据美国能源部能源信息管理局掌握的初步数据显示，1997年美国煤炭总产量达到创记录的10．886亿短吨，比上年增加了2．3％。1997年美国电力工业消费煤炭达创记录的9．22亿t（短吨，以下同），比上年增加2．8％。发电业煤炭消费增长的原因主要在于核电的大量减少和略有上升的电力 According to preliminary data held by the US Department of Energy’s Energy Information Administration, total coal production in the United States hit a record 1.086 billion short tons in 1997, an increase of 2.3% over the previous year. In 1997, the consumption of coal in the power industry reached a record 922 million tons (short tons, the same below), an increase of 2.8% over the previous year. The growth of power generation coal consumption mainly due to the substantial reduction of nuclear power and slightly increased electricity