Energy and the Coal Economy

While total coal consumption in most of the world has remained steady since 2000, in Asia it has risen dramatically from >2 billions of tons in 2000 to >5 billions of tons per year in 2010. The U.S. has vast coal reserves in the West, but a limited domestic market. Asia, however, is a huge market. This presentation will describe key features of the coal economy, the business case being made for shipping coal from the Western U.S. to Asia, and need for science to inform public policy.