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eridani

(51,907 posts)
11. Inslee-Kitzhaber letter
Thu Mar 28, 2013, 04:35 AM
Mar 2013
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20130327/OPINION01/703279955/-1/OPINION#

As the major owner of coal reserves in the Western U.S., the federal government must consider whether it has appropriately priced the coal leases that it continues to grant, including the practice of granting non-competitive leases," Inslee and Kitzhaber write. "These issues raise significant concerns that we are subsidizing the export of coal at the same time we are winding down domestic consumption due to serious environmental and health concerns."

The debate is bipartisan. Are sweetheart deals bleeding taxpayers? In the Pacific Northwest, the lens is narrower, specifically how to "mitigate" for 18 more trains a day from the Powder River Basin to the proposed Gateway Pacific Terminal near Bellingham. How will this affect families and commuters in Marysville, Edmonds and beyond?

The remarkable aspect about the Inslee-Kitzhaber letter is its frankness, insisting that the CEQ undertake a thorough review of the greenhouse gas and air-quality impacts of coal leasing before "the U.S. and its partners make irretrievable long-term investments in expanding this trade."
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