Uppity Wisconsin

One of the continual drum-beats of the energy industry is the promotion of the myth of clean coal.  If we need to continue the intense us of fossil fuel in this country, it's a reassuring notion to believe that somehow the environmental damage of coal burning could be stopped, while still using the vast resource of coal the US has. 

However, as a Christmas present to the people of Tennessee , we're reminded this morning just how clean coal can be, as a wall of fly-ash sludge has breached its containment pond, and washed over 400 acres of land.  This has contaminated the water supply for a large number of people and made several homes uninhabitable.  I expect that the cleanup for this incident will be lengthy and extremely expensive. The current push to continue to use coal and nuclear energy, despite the long-term environmental damage caused by both, is an irresponsible approach to stewardship of our country and the planet, and as we continue to reap the rewards of not maintaining the fragile infrastructure that holds this garbage in place, we'll see this sort of incident more and more.

In hopes for the new year, please let us try to concentrate on moving forward on energy policy, and making a transition to a modern energy economy based on conservation and renewable energy, letting us live in a 21st century of safe and responsible energy.