Chris Wright, US secretary of energy, displays a signed order approving an LNG permit extension for the Delfin LNG project on the Louisiana Coast: F. Carter Smith/Bloomberg via Getty Images (Carter Smith)
The Departments of Energy and the Interior and the EPA will take actions supporting the Trump executive order Tuesday, including the Interior ending the current moratorium on federal coal leasing and removing regulatory burdens for coal mines, a press release first obtained by Fox Digital shows.
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"The Golden Age is here, and we are starting to ‘Mine, Baby, Mine’ for clean American coal," Department of the Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said in a statement provided to Fox News Digital. "Interior is unlocking America’s full potential in energy dominance and economic development to make life more affordable for every American family while showing the world the power of America’s natural resources and innovation."
Abandoned mining equipment at a former coal mine in Welch, West Virginia. (Ian Mahathey/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
The Energy Department's Loan Program Office’s Energy Infrastructure Reinvestment (EIR) Program will also make $200 billion in financing available for coal energy investments, such as upgrading energy infrastructure and building new facilities that utilize legacy energy infrastructure.
The Department of Energy also will work with the Interior Department to recommend that coal, in the context of steelmaking, be designated as critical material and a critical mineral in the 2025 Critical Materials Assessment.
An aerial picture taken on September 29, 2022, shows trucks driving past a silt pond at a coal mine operated by Blackhawk Mining and Pine Branch Mining in Lost Creek, Kentucky. (Diane Desobeau/AFP via Getty Images)
"The Energy Department is committed to restoring American energy dominance and strengthening America’s industrial base," the Department of Energy said of the initiative. "Secretary Wright will continue to work with all members of the National Energy Dominance Council to eliminate unnecessary regulatory burdens on coal and unleash American energy."
While the EPA is set to announce that $5.8 million in State and Tribal Assistance Grants funds will be made available to provide grants assisting states in the implementation of EPA-approved state Coal Combustion Residual program, which comes after Zeldin's EPA already has taken a handful of coal-related actions, such as reconsidering the Biden-era "Clean Power Plan 2.0." plan and revising coal regulations.
"President Trump is delivering on the mandate Americans gave him last November by empowering different forms of domestic energy to drive down costs, increase domestic energy supply, and improve our grid security as we pioneer the path to become the Artificial Intelligence capital of the world," EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said in comment provided to Fox News Digital.
"The Obama and Biden administrations deliberately tried to regulate coal out of existence. Under my leadership, economic growth and environmental stewardship are not mutually exclusive choices. We are committed to supporting all forms of energy, including clean beautiful coal, and have already taken steps to bolster America’s energy dominance and make energy affordable again while ensuring we have the cleanest air, land and water on the planet," Zeldin added.
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Producing energy at home in the U.S. was a cornerstone of Trump's campaign, with the then-candidate vowing that the U.S. would no longer rely on foreign nations for oil by reinvigorating the coal industry, and tapping oil in the U.S.
Chris Wright, Donald Trump, Doug Burgum (Reuters)
"We will develop the liquid gold that is right under our feet, including American oil and natural gas and we will also embrace nuclear, clean coal, hydropower, which is fantastic, and every other form of affordable energy to get it done," Trump said in 2023.
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The Tuesday executive order is expected to build on Trump's pledge to make the U.S. energy independent while also providing cheaper energy costs to Americans, and follows previous actions such as withdrawing from the Paris climate agreement, terminating the liberal climate plan dubbed the Green New Deal in a January executive order, and reversing a pause on liquefied natural exports, a fact sheet on the upcoming executive order argued.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/us-federal-agencies-unleash-coal-energy-after-biden-stifled-it-mine-baby-mine