Obama Administration Provides Billions for Polluting Coal Power Plants-

As of late, President Barack Obama has received much criticism on his decision to invest in coal, with environmentalists puzzled as to the role it will play in America’s clean energy future. The president’s stance on the domestic energy source caused him to initiate a pricey campaign which will aid the coal industry in sequestering greenhouse gases that generate in coal-fired power plants. “If we can develop the technology to capture the carbon pollution released by coal, it can create jobs and provide energy well into the future,” the president said in February at a meeting with Republican and Democratic governors. Environmental activists oppose the Obama’s plan, stating that it will be too costly to revamp power plants with the new technology, trap carbon, compress it, and pipe it to underground storage; and, not to mention, further coal-firing would be required to operate carbon sequestration equipment. Furthermore, carbon capture methods would not offer support to diminish smog, mercury, and toxic metals in coal ash which are released into the atmosphere, as well as coal extraction methods which are crude and damaging to the environment. James Hansen, a NASA climate scientist who discovered global warming twenty years ago, emphasized the importance of coal being phased out globally by 2030. He also considered whether widespread carbon sequestration and storage would offer successful results “given its likely high cost, possible leakage of carbon dioxide from storage sites, and environmental damage from coal mining.” Thus far, the Department of Energy (DOE) has dedicated $4 billion for carbon capture and storage, and presently anticipates spending to reach an additional $7 billion. Short video below features VP Joe Biden discussing his admonition for coal firing power plants in America, oddly enough.