In response to the editorial: The Marketplace is Turning Away From Coal

With the Washington Post cheering for the demise of an industry that powers this nation's prosperity, it is no mystery why voters outside the beltway view this town's priorities as upside-down. With nearly 250 years of coal in the U.S., Gov. Romney's question, "Why in the heck wouldn't we use it?" is a serious one for our energy future—and one the Post's editorial board fails to answer in a thoughtful way.

Instead, the Post paints "clean coal" as a myth. There is nothing mythological about the 40-year track record of increasing coal-based generation accompanied by lower emissions and lower electricity prices. While unsustainably low natural gas prices currently pose a challenge for coal, they hardly gut the economic case for coal-based electricity. Simply look at the states with the lowest electricity prices, and you will find they rely on coal as the predominant fuel source for electricity. It is no coincidence that most of these states also have the highest concentrations of manufacturing jobs in the nation.

Take coal out of the generation mix and you will see the hoped-for manufacturing renaissance stunted as companies face a one-two punch of higher electricity and natural gas feedstock prices. Since nearly half of America's households spend more than twice as much on energy than health care, food and clothing, we doubt they will join the Post in the cheering section for higher electricity costs, fewer jobs and a lower standard of living.

Hal Quinn
President & CEO
National Mining Association
Washington, D.C.