The future of coal in West Virginia’s energy plan

Earlier this week, Governor Manchin held a coal summit at Stonewall Jackson Resort in Lewis County. Political leaders and coal industry officials discussed how to make coal viable in a world concerned about climate change, and our dependence on foreign oil.

 The Manchin Administration is developing an energy plan. The governor’s goal is to make West Virginia independent of foreign oil by the year 2030. To do that, he wants to build five coal liquefaction plants.

The governor’s plan has received a lot of praise from the coal industry, and criticism from environmentalists who believe he’s relying too much on coal. Beth Vorhees spoke to two people who represent these views:

• Roger Lilly, the marketing manager for Walker Machinery, a company that serves the coal industry. You’ve probably seen his work in pro-coal marketing. He coined the phrase “Coal keeps the lights on.”

• Allan Tweddle, a Charleston businessman and environmentalist who serves on the governor’s Public Energy Authority. He’s also received training in Al Gore’s Climate Change Project.

 This segment aired on the television program Outlook. A version also aired on the radio program West Virginia Morning.

• Click here for video, part 1

• Click here for video, part 2

• Transcript of coal discussion on Outlook

• Click here for radio version audio

• Web Extra: Energy Summit news conference video

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