Coal Country showing in Blacksburg

Thursday night, Coal Country has a showing in Blacksburg at the Lyric Theater, a not-for-profit movie theater and community center in downtown Blacksburg. It was a great setting for a showing of this movie that take a look at modern coal mining. Lauren posted the trailer to Coal Country below and I recommend looking to see if there is a showing near you. The producers, Mari-Lynn Evans and Phylis Geller, let the residents tell their stories. They interview miners and those who work for the mining companies who talk about how coal puts food on their table, but they also talk to former miners who have health problems, people from mining families who are now working to end mountain top removal and to end the destructive extraction of coal from the mountains of Appalachia.

Before the film, Diana Jones sang original work and old miner songs. Her powerful voice and evocative songs set the mood for the film as her love of those mountains was evident. Kathy Selvage, the daughter of a coal miner and a dedicated activist, greeted us and told us some of her story. Kathy was one of the people profiled in the movie and will be traveling to many of the showings scheduled. Local nonprofits and student groups set up tables to give moviegoers opportunities to get involved. A group of Virginia Tech students from “Virginia Tech Beyond Coal” talked about their vision for moving the university past its current use of coal to being a leader in clean energy technology.

I’ve been involved in climate change work for over five years now and the postive vision of what we’re working to create gives me the inspiration to believe we’re going to get there, but there are times when I am reminded of what we’re really working to stop. The images of mountaintop removal and of the fallacy of ‘reclaiming’ MTR sites are images I have seen before but to see them in moving picture while hearing stories from those in coal country, was absolutely heartbreaking. Seeing the destruction isn’t enough to convience everyone that mountain top removal should end, but I have no doubt this film will convience many. Find a showing near you here.

Coal is the Word– Spread it!

coal
Today the Virginia Air Board had its quarterly meeting and looking at the agenda one thing is crystal clear: Coal is impacting air quality all over the Commonwealth.

As I write this from the meeting room, and the Air Board is hearing reports on problems associated with coal-fired power plants from one end of the state to the other, an indication of the growing focus on issues related to mining and burning coal in Virginia. No fewer than seven coal-related issues are on today’s agenda.

Currently I am listening to the preliminary findings from ongoing monitoring of air quality in residential areas of Wise County (Roda to be specific). These areas are affected by toxic dust from trucks transporting coal from mountaintop removal sites to nearby processing facilities. So far I’ve heard from two Department of Environmental Quality employees and one representative for Cumberland Resources (the coal company creating the dust). Public testimony from the community is yet to come but a pattern is clear in regards to what the coal industry thinks about the dust issue in Roda: Yes, there’s toxic dust in air but it’s no one’s fault. Could be attributed to faulty data perhaps or bad roadways, but we certainly shouldn’t be concerned if it’s only dangerous to breathe a couple of days a year. Apparently air is not connected: air tested at one person’s house doesn’t mean the community’s air is dirty.

Last I checked breathing wasn’t something we can decide to do only on days when the air isn’t filled with toxic dust.

They Air Board is also reviewing a proposal by Old Dominion Electric Cooperative to build a 1,500-megawatt power plant in Surry County, which would be the single largest coal-burning plant in the Commonwealth. During the public comment period, we got to hear from several residents from Surry County who have serious concerns with regards to this plant. The Surry coal plant discussion came right after testimony on “High Priority Violators,” which highlighted that coal plants in Hampton, Charlottesville and Russell County are all exceeding their air pollution permits. It’s no surprise that the citizens of Dendron and surrounding Surry County are opposed to having a monstrous 1500 MW facility in their backyards. Preliminary air permit applications have indicated that this plant will dump plenty of toxic emissions into the air and water — from mercury to carbon dioxide to fly ash to lead.

I think it’s fair to say you hear pretty regularly about the impacts of CO2 as an endangerment to public health given the recent Environmental Protection Agency finding, and people do what they can to moderate their fish intake due to mercury concerns.

One issue you don’t hear about in the front of the news is lead, mainly because the jury isn’t out debating the impacts on lead. We’ve been pretty clear on how dangerous lead is for a while now and it’s been removed from all aspects of our lives (even in amounts as small as what used to be in our pencils!).

Betsy Shepard, who lives in Surry County got it right when she offered public testimony and held up a Thomas the Train toy that her son plays with. She noted that toys containing lead paint are to be removed from her children at once because they are a risk. Then she noted that the Surry coal plant is projected to emit 1000 pounds of lead each year for the next 50 years!!! What is Betsy supposed to do if this plant is approved? How is she to remove the risk that air will pose to her family?

There is a lot on the agenda today, lots of concerns have been raised with regards to coal’s cumulative impact on the Commonwealth. I have hope that a new energy future is not far off as we begin to make the connection between air quality and public health and coal and our electricity. As the true cost of our energy enters the public domain, we will begin to transition to a clean energy economy that will expand the Commonwealth’s economy and ensure public health.

Coal lobby resorted to deception, identity theft

At least six letters sent to Congressman Tom Perriello (D-7th Dist.) from Charlottesville-based minority groups opposing the American Clean Energy and Security Act were forged, the Charlottesville Daily Progress reported today. Congressman Perriello, a freshman Congressman from the Charlottesville area was considered a swing vote on the legislation.

First of all, was Congressman Perriello the only one to get these letters? I wonder…

Secondly, way to go Perriello for standing up to these lies and voting the right way on a important, if weak, clean energy bill.

The letters were sent by the Washington lobbying firm Bonner & Associates, which has lobbied on behalf of utility companies in the past. The firm did not register to lobby on behalf of any company or organization against the cap-and-trade bill.

Two of the letters purportedly came from the Albermarle-Charlottesville chapter of the NAACP and Creciendo Juntos of Charlottesville.

Read the letters:

NAACP
Creciendo Juntos

The American Clean Energy and Security Act, which narrowly passed the House of Representatives 219-212 in June, would put a cap on emissions of global warming pollution and invest money into the renewable energy and efficiency sectors.

According to the Center for American Progress, a $150 billion clean energy investment across the country would bring 45,000 jobs to Virginia and about $3.9 billion in investments, reducing unemployment by 1.1 percent.

Obama: "I love Rick Boucher"

Cross-Posted from: here

I happened to catch the opening part of President Barack Obama’s health care town hall meeting in Bristol, Virginia. At the beginning of these, local politicians are usually acknowledged by the President. So Obama thanks the Virginia Senators and the Governor, and then mentions that the Congressman of this area is Rick Boucher. Now, Obama could leave it at acknowledging Rick Boucher like the others, but instead he goes on an elaboration of energy, saying Boucher was an early supporter of his campaign, and has worked to ensure an energy policy where clean coal is part of Virginia’s energy future, which will create jobs. Because of this, Obama proclaims “I love Rick Boucher.”

Now, as whole I’m a supporter of Obama’s presidency. After 8 years of Bush I’m infinitely happier with Obama as president. I think Obama understands the critical issues around clean energy and climate change. Although he needs to show much stronger leadership and be more vocal with the media, I have considered the stimulus investment, stronger fuel economy standards, as well as his administration’s aggressive behind the scenes arm-twisting over the Waxman-Markey bill(which I support) to be pretty good. At the same time, I’ve criticized his administration over the EPA ruling on mountaintop removal, as well as his stance on clean coal, which is no secret at this point. The tar sands aren’t looking too good either.

But the notion that Obama can stand there and proclaim such outstanding support for a bought out Congressman is absolutely disgraceful and damaging. Not just because of Boucher’s efforts to drain what should be clean energy funding into longshot carbon capture and sequestration. That you would expect Obama to support. It’s the fact that Boucher was the leader on the Energy and Commerce Committee in weakening Waxman-Markey’s emissions targets and he pushed to weaken them any further. It’s that Boucher took a 25% renewable electricity standard and a 15% efficiency standard and turned them into 20% combined together. These were the two biggest weakening effects. Although permit allocations and EPA authority are not at the top of my complaint list, Boucher had a big hand in those tamperings as well. If you could pick one member of the House that’s done the most damage to our efforts to pass a strong climate bill, it’s Rick Boucher. That’s why back in May, I was present at a direct action protest in the halls of Congress, where some blocked Boucher’s office and were arrested. At that event, one of the organizers Mike Tidwell, the director of CCAN and a friend talked about how Obama had all these goals for a good climate bill, and that Boucher was ruining Obama’s plan. If this really was so, Obama would not have such kind words for Boucher.

These kinds of remarks along with the EPA’s inability to block mountaintop removal mining makes me quite perplexed when I hear activists say we should kill the current bill so EPA can work its magic. I seriously doubt EPA would do better even if it moved in a timely fashion and cleared all the legal hurdles.

So, some general points I’m making to take away…

– I wouldn’t bet the planet on the EPA, and I doubt China or India would either. Let’s do our best to get a bill passed and improved out of the Senate that we can take to Copenhagen.

– I don’t like Rick Boucher.

– President Obama is doing some good things and some bad things. However, if he doesn’t adopt a much stronger public stance to pass a Senate bill and get a treaty in Copenhagen, his Presidency will go down in history as a colossal failure despite some of the good things he does.

– You can’t take a stronger public approach if you’re holding hands adoringly with Rick Boucher.

Urge Obama to end Mountaintop Removal Coal Mining!

Below is an email I received from Matt Wasson from http://www.ilovemountains.org

The pressure on the Obama administration to stop mountaintop removal coal mining is building across the country.

Last week, we asked you to call the White House and tell the administration that it was time to reverse the devastating 2002 Bush Administration “fill rule,” which allows coal companies to dump their toxic mining waste into our nation’s streams.

And next week, on June 23rd, climate scientist Dr. James Hansen will join community members and activists from around the country in Coal River Valley, West Virginia to launch a year of activism to end mountaintop removal coal mining.

Hansen and others will gather at Marsh Fork Elementary — the elementary school that is next to a mountaintop removal mine operated by Massey Energy and just 400 yards downslope from a 2.8 billion gallon coal sludge impoundment that threatens the school.

The activists will then march a short distance to Massey Energy’s office of operations and risk arrest in a line crossing civil disobedience, in order to raise awareness of the devastation that mountaintop removal coal mining is causing to the mountains and communities of Appalachia.

Can you take a moment to stand with them, and help put pressure on the Obama administration to take immediate action to end mountaintop removal coal mining today?

We’re asking every member of iLoveMountains.org to take just three minutes to email the White House to ask President Obama to immediately begin the process of overturning the Bush-era “fill rule,” which allows coal companies to dump their toxic mining waste into our nation’s streams.

Please, click here to email President Obama now.

The Obama administration needs to hear that simply enforcing Bush-era rules and laws is not enough. The administration must overturn the Bush-era rules to begin the process of building a sustainable future for Appalachia.

That’s why the activists gathering at Coal River Valley next week are risking arrest — to send the message that impact on the mountains, communities and waterways of central Appalachia have been ignored for too long.

Please, take a moment to make sure President Obama hears that message:

Email President Obama today.

Thank you for taking action.

Matt Wasson
iLoveMountains.org

PS Contact Annie Sartor (annie@ran.org) at Rainforest Action Network if you are interested in coming to Coal River Mountain on June 23rd.

Guest Post: Boucher Disappoints

The following is an article written by CCAN supporter and Boucher constituent Theresa Burriss. The piece first appeared in the New River Voice.

After watching Congressman Rick Boucher gut the clean energy bill in the Energy and Commerce Committee, Theresa felt compelled to act. After reading an article a couple weeks later written by the heads of Dominion, Duke Energy and American Electric Power, Theresa wrote this important piece.

I recall, sometime during my parochial elementary education, learning about the structure of our federal government and the roles of each branch. Although I was impressed with the administration and judiciary, the legislature held more of an immediate, relevant meaning for me.

Legislators, supposedly, represented their constituents and their constituents’ concerns. They were elected by a direct vote in their district or state to act ethically, create and vote on new bills for the betterment of society, and ultimately serve their constituents. Although I was far too young to vote, I, and my peers, still counted as constituents according to Sister Maria.

Now that I’m well past the minimum voting age, I’m reminded of Sister Maria’s government lessons and the ideals associated with them, especially as I continue to read about my own congressman’s latest actions, which fall far short of those ideals. I’ll begin to enumerate my disappointments with Representative Rick Boucher (D, 9th District) by citing a recent op-ed printed in another media source. Continue reading