Kentucky Senate candidate Rand Paul visited a power plant Wednesday to tout the importance of coal to the state's low energy rates.
Paul said recent climate legislation that would place a fee on carbon emissions from coal-fired power plants, sometimes referred to as cap-and-trade, would kill industry in Kentucky.
The Bowling Green Republican visited a plant complex owned by the Big Rivers Electric Corporation in Henderson County. He said nearby aluminum plants that employ about 1,600 people wouldn't be located in Kentucky if not for the state's cheap electric power.
"All these people lose their jobs with cap-and-trade," Paul said.
Electric consumers in Kentucky pay some of the lowest rates in the nation, and the state draws about 92 percent of its electric power from burning coal.
The climate legislation passed the House but Democrats in the Senate were forced to shelve plans last month because of a lack of Republican support. Paul said the legislation, which sought to cut carbon emissions from power plants, could make a comeback if Republicans lose seats in the Senate.
Paul's Democratic opponent, Attorney General Jack Conway, released a statement Wednesday criticizing Paul for calling coal "a very dirty form of energy" earlier this year.
Paul acknowledged making the statement, and said there are "cleaner" forms of energy creation, but added that coal-rich Kentucky should utilize its available resources.
"It's not the cleanest energy form, but we have lots of it, it's cheap and any transition to other energy forms will take decades," Paul said.
Paul said Conway has reversed his position in order to oppose cap-and-trade legislation.
Conway said in a statement he is "opposed to any and all cap-and-trade legislation, which unfairly punishes coal states like Kentucky."
The plan that failed in the Senate would have charged power plants, manufacturers and other large polluters for their heat-trapping carbon emissions, which contribute to global warming.
The House voted 219-212 last year for a plan featuring economic incentives to reduce carbon emissions from power plants, vehicles and other sources.
Republicans slammed the bill as an energy tax and jobs killer, arguing that the costs would be passed on to consumers in the form of higher electricity bills and fuel costs that would lead manufacturers to take their factories overseas.
