Think Progress – If there’s one thing January’s massive chemical spill in West Virginia taught Jeremy Richardson, it’s this: no matter what his power bill says every month, coal is “not cheap.” Read
“This was a chemical used to process coal,” said Richardson, senior energy analyst and West Virginia specialist at the Union of Concerned Scientists. “It really points to the need to not have all of our economic activity reliant on just one or two things.”
The spill that contaminated the drinking water of 300,000 West Virginians has reignited debate in the state, not just over the need for stricter chemical and coal industry regulations but how the state’s reliance on these industries is affecting its residents and environment.
