Republican lawmakers are alleging that the EPA's new greenhouse gas regulations would kill the U.S. coal industry by making it too expensive to build new coal-fueled power plants. But even if that's true, how will it impact you?
For the first time ever, federal regulators are asking a judge for an injunction ordering a U.S. mine to close until safety hazards are fixed. That mine is Massey Energy's Freedom Energy No. 1 in Kentucky. Among the provisions the Labor Department injunction asks for is continued pay for the idled miners.
Shares in Massey Energy were climbing today on reports that the coal mining company was "exploring strategic alternatives" -- in other words, a possible sale.
The disaster in West Virginia serves as a reminder that America's dependence on coal for energy isn't going away. While U.S. mining injuries and fatalities have dropped since 2001, safety lapses in the industry mean it remains very dangerous.
Officials don't yet know what led to an massive methane gas explosion at a Massey Energy mine in West Virginia that has killed 25 miners and left four others missing. It is the worst mining disaster in the U.S. in more than two decades.
