The cheapest fuel was also the dirtiest, the most devastating to the environment. But coal power is getting cleaner, at least at one Pittsburgh-area power plant. Republican Sen. Rick Santorum is among a group of coal-state politicians who argues that coal can make the U.S. less dependent on imported oil. Santorum has a powerful ally in the White House. Environmentalists say the money should instead be spent on cleaner energy sources.
Clean coal is actually an oxymoron.
But coal advocates point to high-tech operations such as the Bruce Mansfield Power Plant, north of Pittsburgh. It provides enough electricity to power nearly 1 million homes. Plant officials say one out of every three dollars spent to build the facility was spent on environmental protection. Filters remove most of the pollutant that causes acid rain, and new technology soon to be put in place will remove most of the pollutant that causes smog. The plant also recycles the ash by-product of burned coal.