With just four days left in 2009, can you help us gather the resources we need to end mountaintop removal coal mining in 2010 by making a special year end gift to iLoveMountains today?
We’ve achieved an incredible amount in 2009. From gaining a record 161 Congressional co-sponsors for the Clean Water Protection Act to helping stop 79 valley fill permits from being issued for new mountaintop removal coal mining projects, this has been the year when we’ve put Big Coal on notice that the days of destroying mountains for cheap coal are coming to an end.
Yet 2010 is going to be an even more pivotal year in the fight to end mountaintop removal coal mining.In fact, this could be the year when we are able to win meaningful legislation to permanently end this destructive practice.
But we need to ensure that we have the resources we need to beat Big Coal and their lobbyists, who are pulling out all the stops to keep their hold on the mountains we love.
Whether you’re able to contribute $25, $50, $100 or more, every dollar of your special year-end contribution goes directly to groups working to end mountaintop removal coal mining.
And your contribution today will ensure that your voice will be heard from the grassroots to Washington, DC throughout 2010:
Dumping mine waste into a valley fill on Kayford Mountain, WV
When the Bush Administration proposed gutting the “Stream Buffer Zone Rule” — a regulation that has prevented surface mining within 100 feet of our nation’s streams for decades — people like you responded in force. More than 75,000 comments were submitted to the Bush Administration, asking that the regulation be left intact.
The Bush administration overrode public opinion, however, and gutted the rule anyway — handing a parting gift to Big Coal before it left office.
Now, we urgently need the Obama administration to reverse this rule and protect our nation’s streams from being buried by mining waste from mountaintop removal coal mining.
Unfortunately, the Office of Surface Mining, Reclaimation, and Enforcement has proposed waiting until 2011 to begin making changes to the Stream Buffer Zone Rule.
Waiting an entire year is unacceptable — we are losing streams in Appalachia every day. Waiting another year means that many more miles of Appalachian streams — the headwaters of streams that provide the drinking water supplies of many eastern cities — will be forever buried.
The Office of Surface Mining, Reclaimation, and Enforcement is accepting comments until December 30th on its proposal to delay addressing Stream Buffer Zone Rule changes for another year. Can you take just a moment today, and tell them that waiting a year is unacceptable?
As the Associated Press recently observed, “environmental activists gained more momentum this year than in the past decade against the destructive, uniquely Appalachian form of strip mining known as mountaintop removal.”
That momentum has been the result of your efforts.
Every time we’ve asked, you and nearly 40,000 people like you who love mountains have taken action — spreading the word among friends, speaking up to Congress, sending in comments to regulatory agencies, and making sure the world knows that the days of destroying mountains for cheap coal are numbered.
Yet the push back from Big Coal is gaining strength — and the final showdown to end mountaintop removal coal mining may arrive in 2010.
Can you help us prepare for what will surely be a critical year by making a contribution to iLoveMountains today?
In the past year, your support has made a tremendous difference:
In Congress, we’ve gained a record 161 Co-Sponsors for the Clean Water Protection Act — and a companion bill, the Appalachian Restoration Act, was introduced for the first time ever in the United States Senate, which currently has 10 co-sponsors.
In an historic turnaround, Senator Robert Byrd (D-WV) “spoke the truth” and warned the coal industry that “the practice of mountaintop removal mining has a diminishing constituency in Washington.”
The EPA recommended that 79 proposed valley fill permits not be issued as written, while the Office of Surface Mining proposed overturning the Bush-era stream buffer zone rule, which made it easier for big coal to dump mining waste into thousands of miles of streams.
The importance of fight to save Coal River Mountain spread from living rooms across America to the Climate Summit in Copenhagan, becoming a symbol of the choice America faces between a clean energy future and the pollution of past sources of power.
All of this happened because people like you have sent more than 100,000 letters to Congress, the Senate, and Executive agencies… because hundreds of ordinary citizens have traveled to Washington or visited with their representatives during in-district visits… because more than 2,000 bloggers have joined our “Blogger’s Challenge” and spread the word about mountaintop removal…. and because you’e helped spread the word to family and friends, growing our movement to nearly 40,000 people who are committed to taking action online.
Can you help us increase that momentum by making a contribution today? Any amount you can afford to give — whether $25, $100, or $500 — goes directly to supporting our campaign to end mountaintop removal, and gives us the critical resources we’ll need in 2010:
Thank you for doing everything you can to help end mountaintop removal coal mining.
Matt Wasson
iLoveMountains.org
PS. Want to be among the activists who join us for the 5th Annual End Mountaintop Removal Week in Washington, coming up March 6-10th, 2010? Save the date and learn more by clicking here.
Google Earth Tour Highlights Mountaintop Removal Mining at Copenhagen
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Contact:
Sandra Diaz, Development and Communications Director….828-262-1500
Lorelei Scarbro, Coal River Mountain Watch….304-854-2002
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The issue of mountaintop removal coal mining will be featured prominently at the Copenhagen climate conference over the next two weeks, due to a collaboration between Google, Appalachian Voices and the residents of Coal River Valley, W.Va.
On Monday, as hundreds of protesters gathered at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s office in Charleston, W.Va. to rally against the blasting of Coal River Mountain, Google Earth unveiled an interactive tour and accompanying video that details the plight of the mountain. Over 6,000 acres of Coal River Mountain are slated to be destroyed by mountaintop removal coal mining.
Created by Google Earth Outreach and regional environmental groups Appalachian Voices and Coal River Mountain Watch, the tour is one of 15 stories that will be featured at the United Nations Climate Change Conference from December 7-18, 2009, as well as on the Google COP15 website. Former U.S. Vice President Al Gore narrates the project’s introductory video.
Each three-dimensional tour is designed to help international representatives visualize climate change and features a region or group that is devising local solutions. The Coal River Mountain tour focuses on a proposal by local residents to create a 320-megawatt wind farm on the mountain as an alternative to the mountaintop removal mine.
“Google Earth has made it possible for us to show the world that this mountain is a symbol of hope,” said Lorelei Scarbro, a resident of Coal River Valley and the tour’s narrator. “If we can save this mountain and begin developing sustainable jobs and renewable energy, maybe we can have an impact on the climate crisis that faces us all.”
According to a study commissioned by Coal River Mountain Watch, the proposed Coal River Wind Project would provide $1.7 million in annual revenue and create jobs for the community; pursuing wind instead of mountaintop removal mining would also prevent the release of 134 million tons of CO2 into the atmosphere-an amount equivalent to adding 1.5 million cars to U.S. highways for a period of 17 years.
Scarbro-a resident born and raised in West Virginia and whose father, grandfather, and husband were all coal miners-lives on property that borders Coal River Mountain. Massey Energy, operators of the mine, are currently blasting less than 200 yards from an immense earthen impoundment holding 8.2 billion gallons of toxic wet coal slurry, causing concern in Scarbro and other residents. If the impoundment were to fail, Massey itself has estimated that almost a thousand people in the valley below could lose their lives.
“We don’t live where they mine coal,” Scarbro has said. “They mine coal where we live.”
To date, over 500 mountains in Appalachia have been impacted and nearly 2,000 miles of headwater streams have been buried and polluted by mountaintop removal coal mining.
During the tour, Scarbro explains the scope of mountaintop removal coal mining plans for Coal River Mountain and discusses the ridge’s wind potential. High-resolution videos of blasting, colored overlays and informational charts provide visual methods of conveying the issue.
The tour also introduces viewers to other Coal River Valley residents and relays images of some health problems residents in these neighboring communities face.
“The Google Earth tour of Coal River Mountain will show the delegates in Copenhagen what’s at stake,” said Appalachian Voices’ Executive Director Willa Mays. “Coal River Mountain is ground zero in the fight against mountaintop removal coal mining, and represents the choice between a clean energy future and the threat of climate change.”
Appalachian Voices, based in Boone, N.C., is a regional organization that works to solve environmental problems having the greatest impact on the central and southern Appalachian Mountains. Coal River Mountain Watch is a West Virginia-based group united to protect the Coal River Mountain region and promote the Coal River Wind Project.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — From Copenhagen to Charleston, the world will be watching Gov. Joe Manchin closely today.
This week at the Copenhagen Climate Summit, Google Earth will take world leaders on a virtual flyover of Coal River Mountain, selected as one of a handful of “global crisis hotspots,” accompanied by the narration of coal miner widow and Coal River Mountain resident Lorelei Scarbro.
World leaders will see the two choices for Gov. Manchin:
An inspiring range of hardwood forests in the carbon sink of Appalachia, adorned by wind turbines capable of providing energy for thousands of households, millions of dollars in tax revenues, and hundreds of long-term jobs that could also create a sustainable manufacturing sector, surrounded by historic settlements – or, a devastating 6,600-acre mountaintop removal operation, a limited number of short-term jobs and the life-threatening endangerment of blasting near the weakened Class “C” Brushy Fork coal slurry impoundment.
World leaders will ask: In the exploding market of clean-energy jobs and investment, how could any governor disregard sustainable economic initiatives and allow his own citizens to live in a state of fear of blasting, fly rock, and a potential catastrophe from an impoundment break?
“Unless there is a tragedy such as these, nothing happens,” Gov. Manchin declared on the anniversary of the Farmington mining disaster last year. “Why does human nature wait until we have such catastrophic tragedies?”
That same sentiment is why millions of other Americans will be watching besieged Coal River Mountain residents today at 2 p.m. at a rally in front of the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection. They are calling on the governor and the DEP to do their mandated jobs and halt mountaintop removal blasting on Coal River Mountain, protect the lives and health of residents, and work toward a sustainable economic future.
While Gov. Manchin says he never interferes in the mining permit process, the nation knows he contacted White House aide Valerie Jarrett in October to rein in EPA chief Lisa Jackson over the veto process for the Arch Coal’s Spruce Mine No. 1 permit; and that Gov. Manchin traveled 500 miles to Philadelphia last May to deal with the EPA on a mining permit for Consolidation Coal Co.
At the very least, could Gov. Manchin travel 42 miles to Pettus, W.Va., – or do a flyover tour with resident Lorelei Scarbro, who lost her husband to black lung disease – to understand the crisis on Coal River Mountain, the Brushy Fork impoundment, and the still great possibility for sustainable economic development and clean energy?
Today, the confluence between mountaintop removal coal mining and climate change is front and center on the streets of Charleston, West Virginia and on stage at the “COP15” United Nations Climate Summit in Copenhagen.
In Charleston, activists from around the region are gathering in front of the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection headquarters to demand an end to blasting at Coal River Mountain — ground zero in the fight against mountaintop removal coal mining.
And in Copenhagen, Google is unveiling a new layer in Google Earth that dramatically illustrates the choice to be made at Coal River Mountain — a choice between a clean energy future and the increased threat of climate change.
Click here to watch the YouTube video that Google will be showing at Copenhagen:
As Lorelei Scarbro, who lives in Rock Creek, West Virginia, at the foot of Coal River Mountain, says in the video, Coal River Mountain represents a crossroads in our future.
Massey Energy plans to mine more than 6000 acres of mountaintop at Coal River Mountain, which would destroy the opportunity to build a 320 megawatt wind farm on the ridges of Coal River Mountain.
Instead of 320 megawatts of clean energy that would power more than 70,000 homes indefinitely, Massey’s plans would release 134 million tons of C02 — the equivalent of putting 1.5 million more cars on the road for 17 years.
That’s what makes Coal River Mountain a “cauldron of Climate Change,” in Lorelei’s words. That’s why Google is showing millions of Google Earth users and the delegates in Copenhagen what’s at stake at Coal River Mountain, and why people from around the region are gathering today in Charleston.
Can you stand with the activists in Charleston and the delegates in Copenhagen today by taking two simple actions?
1. Watch the Coal River Mountain Video and forward it to your friends and family. Ask them to join you in stopping mountaintop removal coal mining by signing up at iLoveMountains.org.
The Chase Community Giving contest allows Facebook users to vote for the non-profit organization of their choice — with the chance for those organizations to win up to $1 million in grants from Chase.
We believe we have a good chance of being one of the 100 finalists who will receive $25,000 — and to keep us in the running for the top prize.
But we’ll only be a finalist if you cast your vote today. First round of voting ends December 10th!
If you’re on Facebook, simply click here to cast your vote for Appalachian Voices in order to support iLoveMountains.org:
This Monday, Dec. 7 at 2pm, iLoveMountains.org supporters and fellow mountain activists will join Coal River Mountain Watch at the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection headquarters in Charleston, WV for a rally and protest to save Coal River Mountain.
Massey Energy is actively blasting and mining on Coal River Mountain in southern West Virginia. The blasting is taking place only a few hundred feet away from the Brushy Fork impoundment dam, which holds over 9 billion gallons of toxic coal sludge above the Coal River Valley.
This blasting is happening despite studies that show Coal River Mountains has the highest and most productive potential for wind power generation in the Appalachian Mountains. The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection needs to see that West Virginia resident support a clean energy future — not the dirty energy and destructive practice of mountaintop removal.
Please join us:
Where: West Virginia Dept. of Environmental Protection Headquarters, Charleston. Click here for directions. When: Monday, December 7th, 2 pm.
Find out more information on the rally and protest here, and find more information on Coal River Mountain here.
Today, Senator Robert C. Byrd (D-WV) released a historic statement representing a complete turnaround from the Senator’s prior defense of the horrific practice of mountaintop removal.
Senator Byrd recognizes that mountaintop removal has reduced jobs in the coalfields and chastised the industry for causing unrest in the coalfields over the increased oversight that mountaintop removal is receiving by federal regulatory agencies. Most importantly Senator Byrd recognized that most Americans and members of Congress are opposed to mountaintop removal and made reference to the bipartisan support of the Clean Water Protection Act and the Appalachia Restoration Act, which would stop the most egregious forms of mountaintop removal.
This statement creates an even more favorable environment for Congress to pass legislation that will provide relief and protection from mountaintop removal for the citizens of Appalachia. Senator Byrd is the longest serving Senator in Unites States history, and remains one of the most powerful politicians in Congress. His recognition that mountaintop removal is having negative impacts on Appalachian citizens and that the coal industry is going to have to change the status quo is a powerful testament to the work of citizens from across West Virginia, across Appalachia, and across America who are fighting for justice. Because of our shared work for progress, change is coming.
Here is Senator Byrd’s complete statement:
COAL MUST EMBRACE THE FUTURE
Senator Robert C. Byrd (D-W.Va.)
For more than 100 years, coal has been the backbone of the Appalachian economy. Even today, the economies of more than 20 states depend to some degree on the mining of coal. About half of all the electricity generated in America and about one quarter of all the energy consumed globally is generated by coal.
Change is no stranger to the coal industry. Think of the huge changes which came with the onset of the Machine Age in the late 1800’s. Mechanization has increased coal production and revenues, but also has eliminated jobs, hurting the economies of coal communities. In 1979, there were 62,500 coal miners in the Mountain State. Today there are about 22,000. In recent years, West Virginia has seen record high coal production and record low coal employment.
And change is undeniably upon the coal industry again. The increased use of mountaintop removal mining means that fewer miners are needed to meet company production goals. Meanwhile the Central Appalachian coal seams that remain to be mined are becoming thinner and more costly to mine. Mountaintop removal mining, a declining national demand for energy, rising mining costs and erratic spot market prices all add up to fewer jobs in the coal fields.
These are real problems. They affect real people. And West Virginia’s elected officials are rightly concerned about jobs and the economic impact on local communities. I share those concerns. But the time has come to have an open and honest dialogue about coal’s future in West Virginia.
Let’s speak the truth. The most important factor in maintaining coal-related jobs is demand for coal. Scapegoating and stoking fear among workers over the permitting process is counter-productive.
Coal companies want a large stockpile of permits in their back pockets because that implies stability to potential investors. But when coal industry representatives stir up public anger toward federal regulatory agencies, it can damage the state’s ability to work with those agencies to West Virginia’s benefit. This, in turn, may create the perception of ineffectiveness within the industry, which can drive potential investors away.
Let’s speak a little more truth here. No deliberate effort to do away with the coal industry could ever succeed in Washington because there is no available alternative energy supply that could immediately supplant the use of coal for base load power generation in America. That is a stubborn fact that vexes some in the environmental community, but it is reality.
It is also a reality that the practice of mountaintop removal mining has a diminishing constituency in Washington. It is not a widespread method of mining, with its use confined to only three states. Most members of Congress, like most Americans, oppose the practice, and we may not yet fully understand the effects of mountaintop removal mining on the health of our citizens. West Virginians may demonstrate anger toward the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) over mountaintop removal mining, but we risk the very probable consequence of shouting ourselves out of any productive dialogue with EPA and our adversaries in the Congress.
Some have even suggested that coal state representatives in Washington should block any advancement of national health care reform legislation until the coal industry’s demands are met by the EPA. I believe that the notion of holding the health care of over 300 million Americans hostage in exchange for a handful of coal permits is beyond foolish; it is morally indefensible. It is a non-starter, and puts the entire state of West Virginia and the coal industry in a terrible light.
To be part of any solution, one must first acknowledge a problem. To deny the mounting science of climate change is to stick our heads in the sand and say “deal me out.” West Virginia would be much smarter to stay at the table.
The 20 coal-producing states together hold some powerful political cards. We can have a part in shaping energy policy, but we must be honest brokers if we have any prayer of influencing coal policy on looming issues important to the future of coal like hazardous air pollutants, climate change, and federal dollars for investments in clean coal technology.
Most people understand that America cannot meet its current energy needs without coal, but there is strong bi-partisan opposition in Congress to the mountaintop removal method of mining it. We have our work cut out for us in finding a prudent and profitable middle ground – but we will not reach it by using fear mongering, grandstanding and outrage as a strategy. As your United States Senator, I must represent the opinions and the best interests of the entire Mountain State, not just those of coal operators and southern coalfield residents who may be strident supporters of mountaintop removal mining.
I have spent the past six months working with a group of coal state Democrats in the Senate, led by West Virginia native Senator Tom Carper (D-Del.), drafting provisions to assist the coal industry in more easily transitioning to a lower-carbon economy. These include increasing funding for clean coal projects and easing emission standards and timelines, setting aside billions of dollars for coal plants that install new technology and continue using coal. These are among the achievable ways coal can continue its major role in our national energy portfolio. It is the best way to step up to the challenge and help lead change.
The truth is that some form of climate legislation will likely become public policy because most American voters want a healthier environment. Major coal-fired power plants and coal operators operating in West Virginia have wisely already embraced this reality, and are making significant investments to prepare.
The future of coal and indeed of our total energy picture lies in change and innovation. In fact, the future of American industrial power and our economic ability to compete globally depends on our ability to advance energy technology.
The greatest threats to the future of coal do not come from possible constraints on mountaintop removal mining or other environmental regulations, but rather from rigid mindsets, depleting coal reserves, and the declining demand for coal as more power plants begin shifting to biomass and natural gas as a way to reduce emissions.
Fortunately, West Virginia has a running head-start as an innovator. Low-carbon and renewable energy projects are already under development in West Virginia, including: America’s first integrated carbon capture and sequestration project on a conventional coal-fired power plant in Mason County; the largest wind power facility in the eastern United States; a bio-fuel refinery in Nitro; three large wood pellet plants in Fayette, Randolph, and Gilmer Counties; and major dams capable of generating substantial electricity.
Change has been a constant throughout the history of our coal industry. West Virginians can choose to anticipate change and adapt to it, or resist and be overrun by it. One thing is clear. The time has arrived for the people of the Mountain State to think long and hard about which course they want to choose.
COAL MUST EMBRACE THE FUTURE