Energy Now's Susan McGinnis hit the panel with some very tough questions. The issue of mountain top coal removal in the Appalachian region underscores the stark contrast of the need for jobs/development in an economically depressed state and region with the fact that Appalachia is also a place of environmental sensitivity and natural beauty. Further, the overlay not only of the specific impact on a particular area, but the entire GHG vs. Green energy passions in a super-heated mid-term election cycle has ramped up the volume and the aggressiveness on an inherently tough debate. Thus, the discussion on energy oriented political advertising goes hand in glove in this context. And, the presidential impact of the potential revocation of a previously granted EPA permit to proceed on the Spruce Mine project further ups the legal and policy ante for all of the players-- mine owners, miners, the Administration and particularly the EPA. The inevitable litigation and kryptonite fueled nature of the issues will keep these battles alive for many years to come, putting pressure on all stakeholders; uncertainty and dissatisfaction are the only guaranteed foreseeable outcomes.

 

With respect to my comment on natural gas being a "transitional" fuel-- well, that depends on what the definition of "transitional" is-- in my mind, it translates to a transition to that nirvana like state in which a giant technological leap occurs that will be the Big Answer to reliance on fossil fuels; until that happy and placid time, natural gas is an essential source of plentiful, accessible and highly desirable energy, particularly to the United States.