Barack Obama statements on coal

{{#Badges: CoalSwarm}} Barack Obama has called climate change “one of the greatest moral challenges of our generation” and has proposed investing $150 billion over ten years to research and develop renewables, biofuels, efficiency, “clean coal,” and other clean technologies. Despite his insistence on the importance of low-emissions coal plants and developing clean coal technologies, Obama does not support a moratorium on new coal development until these technologies are viable. He has stated, however, that he “will consider whatever policy tools are necessary, including standards that ban new traditional coal facilities, to ensure that we move quickly to commercialize and deploy low carbon coal technology.” Obama claims a “stringent cap” on carbon will render it uneconomic to build new, traditional coal facilities and will discourage the further use of existing but “inefficient” facilities. Existing coal plants would be retrofitted with coal capture and sequestration technology if and when it becomes available.

Obama has historically been a proponent of the coal industry, and is a staunch supporter of "clean coal" technologies. In 1997, he voted to use sales taxes to help reopen closed coal mines and create "incentives to attract new businesses that use coal." In 2001, he said, "I am a strong supporter, I think, of downstate coal interests and our need to prop up and improve the outputs downstate," before voting for legislation that provided $3.5 billion in loan guarantees to construct coal-fired power pants with no means of controlling carbon emissions. Before voting for the bill, Obama said, In 2003, Obama voted to allow $300 million in bonds for the construction and expansion of coal plants. When he ran for U.S. Senate in 2004, he announced that "there's always going to be a role for coal" in Illinois.

On January 4, 2007, Obama helped introduce the “Coal-to-Liquid Fuel Promotion Act of 2007.” The bill was intended to help grow the coal-to-liquids industry through tax incentives and public-private partnerships. However, while the bill may have appealed to the coal industry in his home state of Illinois, he was strongly criticized by environmentalists. Obama then qualified his position by saying he would only support liquefied coal if it emitted 20 percent less carbon over its lifecycle than conventional fuels.

On June 19, 2007, Obama voted in favor of an amendment to establish a loan program for projects to produce syngas from coal and other feedstocks, while working to lower greenhouse gas emissions. The amendment did not pass.

On October 8, 2007, Obama reaffirmed his support for "clean coal" technology but stated his support for "a ban on new traditional coal facilities":

And we must find a way to stop coal from polluting our atmosphere without pretending that our nation's most abundant energy source will just go away. It won't. It will also require taking steps to ensure that China's coal emissions are curbed as well. Already, some coal pollution from China's dirty plants is making its way to California. That's why we must invest in clean coal technologies that we can use at home and share with the world. Until those technologies are available, I will rely on the carbon cap and whatever tools are necessary to stop new dirty coal plants from being built in America - including a ban on new traditional coal facilities.

Below is a list of statements made by Barack Obama and his campaign about coal issues.

"Clean" Coal

• "I am also pleased that the bill includes funding I requested for research into combination plug-in hybrid and flexible fuel vehicles that could travel up to 500 miles per gallon of gasoline, as well as more investment into clean-coal technology," after voting for the Bush Energy bill in 2005, which included a $1.8 billion tax credit for investments in clean-coal facilities.

• “To counter the threat climate change poses to America’s future, we must invest in clean, domestically produced energy that leaves no environmental footprint. Carbon sequestration is a first step we can take to solving the climate crisis by limiting the emissions of existing plants.”

• On gaining political consensus for his goal of 80 percent reductions by 2050: "We'll have to deal with the fact that many of our power plants are coal burning, and consider what investments we're willing to make in coal sequestration. If we make sure that the burdens and benefits of a strong environmental policy are evenly spread across the economy, then people will want to see us take on this problem in an aggressive way."

• "If the technology exists for us to use coal in a clean fashion, then that is something all of us should welcome, particularly because China and India are building coal-fired power plants at a rapid rate, and they likely have lifespans of several decades. Coal is a cheaper resource, and they're going to be figuring out a way to exploit it, so we should help to find technologies that will ensure that if it is used, it is used cleanly. The U.S. is recognized as the global leader in understanding better geologic coal-sequestration technologies. If we abandon that leadership, we risk leaving the rest of the planet wide open to investing billions in polluting infrastructure. But I stress again that my position has been consistent throughout: If we are using coal in the absence of these clean technologies, then we are going to be worsening the trend of global warming, and that is something that we can't do."

• On whether he supports a freeze on new coal development in the US until clean-coal technologies become available: "I believe that relying on the ingenuity of the free market, coupled with a strong carbon cap, is the best way to reduce carbon emissions rather than an arbitrary freeze on development."

• “We could invest in renewable sources of energy and in clean coal technology and create up to 5 million new green jobs in the bargain, including new clean coal jobs,” at a campaign stop in West Virginia.

• Obama "helped lead the fight for clean coal to protect our environment and save good-paying American jobs," in an ad in Kentucky depicting Obama as a friend of the coal industry.

• "Barack Obama believes in clean Kentucky coal," on a direct mailer from the Obama campaign distributed in Kentucky before the state's May 20 primary.

• "Obama will significantly increase the resources devoted to the commercialization and deployment of low-carbon coal technologies. Obama will consider whatever policy tools are necessary, including standards that ban new traditional coal facilities, to ensure that we move quickly to commercialize and deploy low carbon coal technology."

• In Obama's new Energy Plan, announced in August 2008:
  • "Obama will strategically invest $150 billion over 10 years to accelerate the commercialization of plug‐in hybrids, promote development of commercial scale renewable energy, encourage energy efficiency, invest in low emissions coal plants, advance the next generation of biofuels and fuel infrastructure, and begin transition to a new digital electricity grid."
  • "Carbon capture and storage technologies hold enormous potential to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions as we power our economy with domestically produced and secure energy. As a U.S. Senator, Obama has worked tirelessly to ensure that clean coal technology becomes commercialized. An Obama administration will provide incentives to accelerate private sector investment in commercial scale zero‐carbon coal facilities. In order to maximize the speed with which we advance this critical technology, Obama will instruct DOE to enter into public private partnerships to develop 5 “first‐of‐a‐kind” commercial scale coal‐fired plants with carbon capture and sequestration."

Coal-to-Liquids

• "We must continue down the path of reducing our reliance on foreign oil. Like corn to ethanol for gasoline engines, we also can make soybeans, animal fats, and coal into diesel. We have the technology, we have the interest, and we have the need. We just need the federal commitment... Creating a Renewable Diesel Standard will help alleviate diesel costs, create jobs, promote rural development, and help insulate our economy from oil shocks. And it will create new markets for Illinois soybeans and Illinois coal. We should pass this legislation immediately to take another concrete step towards energy independence," when introducing legislation calling for a Renewable Diesel Standard that would require 2 billion gallons of diesel alternatives by the year 2015.

• "The people I meet in town hall meetings back home would rather fill their cars with fuel made from coal reserves in Southern Illinois than with fuel made from crude reserves in Saudi Arabia. We already have the technology to do this in a way that's both clean and efficient. What we've been lacking is the political will. This common sense, bipartisan legislation will greatly increase investment in coal-to-liquid fuel technology, which will create jobs and lessen our dependence on foreign oil. Illinois Basin Coal has more untapped energy potential than the oil reserves of Saudi Arabia and Kuwait combined. Instead of enriching the Saudis, we can use these reserves to bring a renaissance for Illinois coal," on introducing S.3325, the "Coal-To-Liquid Fuel Promotion Act of 2006," with Senator Jim Bunning (R-KY)

• "Illinois basin coal has more untapped energy potential than the oil reserves of Saudi Arabia and Kuwait combined. Senator Obama believes it is crucial that we invest in technologies to use these resources to reduce our dependence on foreign oil."

• "Senator Obama supports research into all technologies to help solve our climate change and energy dependence problems, including shifting our energy use to renewable fuels and investing in technology that could make coal a clean-burning source of energy. However, unless and until this technology is perfected, Senator Obama will not support the development of any coal-to-liquid fuels unless they emit at least 20% less life-cycle carbon than conventional fuels. If an amendment is offered on the Senate floor that would provide incentives for - or mandate the use of - coal-to-liquid fuels without these environmental safeguards, Senator Obama will oppose the amendment," in an email from Obama's Senate office to environmental groups.

• "Achieving energy independence and significantly reducing greenhouse gas emissions are two of the greatest challenges America faces. With the right technological innovations, coal has the potential to be a cleaner burning, domestic alternative to imported oil. However we are not there yet. The Bunning amendment would have been premature in requiring the production of billions of gallons of coal-to-liquids without providing strong environmental safeguards to ensure that this new fuel alleviates, not worsens, our climate crisis. The Tester amendment, on the other hand, gives us the tools to determine whether we can make coal into a clean fuel source. We cannot solve the climate crisis without addressing coal – which generates half of America's electricity... Moving forward, I believe we should only invest in coal-to-liquid fuels that burn at least 20 percent less lifecycle carbon emissions than conventional fuels. I also introduced a low-carbon fuel standard to mandate a 10 percent reduction in emissions for all vehicle fuels by 2020, with incentives for producers to make their fuels more efficient and to exceed that level, without prejudging which fuel will turn out to be the best for our environment and our economy."

• "I was always firm that if the life-cycle carbon emissions of coal-to-liquid were higher than gasoline, we couldn't do it because it would contradict my position on reducing greenhouse gases. But I also believe that, because of the abundance of coal in the U.S., coal-based fuels could be a substitute for some of the oil we import from the Middle East, as long as we can reduce the resulting CO₂ emissions to 20 percent below current levels from petroleum-based fuels."

• "Our original bill on coal-to-liquids -- which generated a lot of heat in the environmental community, no pun intended -- proposed $200 million for demonstration projects, to see where this technology might take us... But I stress again that my position has been consistent throughout: If we are using coal in the absence of these clean technologies, then we are going to be worsening the trend of global warming, and that is something that we can't do."

Coal and Global Warming

• "We'll also need to find a way to use coal - America's most abundant fossil fuel - without adding harmful greenhouse gases to the environment," in a May 2007 announcement of his initiative to curb climate change.

• "I would not make huge investments or try to take technologies to scale that worsen the climate-change situation. But it may be appropriate for the federal government to make small investments in pilot projects to see if we can make dirty fuels cleaner... My general view is that we should experiment with all sorts of potential energy sources - don't prejudge what works and what doesn't, but insist that we have very strict standards in terms of where we want to end up, and enforce those standards vigorously.

• "We are not acting as good stewards of God's Earth when our bottom line puts the size of our profits before the future of our planet," in an October 2007 speech on climate change.

Cap and Trade

• "Obama supports implementation of a market-based cap-and-trade system to reduce carbon emissions by the amount scientists say is necessary: 80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050. Obama's cap-and-trade system will require all pollution credits to be auctioned. A 100 percent auction ensures that all polluters pay for every ton of emissions they release, rather than giving these emission rights away to coal and oil companies. Some of the revenue generated by auctioning allowances will be used to support the development of clean energy, to invest in energy efficiency improvements, and to address transition costs, including helping American workers affected by this economic transition."

• "Barack Obama supports implementation of an economy‐wide cap‐and‐trade system to reduce carbon emissions by the amount scientists say is necessary: 80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050. This market mechanism has worked before and will give all American consumers and businesses the incentives to use their ingenuity to develop economically effective solutions to climate change."

• "Obama's cap‐and‐trade policy will require all pollution credits to be auctioned. A 100 percent auction ensures that all industries pay for every ton of emissions they release, rather than giving these valuable emission rights away to companies on the basis of their past pollution. A small portion of the receipts generated by auctioning allowances ($15 billion per year) will be used to support the development of clean energy, invest in energy efficiency improvements, and help develop the next generation of biofuels and clean energy vehicles – measures that will help the economy and help meet the emissions reduction targets. All remaining receipts will be used for rebates and other transition relief to ensure that families and communities are not adversely impacted by the transition to a new energy, low carbon economy."