White House to revamp U.S. coal program as soon as Friday: sources
Source: Reuters
Thu Jan 14, 2016 6:54pm EST
White House to revamp U.S. coal program as soon as Friday: sources
WASHINGTON | BY PATRICK RUCKER AND VALERIE VOLCOVICI
The Obama administration will announce as soon as Friday an overhaul of how the United States manages coal development on federal land, according to government and conservationist sources, in a further move to confront climate change.
In his State of the Union address on Tuesday, Democratic President Barack Obama said he would "change the way we manage our oil and coal resources, so that they better reflect the costs they impose on taxpayers and our planet."
The new plan will require federal officials, when weighing land use decisions, to consider how mining and burning coal adds to greenhouse gas pollution, said environmental group sources familiar with the plans.
The overhaul also will aim to maximize returns for taxpayers by updating royalty rates when mining companies pull coal from federal land, said the sources.
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Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-coal-idUSKCN0US2WB20160114