-based power generation deep into the ground (carbon capture & storage). And boy is the world dependent on coal for modern energy generation.

The International Energy Agency tells us (on their Website): “Coal currently provides 40% of the world’s electricity needs. It is the second source of primary energy in the world after oil, and the first source of electricity generation. Since the beginning of the 21st century, it has been the fastest-growing global energy source. The last decade’s growth in coal use has been driven by the economic growth of developing economies, mainly China. Irrespective of its economic benefits for the countries, the environmental impact of coal use, especially that coming from carbon dioxide emissions, should not be overlooked. Despite positive efforts to build more efficient plants, to retrofit old plants and to decommission the oldest, least efficient ones, the current pace is far from what is needed. Carbon capture and storage (CCS) is the most promising technology to reach near-zero CO₂ emissions from large CO₂ sources. Although it is developing, it is far from the required deployment-level to keep CO₂emissions at acceptable levels.”

To be effective, coal pits and coal mines need to generate massive coal output to be viable. This almost insatiable need for tons of the stuff has also created some of the most dangerous working conditions on earth. Aside from the sheet size of the required extraction efforts, the fire and air quality danger from within the mines, yielding fires, explosions and asphyxiation, have taken thousands of miners’ lives over the years. Collapsing walls, coal dust and methane are just a few of the risks.

Mine bosses can tough, cruel and unforgiving for anyone who protests the process or the working conditions. Nowhere is this more evident that West Virginia, where King Coal not only runs roughshod over its workers, but where the political deck is definitely stacked in favor of the owners. Over the years, cry the victims of mine disasters, the owners have literally gotten away with murder. But in a recent matter, there is a wind of clean air that just might have blown into West Virginia’s courts.

“On a memorial to West Virginia’s most recent mining disaster, the silhouettes of 29 figures are etched into black granite [pictured above], men posed with arms around each another like teammates…On the back of the solemn slab, the disaster is put in the context of the state’s long history of coal tragedies, including a 1968 explosion that killed scores, and a dozen other deadly events earlier in the century.

“In not one of those cases did a coal mine owner face criminal charges for the loss of life. That history ended in November, with the indictment of Donald L. Blankenship, the chief executive whose company owned the Upper Big Branch mine near here, where an explosion of methane gas in 2010 spread like a fireball through more than two miles of tunnels, feeding on illegally high levels of coal dust…

“Neither Mr. Blankenship nor his attorney, William W. Taylor III, responded to requests for comments. But in a statement after the indictment, Mr. Taylor defended Mr. Blankenship: ‘His outspoken criticism of powerful bureaucrats has earned this indictment. He will not yield to their effort to silence him.’

“Mr. Blankenship, who was raised in a trailer in one of the state’s poorest counties, rose to the top of Massey Energy, the largest coal producer in Appalachia. He was accused by federal prosecutors of trampling on health and safety laws to maximize profits, conspiring to hide the violations from inspectors and lying on securities filings. He faces up to 31 years in prison.

“He has denied wrongdoing, arguing in a blog he set up to rebut his critics that he always promoted worker safety. ‘If they put me behind bars,’ he wrote last year, ‘it will be political.’… Paradoxically, Mr. Blankenship’s own political influence has played out on an epic scale. His manipulation of West Virginia’s highest court in a civil case against him was rebuked by the United States Supreme Court in 2009, and inspired the John Grisham novel ‘The Appeal.’” New York Times, November 30^th. Indeed, the biggest question of them all may well be how we make those who benefit from fossil fuel profits bear the costs and responsibilities for their efforts. It is a question asked of companies, nations and the consumers whose demand drives it all.

I’m Peter Dekom, and the overall management of fossil fuel generation requires a whole lot more government oversight before the legions of dead and damaged human lives reaches levels that even the worst plague could not match.