The War on Coal Is Punishing Indian Country

The Wall Street Journal ^ | October 12, 2013 | Terry Anderson

[george76]

To judge by the headlines and media chatter, the only important issue involving American Indians in Washington these days has to do with changing the name of the local pro football team. Those who care about real-world Indians might want to focus instead on how the Obama administration's hostility to the coal industry does more harm to Native Americans than any NFL franchise ever will.

The Environmental Protection Agency recently ramped up its attack on coal by issuing stringent limits on carbon-dioxide emissions from new coal-fired generating plants, and the agency has more regulations in the works for existing power plants. The rules are considered tough enough to prevent any new coal plants from being built in the U.S. Such policies are just more bad news about coal in Indian Country, where the economic potential from energy is huge but the federal government virtually prohibits its development.

Consider this: Indian reservations contain almost 30% of the nation's coal reserves west of the Mississippi, as well as significant deposits of oil, natural gas and uranium. The Council of Energy Resource Tribes, a tribal energy consortium, estimates the value of these resources at nearly $1.5 trillion. Yet these energy resources on Indian lands remain largely untapped, helping to lock Native Americans in a poverty trap. Indian incomes are about a third of those for all U.S. citizens, and unemployment rates are four times the national average.

The Crow Indian reservation in Montana, with an unemployment rate of nearly 50%, for example, sits on one of the nation's largest coal reserves. Approximately half of the tribe's annual $27 million general fund comes from coal, but federal regulations prevent the tribe from fully capitalizing on this energy asset.

...

The damage by government policy can come in a variety of forms

[Resolute Conservative]

At least this time it is not the white man screwing them.

[VerySadAmerican]

Once again we’re given proof that a dictator is in the white house. The republicans in the house could end all of this by simply introducing a bill that not only cuts off funds for obamacare but also for all the other out of control agencies like the EPA. Then go home.

[Army Air Corps]

Ping.

[Bender2]

Re: The War on Coal Is Punishing Indian Country

Whoa! I thought this was the thread... about my Cowboys whipping up on them Deadskins Sunday night--

And I sure am glad I didn't call them... Redskins!

[mathurine]

The Redskins should refer to BHO as “the great white father’ and see if he likes that.

[joelt]

My recollection is that ANWAR development was going be employing Native Americans and making royalty payments to tribes in Alaska. I never understood why the dopey republicans lever this to a better outcome.

[reformedliberal]

The donks have captive tribes that sue and agitate on command. Any Natives that advocate for any capitalistic enterprises are treated just as conservative blacks are. I don’t know what the Native equivalent to an Uncle Tom is, but that is the characterization.

The GOP can’t do anything at all. The progs have conditioned their followers to froth at the mouth and scream imprecations at anything labeled Republican. I doubt if any of today’s Democrat voters will ever vote for any Republican for the rest of their lives. They may not vote, but that might be as far as it goes.

When we are finally irrevocably reduced to third world status, it will be blamed on capitalism, Republicans and Bush.