Congressman Nick Rahall had an emphatic message for West Virginia’s coal miners and the industry: I am with you.

Tuesday night, the state’s Third District Democratic congressman strongly voiced his support for the industry he deemed critical for West Virginia’s overall economy. If those fighting against coal win, he said the lights could go out — literally and figuratively.

“I am with the coal industry in that fight. I am with our coal miners,” he said. “I believe that we must retain coal power throughout the foreseeable future and that we ought to be doing all that we can do to keep coal a highly competitive, affordable fuel.”

Rahall said numerous coal company representatives have met with him during the last few years, presenting their own proposals for legislation addressing climate change. These representatives, despite some of them being skeptics, have determined this is the best business decision. They have stockholders who believe in climate change and want to know they are investing in companies working to keep coal a viable, long-term energy option.

“For the most part, these companies have calculated that simply standing in the worldwide marketplace and saying that climate change is not real is a business strategy about as effective as standing in the middle of Macy’s in December and screaming that Santa Claus does not exist,” he said.

The coal company representatives, Rahall said, see the rest of the world is moving toward lower carbon emissions.

They have decided to work for new policies benefiting the industry instead of being hit with new policies harming it.

Coal has always been under attack, Rahall said, but mountaintop mining opponents are gaining more support in Congress. The practice is essentially limited to West Virginia, Virginia, Kentucky and Tennessee.

Most Congress members see opposing mountaintop mining as an easy vote.

“No jobs are immediately on the line in their communities. No mines in their districts are in danger of shutting down,” he said.

Coal is not only a target for environmental groups, Rahall noted. Other fossil fuel industries driven by “ugly profit motives” are taking shots.

But he emphasized he supports all forms of domestically-produced energy — ones that could end reliance on foreign oil. All industries of this type should be united, not divided.

In fact, he said, everyone needs to simply find common ground — finding a solution in the middle instead of going to extremes. He pointed to the recent debate between Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship and environmental lawyer Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

He called that a constructive, reasonable discussion that did not have unruly disruptions.

“The vast majority of (coal operators) are responsible and are for clean air and water as much as the next person,” Rahall said. “We all need to work together.”

— E-mail: apridemore@register-herald.com