Opinion

November surprise: An EPA crackdown on coal

By Examiner Editorial
Published November 4, 2012 4:00am ET
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November surprise: An EPA crackdown on coal
393713 09: As coal is poured into a waiting barge, smoke billows from a coal powered electric plant August 26, 2001 in western, PA. The coal mining industry, once nearly extinct in Pennsylvania, has made a recent comeback as a centerpiece to President Bush''s energy plan. Since February of 2001 the price of coal has doubled to more than $40 a ton and over a thousand miners have gone back to work in Pennsylvania this year alone. Coal mining, while dangerous, dirty work, is still one of the best paying occupations in western Pennsylvania, with the average wage over $18 an hour with up to $6 an hour more in benefits. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images) | Spencer Platt

On the eve of the 2012 election, more than 50 of President Obama’s EPA staffers are crashing to finish new greenhouse gas emission standards. The rules would make the construction of new coal-fired power plants nearly impossible. A government-imposed switch from coal to other forms of energy would cost the economy about $700 billion over several years, according to the Manhattan Institute.

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