The MV J.N. Philips pushing a 15 barge tow of Appalachian coal south on the Ohio. Its destination is probably one of the electric power plants downriver. The tow is 1/4 mile long with each barge holding about 1500 tons of coal, or 22,500 tons total.
Why should you care? Well at least 210 lbs of that floating mass of carbon will be used to provide the average cubicle farm worker the means to earn a living for the next year.
How so? Easy, just do the math. The American Coal Foundation tells us it takes .014 lbs of coal to light a standard flourescent lightbulb for 1 hour. Let's say your cubicle has 6 of these overhead. .014 lbs x 6 bulbs x 10 hrs a day x 5 days a week x 50 weeks = 210 lbs. So there you are, it takes 210 lbs of coal per year to be mined, transported and burned so that you won't be working in the dark.
We'll save the lesson on how much coal is required to manufacture the steel in your SUV, washing machine, and refrigerator for next time.
Support coal - it keeps you clean, fed, behind the wheel, and on the receiving end of a paycheck.
6 comments:
Your math is missing 2 weeks. We squeeze in 52 of them per year here in Ohio.
If you could only squeeze a win over Michigan in there every once in awhile, that'd be even better, eh?
Ah... that was kinda snitty.. sorry, but I couldn't resist. I was born & raised Buckeye (Lawrence Co.), so don't slam me back too hard. :-)
But no, I figured everyone gets about 2 weeks vacation and if you had a semi-private cube, you'd turn the lights out.
That's most interesting...COnversation for Dinner time at work.
Well, coal's a big deal around here, A.I. So most of the natives in these parts are aware of its many uses and benefits.
I will also agree with some folks that coal is dirty. It can be a source of air pollution and CO2, no arguments there. But all coal burning utilities use scrubbers and other technology to alleviate its negatives to a surprising degree.
The most viable other alternative is nuclear and then those living close by to any proposed nuke site go into NIMBY mode real quick.
I've got the John Amos cooling towers in my backyard. (OK, across the river in Poca) Make it nuke for all I care
My full take on the issue: Blogging Razes Blair Mountain
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