Two weeks ago, Governor McDonnell hosted an Energy Conference in Richmond. In anticipation of the conference, the Sierra Club and the Chesapeake Climate Action Network criticized the Governor for the lack of emphasis on renewable energy and energy efficiency in the agenda.  The Governor responded by claiming that the conference agenda was “balanced” and included [...]

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Cross Posted from ILoveMountains.org
EPA announced today that they will be vetoing the largest mountaintop removal permit in WV history.
We are thrilled to hear that EPA will be vetoing this permit in order to protect human health and aquatic ecosystems in central Appalachia. EPA’s own science has shown that mountaintop removal has permanent negative impacts [...]

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From the Richmond Times Dispatch. You can read the whole article here, excerpt below.

The CEO of the state’s largest utility said there must be a realistic conversation about the sustainability of alternative energy resources before a national energy policy can be made.
“Our habit of debating energy issues is to talk back at each other. We [...]

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cross-posted from iLoveMountains.org
Today, the Environmental Protection Agency took a historic step to protect Appalachian communities from the devastating effects of a mountaintop removal coal mine. After months of consideration, EPA’s Region 3 office announced its recommendation to veto the permit for the monstrous Spruce No. 1 Mine in Logan County, W.V. (PDF) The decision now [...]

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A former Virginia underground coal miner, Daniel Hawkins, has come out against mountaintop removal coal mining and has started a blog on his experiences and opinions on the matter. He has written four excellent posts so far titled, “Where to Begin”, “What Happened? Coal Miner to Environmentalist?” (parts I and II), and “Part III: Realization”.

Coal [...]

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“Past error is no excuse for its own perpetuation. Tragedy is a tool for the living to gain wisdom, not a guide by which to live.” - Robert Francis Kennedy
It’s been over 8 weeks since the deadly explosion at Massey Energy’s Upper Big Branch (UBB) mine claimed the lives of 29 American Miners in [...]

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Cross posted from the Appalachian Voices “Front Porch Blog”
Washington, DC – U.S. Senator Robert C. Byrd, D-W.Va. issued the following statements in response to media inquiries on a number of topics relating to the mining disaster in West Virginia:
“While the situation on the ground this morning is not as encouraging as we had hoped, my [...]

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Cross Posted from Appalachian Voices Front Porch Blog
Daniel Stone published a piece on coal and energy over Newsweek’s “The Gaggle” called ”West Virginia Mine Disaster Unlikely to Affect National Energy Debate”.  David Roberts at Grist responded to Energy Committee Staffer Bill Wicker for a quote he had in the article, and its well worth the read. [...]

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Pretty big news from West Virginia. From the Charleston Gazette reporter’s Ken Ward’s blog:
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency just issued its “proposed determination” to block the Clean Water Act permit for the Spruce No. 1 Mine in Logan County, the largest mountaintop removal permit in West Virginia history.
EPA has posed this proposed determination document on its Region [...]

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A coalition comprised of 28 Christian groups sent a letter to the Environmental Protection Agency demanding that the organization take action to end mountaintop removal through the restoration of the Clean Water Act’s protections.
“As part of our call to be stewards of creation, we have a duty to use the land responsibly, to manage it [...]

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Hello friends,

I’m writing to ask you to take a step today that can help break King Coal’s economic stranglehold on coalfield communities in Southwest Virginia. By a few simple, digital steps, and three votes, you can help jump start grass roots efforts at sustainable economic development in the mountains of Southwest Virginia. Heard enough? Great. [...]

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Dominion stokes the coal industry, but says it’s a friend to the environment
BY ERIKA HOWSARE of the Cville Weekly

It’s a dim, drizzly afternoon, and I’m riding around Wise County with Kathy and Gary Selvage. I can see what they’re pointing out—evidence of surface mining—but I can’t see it the way they do.
The Selvages have [...]

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Obama Administration Asked to Halt All New Mountaintop Removal Permits
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CONTACTS:
Sandra Diaz, Director of Development and Communications, Appalachian Voices….828-262-1500
Dr. Matthew Wasson, Director of Programs, Appalachian Voices….828-262-1500
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Just days after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency approved the expansion [...]

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Wednesday, October 21st, 2009
John Adams has been mining coal in southwest Virginia for almost 40 years. I met him in the hallway outside the auditorium where the Big Stone Gap hearing was being held. He wore an ‘I Love Mountains’ pin proudly fastened next to the ‘Friends of Coal’ logo on the black t-shirt he [...]

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As Congress was returning from the August recess, there wasn’t much news about the climate bill.  The only energy-related news breaking through the coverage of the rancorous health care debates and town-hall tea parties was a study on “energy sprawl” published by five staff members of the Nature Conservancy.
“Renewable Energy Needs Land, Lots Of Land” [...]

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