Jul. 26--BLUEFIELD -- Coal will burn, and while coal's fiery nature drives turbines to produce more than half of the nation's electrical energy as well as heats iron to make steel, coal has also fueled an often emotional debate between people who depend on coal to make a living, and people who believe coal's impact on the environment is too costly a price to pay.

The slumping national and international economy has taken a toll on the coal industry during the past 18 months, and a new administration in Washington, D.C., that appears to sympathize with the position advanced by a vocal segment of the environmental community have combined to ratchet up the pressure on coal. But coal is a product of pressure, and when West Virginia Coal Association President Bill Raney called local civic leaders and asked them to organize an event similar to the summit at Logan in early June, the local wheels were in motion.

Raney approached the Greater Bluefield Chamber of Commerce, Princeton-Mercer County Chamber of Commerce and Pocahontas Coal Association to help host the summit. Within a few days, local organizers had received commitments from Gene Kitts, senior vice president of mining services for International Coal Group and Myron Ebell, director, Energy and Global Warming Policy Competitive Enterprise Institute to serve as speakers.

"The topics of this summit are going to drive the attendance," Marc Meachum, president and chief executive officer of the Bluefield Chamber said. "We have some excellent speakers who are very knowledgeable on the topics of cap and trade, permitting and climate change legislation. As far as the people who have registered so far, we have a couple from as far away as Pennsylvania, some from northern Virginia and many people locally. We have more than 100 reservations, but we would like to have 200."

The Coal Summit will be from 9 a.m. to 12 noon on Tuesday, July 28, at Fincastle Country Club. "We hope these speakers will bring greater understanding to the three key issues ... what they are and what they are not," Meachum said. "As a chamber of commerce, we hope to serve as an educational conduit so our membership can get a better understanding of what the coal industry is facing."

"The coal industry, as a whole, is under attack from all quarters," Dan Pochick, president of Rish Equipment said. "Peabody and Arch Coal's earnings did not meet expectations, and right now, there's a lot of coal on the ground. There has been a 50 percent drop in output of steel. China's demand is up a little, but the price and demand for metallurgical coal has been down.