In a recent Opinion Piece, “Coal Must Embrace the Future,” Sen. Robert C. Byrd, D-W.Va., berated the coal industry in a statement for fear mongering, grandstanding and outrage as a strategy. Coal has a future, but changes are inevitable in the industry and the market, Byrd explained. “Most members of Congress, like most Americans, oppose the practice, and we may not yet fully understand the effects of mountaintop removal mining on the health of our citizens,” Byrd said. “West Virginians may demonstrate anger toward the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) over mountaintop removal mining, but we risk the very probable consequence of shouting ourselves out of any productive dialogue with the EPA and our adversaries in the Congress…..more at Coal Age