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Jan 1, 1987

By David Scrymgeour

All low cost coal has been mined. Engineers are searching for a safe and effective way to mine coal seams' deep within the earth. The most modern of these is the RL, an acronym for Robotic Labor. Mining robots are programmed to do specific jobs but can think on their own during an emergency. MR's, or mining robots, usually have a same basic shape. A torso is mounted on treads. Designers chose treads because it gives the robot a great deal of mobility. The torso has two arms. One arm is equipped with a human hand. The other has a human-like hand. Mining is done underground. A small robot goes around punching holes in the coal. A small charge is inserted in the hole. The MR ignites the charge with his laser. It explodes after three minutes. The MR returns to the station where his battery is recharged. Mobile cement barricades are moved between the blasting area and other working MR's. After the charge explodes the barricades are moved to another area. The MR returns and cuts the coal chunks into pieces. Another robot comes and loads the coal and carries it to the loading bin. From there it is taken to the surface where it is weighed and shipped. The whole process was done by robots. Humans just supervise but help in an emergency or malfunction.

Jan 1, 1987

By David Griffiths

I am not an orator and have never said a word in public during my thirty years' experience in the coal mines of Colorado; but, being requested to speak by our worthy chairman, and as I am deeply interested in the future welfare of this organization, 1 will make an effort to say a few words in behalf of the Rocky Mountain Coal-Mining Institute, which we are about to organize. As 1 understand it, it is the object and intent of this organization not merely to assemble occasionally for the purpose of discussing various problems in coal-mining, and thus to obtain the best possible results in economic operations, but its especial duty will be to devise ways and means whereby accidents in coal mines will be minimized. Figuratively speaking. we are about to plant a tree in the State House of Colorado, and desire its roots and branches to extend over Wyoming on the north, New Mexico on the south. and Utah on the west. So we expect this tree to bear fruit over a vast area. We must remember that the planting of a tree, even in good soil, is useless unless we cultivate, prune, and nurture its development. If we will not do so, the tree will not bear the desired fruit. So, in order to make the Rocky Mountain Institute a success, we must not only start it off in good shape, but we must keep on adding to its strength in various ways, so that it will become a known factor and a recognized power over this broad territory. In other coal-mining states and countries of the world much has been accomplished through similar organizations to reduce loss of life among men engaged in the production of coal, and there is no reason why our institute in the West should not be equally useful and attain the same results. There are many ways by which this organization can be made beneficial to the men engaged, in various capacities, in handling the "dusky diamond." I will endeavor to confine my brief remarks to the necessity of a crusade of an educational nature among three classes of men that are directly and indirectly connected with coal mines. First-We need to educate ouselves. It is amazing how few of our number, holding positions of trust, and having charge of men in and around coal mines, are conversant with our brief mining laws and cognizant of our duties in enforcing them. Going down the line to our company men and miners, I think 1 can safely say that not over 5 per cent of them are in any way familiar with the statutes that have been enacted for their especial benefit and protection. This condition, 1 think, can be, and ought to be, remedied, and. if thoroughly done, the effect in reducing loss of life will soon become apparent. Now, to reach the officers or men in charge I consider an easy matter, which could be accomplished in this manner: Have our general managers or owners of coal properties issue a circular, compelling every superintendent pit boss, fire boss, or other officer having charge of men, to send them a copy of the mining law in their own handwriting every six months. But to come to the masses engaged in coal-mining. to get these men of various nationalities educated in the mining law, will be a difficult task indeed; but I think I have an original scheme that is practical, and which, if put in operation, would work wonders in educating our company men and miners. This plan is as follows: Have every school in every coal-mining district devote one-half hour on Friday afternoon after school hours to the familiarizing of all male pupils between the ages of twelve and sixteen years with the contents of our laws governing coal mines. At the end of each term of school, award small prizes- say, $5, $3, and $2- to those that are best posted, the principal of the school to be the sole adjudicator. Now, someone may say that this is causing extra work to our teachers, with no compensation. In this respect, I will vouch that 95 percent of our teachers will do this work gratis, providing we can show them the benefit of the system. If we go a step farther, and put an incentive before our teachers, probably it would be a good scheme to award a prize-say, $20 or more-for the best set of practical amendments to our mining laws complied by any school and its teachers, judges of the amendment to be members of this Institute and appointed by the President. There is no denying the fact that we need to be educated, and that we should adopt some system that will encourage a knowledge of practical and scientific mining amoung our present forces and the rising generation. Newspaper Men Need Educating Second-Our reporters and press agents need to

Jan 1, 1987

Jan 1, 1987

By John R. Spencer

Today's coal market offers many unique buying and selling opportunities. By reviewing past and present marketing practices, new contracting philosophies can be developed with cooperation between the buyer and seller that can lead to a more stable market. This paper presents an analysis of the past and present coal markets and techniques that are currently being used in contracting that are intended to develop a more stable market place in the future.

Jan 1, 1987

H. DEAN JACOT RMCMI PRESIDENT 1987-1988 on behalf of The RMCMI Board of Directors and Officers The Rocky Mountain Coal Mining Institute cordially invites you and your family to attend the 84th Regular Meeting and Convention to be held June 26, 27 and 28, 1988 at Beaver Run Resort Breckenridge, Colorado

Jan 1, 1987

The Annual Business Meeting of the members of The Rocky Mountain Coal Mining Institute held during the 83rd Regular Meeting of the Institute was called to order by the president, Bernard Bernstrom at 2:50 p.m. Tuesday, June 30, 1987 in the Janss Auditorium of the Snowmass Conference Center in Snowmass Village, Colorado. Thirty-one were present and a quorum was established. The president outlined the purpose of the meeting was to inform the members of the status of the affairs and activities of the corporation during the preceding year. It was moved by Leon Jeannot, seconded and carried to approve the minutes as published in the 1986 Proceedings. The chair called for reports of the various committees and these reports will by placed on file in the RMCMI Office. Bylaws and Resolutions. Chairman Loren V. Linville reported there were no bylaws revisions. He further reported that the Board had adopted three resolutions: (1) Noting the passing of members since the last convention-Benton Boyd, E. A. Hare, E. S. Moran, Jr. and Edward Prostel. (2) Of appreciation to the Executive Secretary, officers, chairman, Diamond Jubilee chairman and committees and convention committees for an outstanding job in preparing for the 83rd Regular Meeting of the Institute. (3) To recommend to all RMCMI members that, on an individual basis, they each oppose replacing coal fired generation with natural gas generation. Membership. Chairman Leon Jeannot reported that at the beginning of the 1986 fiscal year, there were 881 active or dues-paying members. During the year, 219 members were dropped for a variety of reasons such as non-payment of dues, transfer, employed elsewhere, change of address. Ninety-six new members have been recruited for an active total of 758. In addition there are 55 Life Members, 20 senior members, six scholarship winners and seven supporters for a net total of 846. The budget of RMCMI calls for 1,000 active members and we must address and plan for those short-term prospects as they will certainly impact our membership. A full report is on file in the RMCMI office. Patrons of the Institute. Chairman Ira McKeever reported that only 59 Patrons renewed their support during 1986-87. Program. Chairman Bill Balaz announced that the convention program theme "This is OUR Life", as presented in "Past", "Present" and "Future" segments was very well received. He called for additional helpers another year and suggested that next year's program format be changed to a hard hitting one. Publicity. Chairman Tom Egan reported that of the three newsletters sent members during the year, that the most effective one was the newspaper format one and recommended its use next year. RMCMI hired Bob Jacob who heads his own public relations firm to solicit advertising for the Proceedings on a contract/ commission basis. He attended the convention for this purpose and to solicit business card ads. A full report is on file in the RMCMI office. Scholarship. Chairman Keith McGinnis reported that five of the six scholarship recipients were present at the convention. Each was introduced to the membership at the Tuesday morning Scholarship Breakfast, presented a plaque and responded. The input from each winner was most favorable to the program. Each was appreciative of the many contacts made and the educational seminars and programs. The selection process started in March and was completed in May, except for one university which had difficulty in providing a candidate. It is suggested that the initial contact with the institutions be made in December and completed by April 1. This year, for the first time, three of the six universities were visited for the purpose of interviewing the candidates. They were Colorado, Utah and Wyoming. A very positive feedback was received from these schools and it is recommended that the practice continue. CONVENTION COMMITTEES Convention Arrangements. Doris Finnie presented the following report: As a professional meeting planner, this Diamond Jubilee convention was indeed a great challenge. One meal was added to the package and thus increased the individual cost. Snowmass Resort Association is unique in that they utilize a conference coordinator who acts as the middle man between myself and the usual persons we deal with, like AV personnel, the chef, the banquet director, the steak fry personnel, the Sunday tour etc. so the office had to become creative. For instance, we learned early on we could not deal with the local florists. It cost us lots less to buy our flowers wholesale in Denver, have my husband drive them up and our West Virginia daughter to arrange them! But, finally her floral arrangement class at CSU paid off! This was truly a Finnie family orchestrated convention. Our Lakewood daughter acted as Scholar-

Jan 1, 1987

Profiled here are the six RMCMI Scholarship Award Winners for the 1987-88 academic year. Five attended the Diamond Jubilee Convention as guests of the Institute at the June 83rd Regular Meeting held in Snowmass Village. Colorado. Each received a recognition plaque and $500.00 to be used toward tuition in his junior year beginning September, 1987. Keith McGinnis. Scholarship Chairman, personally interviewed candidates at three of six colleges and universities in the program. As this is a continuing award the winners this year and those from last year will receive an additional $500.00credit toward tuition if they maintain a satisfactory academic average and are again recommended by their colleges or universities. Criteria for these awards are: I. That the award be make in the spring to a sophomore student to be used toward tuition during the junior year 2. That the recipient be both a U.S. citizen and a resident of the state involved. 3. That the recipient have good academic standing be pursuing a degree In a mining-related field and have an expressed interest in Western coal as a possible career path. Contributions to this worthy project are tax deductible. Checks payable to RMCMI Scholarship may be mailed to the RMCMI Office at 2700 Youngfield Street, Suite 100, Lakewood, CO 80215.

Jan 1, 1987

Jan 1, 1987

Bowdil Co. Bucyrus-Erie Co. Coal Age Coal Mining Cobre Tire Dresser Construction FMC Corp. T. J. Gundlach Machine Co. Ingersoll-Rand Joy Mfg. Co. K&P Sales Engineers, Inc. Kennametal Lively Mfg. Co. Long Airdox Co. MSA McLanahan Corp. National Mine Service Co. Page Engineering Co. Plateau Supply, Inc. Pyramid Parts Scandura, Inc. TIC Utah International Utah Power & Light Co. Western Energy Co.

Jan 1, 1986

By Michael A. Poling

Ladies and gentlemen, I appreciate this opportunity to be with you, and to share my outlook on the future of Federal coal leasing. I'm told that you wanted the best speaker on this subject in the world. Perhaps it's a reflection of these trying financial times, but I'm glad you finally agreed to settle for the best speaker your budget would afford. I have been asked to give you some insight on the status of Federal coal leasing, and how the budget problems facing the Department will affect the coal program. So I've polished up my crystal ball, and I'll try to give you a peek at the future. Before I do that, however, let me first go back in time - to when this Administration took office in 1981. We had a coal program then, after a hiatus of ten years. But that program was untested and - for reasons well known to all of you - did not work well in practice once we began operating the program. We went back to the drawing board and redesigned the program so that it can do what it is intended to do. We've made the program more predictable. That means that when future lease sales are scheduled, those sales will be reflective and reactive to the need to lease coal. On February 26, Secretary Hodel unveiled a framework for resumption of Federal leasing program activities, ending a more than two-year suspension of regional coal sales. The new program will provide the opportunity to satisfy market demand for acquiring and developing new leases, assure the government of fair market value for its coal reserves, and provide a stable supply of coal for this country's energy needs. The new program grew out of the Department's response to recommendations of the Linowes Commission and the Office of Technology Assessment, coupled with a supplemental environmental study. The Linowes Report, issued in 1984, contained 36 recommendations and three Judgments on leasing levels, tract selection, sale procedures, appraisal methods, key statutory and related factors, and organization and management of the leasing program. Major changes in the new leasing program reflect these concerns. We have developed a definition for captive tracts and devised procedures to appraise their value to the adjacent coal or mine owner. Other steps include a coal lease appraisal guide which describes our appraisal methodology and is available to the public. Improvements have also been made in the gathering of lease assignment information to help in estimating the value of potential lease tracts. To improve market analysis, a three-tiered system will be used to ensure that steps of the lease sale decision process are undertaken in the context of coal supply and demand. Regional Coal Teams will thus have the advantage of long range, regional and tract specific market studies to help them determine whether sufficient demand is expected first to warrant the initiation of activity planning, then to set regional leasing levels, and finally to actually offer specific tracts for lease sale. Sale procedures will also be improved in many ways to encourage competition, improve the chances for receiving adequate bids, and to evaluate whether bids represent fair market value. We made additional modifications to the program in response to the OTA recommendations. Regional Coal Teams have been given a larger role in recommending key decisions concerning the amounts of coal to be studied and the actual selection and scheduling of tracts for lease sale. These recommendations will be accepted unless the Secretary can cite an overriding national interest factor, or a governor's request to modify the recommendations. Smaller, more frequent sales will be held, to better judge market conditions and prevent over- or under-leasing. Public participation guidelines have been written, to document all opportunities for the public to comment at various stages in the planning process. We also decided that resource management plans prepared after the passage of FLPMA in 1976 must be completed, in order for a new round of lease sale planning to begin. The BLM will also beef up its procedures for consulting with affected Federal agencies during the planning process, to assure that the purposes and values of those agencies are considered and factored into land use decisions. To assure consistent use of an adequate data base in coal lease decision-making, Regional Coal Teams will develop standards and guidelines for data adequacy, and document the use of these standards. These procedures will also be applied to the unsuitability criteria screening process. Thus, the new leasing system announced by Secretary Hodel: is fully responsive to recommendations made by the Linowes Commission and the Office of Technology Assessment for improving environmental planning and fair market value procedures; gives the regional coal teams a major say in determining leasing levels, and on the timing,

Jan 1, 1986

By Paul Schmechel

This time of year, our lawn is host to goodly numbers of birds - robins, English sparrows, finches of various flavors and some whose names I don't know. We lure them with a feeder in our backyard and I'm sure Patti and I spend several minutes a day watching them through a picture window that overlooks their coming and going. And, while the picture window supplies us with a constantly changing view, it does not treat our winged friends nearly so kindly. You see, at certain times of the day, reflections on our window feed back to our birds a mirror image of the backyard. Lifting off from the bird feeder, they see before them what is behind them. And, not infrequently they fly straight into the window. They stop abruptly, of course. It has to be quite a shock to discover that what is behind you is not the same as what is in front. At this point, I might be tempted to say something about bird brains - except for the fact that we humans also are prone to deceptive images thrown up by the past. Today, I think we hear a great many voices painting past images as they look to the future. We hear that the price of oil soon will rise to its former elevated position; the price of copper will bounce back; a hungry world soon will escalate the demand for food and our agricultural industry will be back in the black. In fact, we can hear hope from many voices telling us that our major resource-rich, basic industries are poised to fly up. I can hope that the voices are right, but I keep thinking that those expressions come from people seeing false images. Most certainly, it is more comfortable to see the past, rather than acknowledge that the world economy is being restructured and that the restructuring is affecting the Rocky Mountain states profoundly and negatively. The worst mistake we could make may be to place too much credence in the images from our past. We can be lulled into a dangerous complacency. What we need is a tighter belt and the will to do some serious bootstrapping. Before proceeding, I would make two points: First, it is not my intent to be a prophet of doom. But I do think we need some healthy doses of realism, if we are to avoid the shock of flying into a false future. Second, by now you have detected that I have choosen to diversify the assignment you handed me on utility diversification. As I proceed, you soon will see that the roots of diversification for many utilities lie in the subject that we ponder now. We could begin in many places, but let's start with energy. It is pervasive in our businesses and industries. We all use it. And, despite conventional economic wisdom, we are using less of it. The price is down, but we have not reverted to our profligate ways. That is true whether you look at the industrial customer or the residential consumer. As a nation and as a people, we have learned to do more work with less energy. A few statistics illustrated the point. If we use 1973 as the base year, energy use in the United States has declined almost I percent. If we examine the year of peak energy use, 1979, the decline approaches 7 percent. Let's look at it another way. In 1973, for every dollar of gross national product, the United States consumed 27,100 Btu of energy. Last year, 1985, the comparable figure was 20,700 Btu - a decline of 24 percent. So, not only are we using less energy, but we are using it more efficiently. Even though the price of energy has declined, we are unlikely to use substand with natural gas and petroleum consumption. Use of natural gas has dropped almost 21 percent since 1973. Petroleum consumption has declined 1 I percent since 1973 and almost 19 percent since 1978, when the U.S. used a record quantity of petroleum. We also know there's been no appreciable change in amounts of oil and gas used since 1981. We weathered both a sharp recession and a healthy recovery without altering the amount of those fuels used. That the use of oil and gas dropped sharply, while the total use of energy merely slumped a bit is easy to explain. The use of coal, nuclear power and hydroelectricity from 1973 through 1985 increased almost 48 percent. Some people will tell you that the large decrease in the price of oil and gas will result in increased demand that will displace coal, nuclear and hydropower. In turn, demand will force the price of oil and gas upward. I doubt it. From the poking around I've done on the subject, I suspect there may be some short-term displacements, but they will be, for the most part, cancelled out by declining use among existing customers. For instance, we all know what has happened in the automotive sector. In 1973, the average U.S. automobile made 13.1 miles to the U.S. gallon of gasoline. In 1984, the most recent available statistic, the average auto made 16.94 miles to the gallon. That's a 19 percent improvement. Because annual miles driven per automobile are essentially unchanged over the period and the number of cars on the road is not increasing, we are witnessing a drop in this segment of the petroleum market. That trend will continue. Now, let's look at energy consumption patterns still another way. Between 1973 and 1985, consumption in the residential and commercial sectors of our economy increased total energy use by 11.2

Jan 1, 1986

Earl W. Baker W. P. Bigler Lyman Fearn Leslie H. Johnson V. O. Murray Max C. Scheble Fred L. Smith who left the world better for their having lived in it . . .

Jan 1, 1986

By Vincent R. Bovino

The future of coal mining is bright - only if we realize and then manage as though we are competing in the world marketplace. Accept it or not, our market is global. We tend to think our problems are caused by the uncontrolled foreign production of coal, and the uncontrolled drop in coal prices. I submit that our problem is not the world pricing structure - part of our problem is our on-site cost structure - our productivity. We are the world's best at getting out the tons - that is, production. Most mine managers thrive on that. What is in serious doubt is our productivity - our ability to produce tons of coal in a cost effective manner. Please think about the difference: ? Production is tons of coal. ? Producitivity is decreasing the cost per ton of coal. Our future is bright, only if we can increase our productivity by trying different and new ways to manage our businesses and our people. Unlike the easy successes during the 60's and 70's, success in the decades ahead will depend on our ability to achieve greater levels of productivity. If mining and other old line smoke stack industries are experiencing difficult times in 1986, three years into an economic recovery, what will happen when the economy cycles downward? Any operation can achieve unlimited productivity by developing the resources within their employees. As an industry, we have harvested the

Jan 1, 1986

Pictured on these pages are the six RMCMI Scholarship Award Winners for the 1986-87 year followed by a brief profile. Five of the winners were present as RMCMI guests at the June convention at Kalispell to receive their recognition plaques at the welcoming session held Monday, June 30, 1986. In addition to the plaques, each winner will receive $500.00 to be used toward tuition in the coming academic year. Also, as this is a continuing award, the winners from the 1985-86 season, will also receive an additional $500.00 for tuition use in their senior years provided they have maintained a good academic standing. Criteria for these awards is (1) That the award be made in the spring to a sophomore student to be used toward tuition during the junior year. (2) That the recipient be both a U. S. citizen and a resident of the state involved. (3) That the recipient have good academic standing, be pursuing a degree in a mining related field and have an expressed interest in Western coal as a possible career path. Contributions to this worthy project are tax deductible to each individual RMCMI member. Checks payable to RMCMI Scholarship may be mailed to the RMCMI Office at 2700 Youngfield Street, Suite 100 in Lakewood, CO 80215. Profiles of the 1986 winners follow: [ ] ROBERT BAUGHMAN Colorado School of Mines, Golden, Colorado Bob is spending this summer in field camp at the Colorado School of Mines. His hobbies are fly fishing, hunting and photography. After graduation, he "would like to work for a stable mid-sized company and someday work his way into a management position." He is a member of AIME and Sigma Phi Epsilon and plays intramural football and softball. [ ] BRENT LaMOURE Montana College of Mineral Science & Technology, Butte, Montana Brent has a 3 5 grade point average and has completed courses In Mining Engineering, Underground Mining, Rock Fragmentation, Mineralogy and Petrology and Plane Surveying He is "interested in trying to make the mining industry as efficient as possible "

Jan 1, 1986

Jan 1, 1986

Article I1 of the RMCMI Bylaws reads: Section 1. Classes. The membership of the corporation shall be divided into three classs, consisting of active members, life members and senior members, who shall have such rights, privileges and qualifications as these bylaws may provide. The names of all active, life and senior members, together with current mailing addresses, follow. [Lt. Jay Abbott M. L. FOSS Co. 7458 S Jackson St Littleton. CO 80122 Lt. Ronald H. Achziger Midwest Rbr & Sply Co 6404 E 39th Are Denver, CO 80207 ]

Jan 1, 1986

Jan 1, 1986

By Margaret N. Maxey

Man's capacity far fretting is endless, and no matter what difficulties we surmount, how many ideals we realize, there is a stealthy pleasure in rejecting mankind or the universe as unworthy of our approval. - Will Durant Until recently, reasons for favoring one or another energy alternative were advanced on the basis of technical considerations and economic realities. However, it is an indication of the cultural climate of our society and growing realization of why energy is our master resource that many citizens have begun to express concern about the social and ethical implications of our energy deci¬sion-making. A vivid indication of this shift toward ethical concerns is reflected in the attention being focused on conservation - even to the point of regarding it as a virtual panacea equivalent to a "free energy resource." Among others, the authors of a publication by Resources for the Future cautions us about the difficulties of defining conservation. They also point out that unrealistic expectations for achieving the high levels of conservation claimed by true believers may boomerang if, at the same time, we are morally required to maintain economic growth and robust productivity for the basic well-being of more people. In its economic meaning, conservation signifies the most economic or cost-effective applications of energy, together with other resources, in a given process or activity. To achieve conservation that is cost-effective, saving energy alone is not sufficient; the cost involved in saving the energy must be no greater than the cost of the energy that is saved. Using its thermodynamic meaning, conservation and efficiency are viewed as constrained by physical laws and measured against ideal limits set by these laws and processes. Since achieving higher levels of technical performance is not without costs, the economic meaning of conservation must be factored into technical possibilities. It is the ethical, equity and environmental meaning of conservation that concerns us here. In its third meaning, conservation consists in moderation as a value which appears inherently worthwhile both in itself and in relation to social choices dedicated to achieving distributive justice. The value of moderation seems predicated on the assumption that natural resources and the environment have fixed, finite, exhaustible capacities for satisfying human needs. Hence norms for moderating human behavior appear to require prescriptions by some authority. Such norms presuppose some agreement on "essential" uses of energy. However, the difficulties of setting behavioral norms loom large, because "... it is as difficult to determine essential energy consumption as to determine what is essential in any other phase of consumption, whether it involves food, clothing, shelter, or recreation." The ethical meaning of conversation is further complicated by a centuries-old argument over the proper exercise of stewardship - i.e., how best to develop natural resources. On the one hand, the preservationist position insists on an inviolate, "hands-off" policy and stands opposed to ongoing development of wilderness areas and mineral resources. On the other hand, the "scientific conservationist" who preaches the "gospel of efficiency" insists on development of resources based on principles of sustained-yield, multiple use and - in the case of competing claims - reserving resources or land for their "higher use." Current confusion reigns among opinion leaders in the environmental movement because they appear to have lost the genius of the original Conservation ethic, developed in the 19th century. They seem to think that conservation is preservation. The question I wish to explore is whether a single-minded, exclusive pursuit of "conservation" in its economic, thermodynamic and preservationist meanings may actually do more harm than good in serving the ethical goals of conservation. There

Jan 1, 1986

By Ted Schwinden

It's my pleasure to welcome the Rocky Mountain Coal Institute to Montana. Now that you've ended a 74 year history of meeting outside our borders, I hope you'll be back more often. Even if I can't convince you to come back before 2060, when another 74 years will be up, I'm confident the Kalispell and Flathead Lake area will do the persuading for me. In recent weeks, I've made a number of speeches around the state pointing out just how wrong the revenue projections in Montana's state government made in April of '85 were when we came to April of '86. Since the middle of this month, Montana's legislators have been in Helena struggling to balance a state budget that, by the end of fiscal year '87, threatened to be some $88 million in the red. Other western states reliant on natural resource and agricultural economies have found themselves caught in the same deflationary spiral. The "window of opportunity" I proposed and the 1985 Montana Legislature passed, couldn't have been opened at a more difficult time. What was envisioned as an incentive to expand Montana's coal production, and our tax base, ran aground on low oil prices and excess hydroelectric power. De- spite the one-third severance tax rebate offered on new coal production, year-to-date figures published in the June 2nd Coal Week show that production in Montana is down almost 10 per- cent from last year. Again, we're not alone. Production in Wyoming is down 8 percent and in North Dakota, it has dropped 13 percent. An over- all 3 percent production decline in western states looks even worse when contrasted against a 12 percent increase for your eastern competitors. Montana's "window of opportunity" had the potential to be a significant signal to your industry. That potential was quickly tempered by the inability of Arab nations to stabilize world energy prices. If any of us had forgotten, the last twelve months have reminded western states that the well-being of our natural resource economies has a tremendous impact on the ability of all levels of government to provide services. The past year has also driven home that in the world of business and in the business of the world, risk-taking is still the name of the game. The Western Governors recognize the problems facing this industry - and our states - and we're prepared to fight for the future of western coal. In the past two decades, legitimate environmental concerns have created a vast body of new legislation affecting coal producers. The industry has been required to meet new reclamation standards - tough regulations relating to ground water, air quality and wildlife habitat. To the industry's credit, coal companies have hired professionals with the technical know-how to do it right. Rather than considering reclamation laws to be an unreasonable burden, today's coal company is more likely to view its reclamation efforts as a source of corporate pride. In a sense, the industry and the agencies which regulate it have matured together . . . although at times OSM is reluctant to admit that either of us capable of or willing to play by the rules. Certainly some abuses exist and OSM's oversight has been helpful in ensuring parity between those states willing to comply and those that would rather defy federal law. Nonetheless, penalizing the more modem and responsible western coal industry for abuses that occur elsewhere is both unfair and counterproductive. Federal penalties range from "cruel and unusual" reporting requirements to the proposed electricity tax that would effectively force utilities and ratepayers who have already met the sulphur emission standards to subsidize those who have dodged their cleanup responsibilities. As a member of the Alliance for Acid Rain Control, I have joined corporate leaders, academicians, environmental representa-

Jan 1, 1986