Using the Prius to further distance myself from foreign oil

I've been looking for a good alternative to heating my home, instead of using the oil-fired heat that is already here.

I already owned a wood/coal stove, and decided to install it this year. Since my 1920s vintage home's chimney is unlined brick, I have been burning mainly coal instead of wood, since Anthracite coal has no creosote or soot buildup. I also live in close proximity to one of the largest Anthracite deposits in the world (eastern PA), which makes it just a short trip up the road, rather than a tanker trip around the world!

A few weeks ago, I realized I was going to come up a little short on this year's Anthracite supply, so I took a quick trip to the mine, near Centralia, PA with my Prius! Needless to say, I got some strange looks while loading up with coal! :rockon:

Loaded, getting ready to pull on the scale


Receipt for 460 lbs of coal


The Prius posing in Centralia, PA, the site of our infamous underground mine fire


I walked around a bit to try to get a good picture of the ground smoking. It seems to move around, and vary in intensity every time I come through here. If you look closely, you can see the whips of smoke and water vapor.


Ahh. Back home, staying warm, and sticking it to OPEC, I love it!

 

People actually did live there through the 1980s. I'm generally not much on conspiracy theories, but the fact this town sits on a few hundred million tons of coal, and a greedy state gov't looking to make a buck, makes me wonder. Most of the residents were forced out by eminent domain. Population in the early 80s was over 1,000. Population today : 7.

Here is a sign posted nearby, from former town residents :

 

I've been making occasional visits to the area since 2002... I guess it's time to put some more pics up on photobucket! But that can be tomorrow's project! time for some Zzzzs now.

 

Here are a few more pics from Centralia I've taken over the past few years. Enjoy!

[ame="http://s1034.photobucket.com/albums/a421/LDPosse/Centralia/"]Centralia pictures by LDPosse - Photobucket[/ame]

 

That would be nice! We do have some nice mountain springs around here, but they are all ice cold!

I've looked into wood pellets, which would be nearly carbon neutral, however they have become quite popular, and there is only so much sawdust to make pellets out of, which drives the cost up. On a $/btu basis, pellets are half the price of oil, and then coal is half the price of pellets!

Recently, however, I've seen some pellets made from switchgrass. If they can market that at a reasonable price, I'd be all about it. That would seem to be the best of all fuels. No trees cut down, no fertilizers or pesticides needed, and excellent for controlling erosion.