budget, to go on top of energy budget the energy department already has. only 8 billion of it, i think 7 or 8 billion has been given for that. as that article probably notes is that without a price on cauton emissions, coal and natural gas will continue to rein as the most popular choices. nuclear power is too expensive. and dollars waste. yucca mountain has been yanked as an option. at hangs in the balance what to do with nuclear waste. host: next up. wade county, "washington journal." >>

caller: i would like to challenge c-span to have a conversation on mountain top removal mining. it's destroying west virginia and appalachia. it's the dirtiest way for the coal industry to make money. a lot of this coal can be mined under ground. when they go from a thousand feet in these mountains and dumping this product, this violates the clean water production act. we cannot do mountain top removal legally in the united states. the probm is the legacy that's left for this, this rubble that's being removed from these mountains and shoved into the streams contains heavy metals

and based on our vital statistics andancer rates. the heavy metals causes crazy stuff. learning disabilities kidney and liver cancer. if we don't have to do this. there's a lot of other ways to lessen the impact. they talked about the clean air act. when theyassed the clean air act and decided to do the scrubbers and change the quality of the coal being shipped to the power plants, they left these impairments and these massive sludge ponds of the waste -- host: sorry joe, i inad vertently hit the button. guest: it's taken a back seat, if you take the environmental

perspective on that and hydraulicos that. i know epa has taken steps shut that down. there's the sentiment to shift away from that. without a price on carbon. mountain top mining will be a factor. the epa is taking the steps to take care of that. host: we have this e-mail is that says, since the usa has the largest deposits of coal, is there research or technology to pulverize coal? guest: i haven't heard anything like that. just the sheer fact we have the

largest coal reserves in the world, makes it a vital piece. that gets back to the ccs policy. i know we had callers from west virginia. the senat is a huge proponent of the coal industry. he introduced legislation, from the retiring senator from ohio that incentivizes that. the technology for coal, i think he, that bill would create $20 billion or so for -- to incentivize that. that's really what will be the saving grace for the coal industry. host: homewood, illinois, you're on the "washington journal" caller: yes, i have read books on the co2 effects.

one of them is by peter huberg. in this book, he indicates the americans are actually through [inaudible] absorbed the co2. it's the rest of the world that actually is creating a problem if there is one. and i -- from his book, i understand as well humans account for only 6% of the co2 that's emitted. the oceans and tilled land emit many, many times the amount of co2 that's created by human activity. host: amy harder. guest: yeah, there's a lotf different reports on how humans

contribute to carbon. humans are at least part, and it varies, are due in the rise to greenhouse gas emissions. even regardless of whether huma humans interpret climate change, they are facing these regulations regardless of the studies that say it's happening or not happening. to the industry, they have, they have taken a step back. this has distanced themselves from climate change. but they have to work to reduce the emissions no mter what. host: next up. you are on the "washington journal," steve. caller: yes. they are currently no credible scientists that suggest that co2 does anything negative to the

environment. it's quite the contrary. it make plants grow faster. you see that evidence in the peer-reviewed process. you can go and read an 870 page document negating all the evidence for co2. it's nothing but serstition motivating this. it's quite the contrary. can you google hot tub sized nuclear power plants, which will produce enough power for 25,000 houses and cost somewhere in the neighborhood of $28 a month rather than all the prices to come up with energy for people.

host: and we'll leave it there. guest: yeah, there are a lot of, you know, there are alternatives that say co2 points to that. i am not a scientist. but can continue to reference the peer-reviewed studies. the intergovernmental panel on climate change. that is causing increased wildfires and increased sea levels and the what not. as to your point about the nuclear power, nuclear power has lot of great assets. it's a steady, base low pow and emits no carbon at all. as i pnted out earlier, it costs so much money and there's so many risks.

the big question mark of the nuclear waste. paired with the fact there's no price to carbon to make nuclear not as expensive to coal. host: bob sends this twitter message. it comes from our own respiration. next environmentalists will stay, stop breathing. dennis, you're on the "washington journal," go ahead. caller: just to bob. if we don't do about this soon, we will all stop breathing. this is the largest, worst things we face in the world today. the answer is very clear.

it's renewable energies. i live in philadelphia, they just announced in nobody noticed. the outdoor football stadium that the eagles just built is going all agree. next year, i don't remember the name of the power company is going to have it s up with these beautiful windows all around the outside and solar panels. they will produce enough electricity to sell to the owners of football team for the game days to light up the field. during the week, they will produce enough energy to sell back to the grid. this is the answer to the united states's independence from the rest of world. we cannot drill out way out. we don't have enough. we can't blowup enough mountain tops. we just cannot do it.

host: dennis, we will leave it there. guest: renewable energy is something we haven't discussed. it's really left in this standing still without a price on carbon emissions. i ep going back to that. that's the turning point we have made. renewable energy faces extremely high cost and encourage it. at the same time, renewable -- the amount of renewable energy the utilities must produce is facing a similar face as cap-and-trade. there's a bill in the lame duck congress that probably won't pass. it faces even a more conservative house and senate. so renewable energy. only makes up 7% of the entire country's power supply.

that includes hydroelectric power. solar is not even one %. when you look at those number, compareed to >> sunday on "washington journal," the correct lame-duck congressional session. what to expect from the incoming 112th congress. then the assistant secretary of state talks about enacting a new start treaty with russia which aims to lower the nuclear stockpiles of both nations by one-third. after that, author and english

professor bruce fleming on his new book. plus, your e-mail and phone calls. "washington journal," live sunday at 7:00 a.m. eastern on c-span. sunday, on "newsmakers," norm: talks about the future of the republican party and looks ahead to campaign 2012. that is sunday at 10:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. eastern, here on c- span. >> the c-span networks provide coverage of politics, public affairs, non-fiction books, and american history. it's all available to you on television car radio, on line, and on social media networking sites. find our content any time cruces

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