House candidate Bob Gibbs touts coal’s role for power generation in Ohio’s 18th District

State Sen. Bob Gibbs wants to make sure you know coal is important in Ohio’s 18th Congressional District and that he doesn’t like efforts to shrink the district’s carbon footprint.

Gibbs is the Republican candidate in the 18th, which includes all or parts of 15 counties in Ohio’s Appalachian region. On his campaign website he argues that efforts to restrict carbon emissions, commonly known as Cap and Trade, would increase energy costs and be bad for the district.

“In the 18th Congressional District, 100% of electric generation comes from coal. That means that every single household in this district will see a huge increase in their energy bills if Cap-and-Trade would become law.”

It’s true that all electricity generated in the 18th is produced at coal-fired power plants, but that doesn’t mean when residents flick on their lights they are not also using electricity from other sources.

Much of the district gets power from rural electric cooperatives. Other areas, though, are serviced by FirstEnergy Corp.’s Ohio Edison and AEP Ohio’s Columbus Southern Power Co. and Ohio Power Co.

First Energy has ownership stakes in two nuclear power plants in Ohio and a third in Pennsylvania. AEP Ohio has two plants in Ohio that burn natural gas to generate power and a hydro-electric plant on the Ohio River.

Still, all power generating plants actually located within the district are coal-fired. So while the statement is not completely illuminating, we rate it as True.

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By

Robert Higgs

Statehouse bureau chief, The Plain Dealer

July 24, 2010

Truth-o-meter Ruling

True

Statement

"In the 18th Congressional District, 100% of electric generation comes from coal."

Context

a statement posted to his website

Speaker/Target

Speaker: Bob Gibbs

Statement Date

July 21, 2010