NEWS - Mine, all mines!
West Virginia governor Joe Manchin, called for, "...the [coal] industry to cease production activities immediately and go into a mine safety stand-down."
I will grant there may be mine safety issues--I don't know enough about the subject to know just how bad the problems may be, putting aside the recent spate of mine accidents. My impression is, the recent streak aside, that safety is better than what you might expect in an inherently dangerous job, than it was in the past in this country, and than it is in other parts of the world.
That said, it can't hurt to review safety procedures, technology, and standards.
However, I oppose the complete shut-down demanded. Coal represents about a quarter of U.S. energy consumption and more than a quarter of our energy exports. West Virginia is the second-biggest producer. Think about what Katrina-related disruptions did to the oil industry, and ask yourself if we really need to do this to the coal industry this winter.
I will grant there may be mine safety issues--I don't know enough about the subject to know just how bad the problems may be, putting aside the recent spate of mine accidents. My impression is, the recent streak aside, that safety is better than what you might expect in an inherently dangerous job, than it was in the past in this country, and than it is in other parts of the world.
That said, it can't hurt to review safety procedures, technology, and standards.
However, I oppose the complete shut-down demanded. Coal represents about a quarter of U.S. energy consumption and more than a quarter of our energy exports. West Virginia is the second-biggest producer. Think about what Katrina-related disruptions did to the oil industry, and ask yourself if we really need to do this to the coal industry this winter.
Labels: NEWS
posted by John at 2/02/2006 05:52:00 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home