Full Text of SR0437 97th General Assembly
SR0437 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | SENATE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The links between coal production, economic | 3 | | growth, prosperity, and energy security are unbreakable; and
| 4 | | WHEREAS, Coal is the main source of energy throughout the | 5 | | world, provides half of the electricity used in the United | 6 | | States, and is a considerable amount of the electricity | 7 | | generated in the midwest and Illinois; and
| 8 | | WHEREAS, The Illinois Coal Association reports that of all | 9 | | the states, Illinois has the largest reported bituminous coal | 10 | | resources with almost 25% of our nation's reserves; coal | 11 | | bearing rocks underlie about 65% of Illinois (36,806 out of a | 12 | | total of 56,500 square miles), including all or parts of at | 13 | | least 86 of the 102 counties in the State; and
| 14 | | WHEREAS, According to the Illinois State Geological Survey | 15 | | (ISGS) there are 100 billion tons of recoverable coal beneath | 16 | | the surface of Illinois, enough coal to meet the country's need | 17 | | for coal for the next 100 years; there is more energy content | 18 | | in the coal in Illinois than in the oil in Saudi Arabia and | 19 | | Kuwait combined; and
| 20 | | WHEREAS, The industry that mines coal is a highly | 21 | | mechanized one; at the start of 2008, there were 17 mines |
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| 1 | | operating in central and southern Illinois; the bulk of these | 2 | | mines are operated by leading companies in American coal | 3 | | mining; Illinois coal mines produced 32.4 million tons of coal | 4 | | in 2007; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, Coal mine lands are being restored, as part of the | 6 | | reclamation process, to meet ongoing, economic, recreational, | 7 | | educational, transportation, and housing needs of local | 8 | | communities and the State; and
| 9 | | WHEREAS, The backlog of permit approvals and the lack of | 10 | | transparency in the federal permitting process are | 11 | | jeopardizing jobs, economic opportunity, and coal production | 12 | | throughout Illinois and the region; therefore, be it
| 13 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL | 14 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that the Illinois General | 15 | | Assembly call upon the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the U.S. | 16 | | Environmental Protection Agency, the President's Council on | 17 | | Environmental Quality, and the Illinois congressional | 18 | | delegation and other State government officials to support coal | 19 | | production and the jobs, economic growth, and energy security | 20 | | provided by coal mining by fixing a regulatory system that is | 21 | | frustrating these vital objectives; and be it further
| 22 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be sent |
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| 1 | | to the head of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the U.S. | 2 | | Environmental Protection Agency, the President's Council on | 3 | | Environmental Quality, and the members of the Illinois | 4 | | congressional delegation.
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