New Campaign Drives the Point: Clean Coal is America’s Power

Americans for Balanced Energy Choices reminds electricity consumers that coal generates more than half our electricity

Alexandria, Va., October 22, 2007 – With energy security issues weighing heavily on the minds of Americans by foreign oil prices topping $90 a barrel for the first time, Americans for Balanced Energy Choices (ABEC) today launched a new campaign to raise the public’s awareness of the inherent benefits of coal-based electricity.

The America’s Power campaign (www.AmericasPower.com) reminds consumers that 50 percent of their electricity comes from coal, and strives to ensure the development of energy and environmental policies that will allow the American public to enjoy the benefits of affordable, secure and reliable electricity well into the future. The campaign also reinforces the goal of ensuring ultra-low/near-zero emissions, including the capture and storage of greenhouse gases.

“Quite simply, the facts in the America’s Power campaign are vital to our country’s energy and environmental future. Americans are concerned about higher energy prices and they’re asking whether we have a real alternative to relying more and more on energy resources imported from other countries”, said Steve Miller, President of ABEC. “Knowing all the facts about American coal can help us all feel more secure about our energy future and our ability to continue making progress on improving the environment,” Miller commented.

ABEC’s new campaign comes at a time when energy issues are at the forefront of presidential, national and state policy discussions. As ABEC demonstrated in the report “The Rising Burden of Energy Costs on American Families, 1997-2007” the country’s poorest families will spend nearly 46 percent of their income on energy and transportation costs. These concerns are prompting policy makers across the nation to take a new look at coal’s role in meeting America’s growing demand for affordable and reliable energy.

“Most consumers are surprised to learn that more than half of our country’s electricity is generated by coal. And while there are those groups that try to demonize the use of coal, the facts stand for themselves; the industry’s commitment to clean-coal technologies already has made America’s coal-based plants 70 percent cleaner.

“As Americans turn on a light or watch TV, the odds are good that coal is the resource that makes it possible. And because our demand for electricity continues to increase, the question isn’t ‘if’ we’ll use coal – it’s ‘how’ and the answer is ‘cleanly,” Miller concluded.

For more information, visit www.AmericasPower.com.

ABEC is a non-profit, non-partisan group, consisting of more than 100,000 members, that promotes a dialogue with recognized community leaders across the nation to discuss balancing America’s growing demand for electricity with the need to protect the environment. See www.BalancedEnergy.org for more information.