In 2010, coal-fired power plants represented 45% of the electricity generated in the United States and oil a smaller amount, 1%. Combined together they are the dominant air polluters and facing tough new restrictions from the EPA. Unfortunately, they have a few years to clean-up and that doesn’t help if you live in one of …
Continue reading “Map of coal and oil-fired power plants in the United States”
“In the past year, coal plants have been facing a perfect storm of falling natural gas prices, a continued trend of high coal prices and weak demand for electricity,” Susan Tierney wrote in the report. Tierney wrote that those factors have combined to make coal a less desirable fuel source. Coal-generated electricity has been waning …
Continue reading “Coal power plants are going offline, in favor of Natural Gas plants”
Two utilities announced the planned closure of nine coal plants in Illinois, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New Jersey, bringing total retirements (executed and planned) since January 2010 past the 100 mark to 106. A combination of high domestic coal prices, low natural gas prices, new air quality regulations, coordinated activist pressure, and cost-competitive renewables are making …
Continue reading “Over 100 coal plants have closed in U.S. – since last year”
The NRC’s preliminary event report says plant operators estimated the steam leak at 82 gallons per day. That may sound like a lot but regulators consider it small compared to ruptures in steam tubes at other plants between 1975 and 2000 that vented as much as 630 gallons of radioactive steam per minute. via OC …