Powder River Basin

Why would Kiewit want the risk of an expanded coal mine?

That’s the question at the heart of a letter sent today to the CEO of Kiewit and the President of its mining subsidiary as this major construction company considers whether to bid on the Hay Creek II coal lease next week. The Bureau of Land Management has scheduled the lease of 167 million tons of […]

BLM schedules two major coal leases, undermining President Obama’s climate action plan

Next week, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) plans to sell 148 million tons of publicly owned coal, making clear that BLM continues to ignore concerns about the carbon pollution from coal mining, burning and export proposals. In addition to this lease sale, known as “Maysdorf II,” BLM has also scheduled the sale of the […]

Peabody Energy: cheating workers and taxpayers to destroy our climate

Peabody held its annual shareholders meeting in Gillette, Wyoming on Monday, hoping to avoid more of the massive protests the coal company has faced at its headquarters in St. Louis. Indeed, while Peabody executives tried to put a positive spin on the company’s outlook for shareholders in Wyoming, thousands of union mine workers converged in […]

Coal companies’ scheme to dodge royalty payments draws federal investigation

One of the many subsidies that coal mining companies like Arch and Peabody enjoy is coming under increased scrutiny from federal regulators. The Department of Interior (DOI) announced that an investigation has been launched to determine if coal companies are using sister companies to reduce the royalties they owe when exporting taxpayer-owned coal to foreign markets. The […]

U.S. coal goes to China

OnEarth takes a close look at why exactly Warren Buffett has been sniffing around Wyoming coal mines lately. Short answer: China wants coal. As George Black explains:

Although worldwide energy-related CO2 emissions rose more last year than at any time since 1969, and the use of coal grew faster than that of any other fossil fuel, U.S. demand has actually flatlined. In 2000 coal accounted for just over half of our electricity supply. By 2010 it was down to 45 percent. … 

Asia is a different matter. …

Obama administration announces massive coal mining expansion

The future’s looking sooty.Photo: Tami Heilemann, DOIInterior Secretary Ken Salazar announced yesterday an enormous expansion in coal mining that threatens to increase U.S. climate pollution by an amount equivalent to more than half of what the United States currently emits in a year. A statement from Wild Earth Guardians, Sierra Club, and Defenders of Wildlife […]