Coal Lobbying Loses Steam As Climate Awareness Rises

Coal Lobbying Loses Steam As Climate Awareness Rises Think of big businesses that lobby to restrict US work on climate change. ExxonMobil and its hard-line petroleum allies probably come up first. However, we sometimes forget the participation of many of the flagging US coal barons. The Climate Investigations Center, a small progressive group that monitors energy and environmental outliers, says the coal lobbying influence is waning. CIC released a survey this month of the lobbying spend and the influence of climate change on it. In 2015, coal generated about 33% of US electricity. Only a decade ago, it made up about half the total. Some of the factors surrounding coal’s declining market share: 1. Increased public awareness of how burning coal endangers living organisms 2. Many different benefits of transitioning away from coal 3. Low natural gas prices 4. Rapid growth of renewable energy As a result, major banks have cut back on financing coal mining. Federal, state, and local governments have become more vocal. Many of the coal majors themselves have begun to reduce air pollution, promote renewable energy, and address climate change directly. Read more at http://ift.tt/2bbDiSe