Salt Lake Telegram | 1949-10-29 | Page 14 | Coal Industry Contributes Much to Utah Economy

I . : : . . i ' Up and Down the Street Coal Industry Contribules Much to Utah Economy t By Robert W. Reradck Cosl ta atill king tn tTtah. U This amanng industry may not hire the moat people in the stale directly Involved in production I although it well may be second anlv to steel and copper!, but its contributions are widespread. So says the 1048 Bituminous Coal Annual. ! The facts: . Employment, more than 4000 persons. Hauling coal accounts for 98.1 of the freight revenues of class one '' railroads operating in the stte. f- Some M.2 of all the power generated comes from burning of 1 ' it iiminotie coal more than from f natural gaa. fuel oil or hydroelec-i hydroelec-i trie sources. In 120, f ob. value of coal . mined in the state at the adit was $.1.23 per ion. Today it is $4.31 prr ton. Although production dropped , I some 800.000 tons this year (to !.71.0fl0l over last, the at e atill 'maintains a more than 'tS'r, in-' in-' crease over the 1035-39 fcverage ' production. More people sre emplfiyed in mining coal than ever ti-fore In i the slate, more mac.hlirry has ' been put in the undergroi ad minea which account for all atrlsble pfo-I pfo-I duction. An tone per man hotrri produced i have increased from ."liyto .788. I It is not all roses, thrasgh. ! As with other status, strikes ! and walkouts In 'the UlWti industry I with consequent loss ofj take-home pay, coal prnductlofU and man : hours, have trended ikpward. A sobering thotirh'4 In 19.10. the annual says lhre were 52 : walkouts sffecting Bl men. In j I 1948 there were no letfp than 24.MI j woilt stoppages. inv.vlng 582.000 men. ' j Its Interesting totnote that Ine; annual says many of Ihe mineral make from $400 to SWMI a month I with number of dfcys worked in- I CTeasing from 1(10 ia year in the paat to 23 during lst year. Join loni Staff James T. Daiiiels, Seminole. Ok la. has Joined rth staff of the land department tier of the Sinclair Sin-clair Oil and QaafCo. Mr. Daniels repelved his LL.B. this year frool University of 'Oklahoma. r