Beech Tree News Network

What does Kentucky produce? Our state has a solid agricultural base as well as manufacturing. In 2009, Kentucky ranked 28th in the U.S. based on gross state product (California was ranked first and Vermont fiftieth.), producing 156,553 million dollars in goods and services (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U.S._states_by_GDP).
Answers.com stated that Kentucky produces the following products and services (http://www.answers.com/Q/What_does_Kentucky_produce):
•    The Chevrolet Corvette
•    Hogs
•    The Toyota autos
•    Tobacco products
•    The Ford F Series
•    Soybeans
•    Transportation equipment
•    Horses
•    Corn and its by-product bourbon whiskey
•    Cows and their by-products in the dairy and fertilizer industries
•    Coal
•    Tourism
Being a Kentuckian, I understand that this is an abbreviated list. Our state contributes to the production of much more.

One of the products mentioned was coal. We’ve heard much about coal in political advertisements recently. We see bumper stickers that say “Friends of Coal.” And, many of us have family or friends who have been a part of that industry. During my lifetime and before, Kentucky coal has had an important role in providing people with a livelihood.

What has changed? According to a recent media report, many Central Appalachian (Eastern Kentucky, southern West Virginia and southwest Virginia) coal mines have lost ground in the coal market (http://preview.msn.com/en-us/news/us/kentucky-is-hit-hard-as-its-coal-su...). Some of the Central Appalachian coal problems include the following:
•    Cost of labor. Much imported coal comes from Columbia where mine labor is cheap.
•    Rail transportation. Coal must compete with oil for rail cars. U.S. coal companies have had problems in getting their product delivered to power plants. But, imported coal is brought on ships to power plants along the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic coast, avoiding competition with oil for rail space.
•    Depth of coal. The cost to mine Central Appalachian coal has been rising steadily as miners have to go deeper and deeper to get to the coal seams (This area has been mined for many years.).

On a somewhat positive note for friends of coal, the rise in natural gas prices and last winter’s cold temperatures produced an unprecedented energy demand. Also, despite federal environmental rules aimed at air pollution and global warming, U.S. coal production is forecast to go up both this year and next. And, the nation's fastest-growing coal region, the Illinois Basin, produces coal that's cheaper than Appalachia coal. That basin extends from Illinois into the western parts of Indiana and Kentucky.

Ellsworth Huntington said, “Fertile soil, level plains, easy passage across the mountains, coal, iron, and other metals imbedded in the rocks, and a stimulating climate, all shower their blessings upon man” (http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/coal.html). Since Kentucky is a part of the Illinois Basin, our state may continue to produce coal for quite a while – a blessing. So, maybe those political ads about coal make sense.