We’ve often discussed coal-based electricity’s national importance when it comes to our economic well-being and our energy security. It’s also important to find out how coal plays a vital role in different parts of the country.

That’s why the America’s Power Tour went to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania recently to talk with different folks about how coal-based electricity affects their region’s businesses and families. Coal provides 48 percent of Pennsylvania’s power. In Pittsburgh, I spoke with Ken Zapinsky, Senior Vice President at the Allegheny Conference, about what it takes to promote economic growth and development in Pittsburgh and southwest Pennsylvania. He is keenly aware of the importance of coal and affordable coal-based electricity to the area and the country as a whole.

I then traveled to Waynesburg, just one hour south of Pittsburgh, a town like many others in southwestern Pennsylvania whose economy depends on coal and the affordable electricity it provides. Mayor Blair Zimmerman and Commissioner Pam Snyder spoke to me about the vital role of coal-based electricity industry and the need for reasonable laws and regulations that will allow the industry to continue contributing to our economic recovery.

As Zapinsky, Zimmerman and Snyder all point out, it’s important for any legislation or regulation that comes out of Washington, DC to help, not harm the coal-based electricity industry so that it can remain a part of America’s balanced energy portfolio. Make sure to come back to our blog soon for more highlights of our trip to Southwestern Pennsylvania.