The Alliance for Appalachia

From www.iLoveMountains.org:

Two new studies from Appalachian Voices and the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) that combine to debunk one of Big Coal’s biggest lies about mountaintop removal coal mining.

Click this link to view the Reclamation FAIL map:
http://www.ilovemountains.org/Reclamation-Fail

Coal companies like to tout reclamation as a solution to their mining destruction. According to Big Coal, after a mountain has been destroyed by mountaintop removal coal mining, the post-mined land is “reclaimed” for “beneficial” industrial, commercial, residential or public use. They also claim that more flat land is needed to encourage economic growth.

But the Reclamation FAIL reports reveal that Big Coal’s claims are a big, flat lie.

To date, some 500 peaks – encompassing roughly 1.2 million acres – have been leveled throughout Kentucky, West Virginia, Virginia, and Tennessee. NRDC’s survey focused on 410 of those mine sites (excluding 90 active mines). What did they find? Despite Big Coal’s rhetoric, 90% of post-mined sites remain unreclaimed.

We need your help to get the word out on this important report — and to debunk the myth of mining “wrecklamation.” Please, take a moment to read the report, and spread the word.

Click here to read the studies.

Desks and playground equipment, covered with a thin film of chemical-laden coal dust, sit just 225 feet from a coal silo. Overhead looms the Massey Energy Shumate impoundment, an embankment holding back 2.8 billion gallons of toxic liquid coal waste. Welcome to Marsh Fork Elementary School.

Ed Wiley’s granddaughter, Kayla, attended this school nestled in the Coal River Valley near Sundial, W.Va. Kayla inspired Wiley’s campaign, Pennies of Promise, to raise the $8.6 million needed to build the children a new school in a safe location.

Today, that mission is a success. Gov. Joe Manchin held a press conference on Friday to announce that Massey Energy and the Raleigh County School Board would supply the final $1.5 million needed to complete the necessary funding for a new school, matching a $2.5 million grant by the Annenberg Foundation announced on Thursday. Add this to the $10,400 raised by Pennies of Promise, $1 million from the Raleigh School Board, the $1 million promised by Massey energy, and the $2.6 million granted by the School Building Authority.

“The whole movement made this happen, the communities, all the kids collecting pennies across the country,” said local resident Judy Bonds. “This is a victory for everyone.”

Read more at www.appvoices.org

From www.kftc.org

PNC, JPMorgan Chase and UBS Receive Failing Grades
From The Rainforest Action Network: www.ran.org/reportcard

A new report card issued today by Rainforest Action Network, the Sierra Club and BankTrack ranks nine of the world’s largest banks on their financing of dangerous mountaintop removal (MTR) coal mining projects as well as their lending policies. PNC, JPMorgan Chase and UBS received failing grades as the lead financiers of companies practicing MTR.

A copy of the report card, which reviews the financing practices of Bank of America, Citi, Credit Suisse, Wells Fargo, JPMorgan Chase, Morgan Stanley, GE Capital, PNC and UBS, can be found at www.ran.org/reportcard. Since January 2008, the report card found that these nine banks have provided more than $3.9 billion in loans and bonds to companies practicing mountaintop removal coal mining, including Massey Energy and Arch Coal.

“The idea of corporate responsibility has come up repeatedly in recent weeks following the coal mine and oil disasters. That responsibility extends beyond profits to the health and wellbeing of our communities. By continuing to finance mountaintop removal coal mining these banks are throwing that responsibility aside,” said Mark Kresowik of the Sierra Club.

PNC, which finances almost half of all mountaintop removal coal mining, ranked worst of the worst. The bank earned an “F” for its total failure to take environmental risks into account in its lending practices. Also earning an “F” were UBS and JPMorgan Chase, which respectively finance about one-third of all the MTR coal mined in Appalachia, and GE Capital, which backs about one-quarter of all operations.

“PNC, JPMorgan Chase and UBS received failing grades today as the lead financiers of mountaintop removal, the devastating practice of blowing up our mountains for an insignificant amount of dirty coal,” said Amanda Starbuck of Rainforest Action Network. “When it comes to protecting America’s mountains and clean drinking water, we don’t grade on a curve. When banks stop funding mountaintop removal they will move to the head of the class.”

RAN and Sierra Club disclosed the findings of this report card to each of the nine analyzed banks and offered them the opportunity to improve their grade with further information or changes to banking policies. In response to initial report card findings, Morgan Stanley released a public MTR policy that moved them from a failing grade to a C grade. JPMorgan Chase, despite a yearlong pressure campaign and their upcoming Annual General Shareholder meeting, has yet to make changes to their MTR financing.

Credit Suisse topped the list, earning an “A-” for their efforts to promote responsible mining practices. Credit Suisse has confirmed that they do not finance the extraction of coal in a mountain top removal setting.

The report card calls for the nine banks reviewed to strengthen their policies and cease their financial support for MTR. The ‘best practice’ recommended in the report card is a clear exclusion policy on commercial lending and investment banking services for all coal companies who practice mountaintop removal coal extraction.

Mountaintop removal mining is a devastating form of mining where companies blow the tops off mountains to reach a thin seam of coal and then dump the waste rock into valleys below. This destructive practice has buried nearly 2,000 miles of streams and threatens to destroy 1.4 million acres of land by 2020. The mining destroys Appalachian communities, the health of coalfield residents and any hope for positive economic growth.

Members of The Alliance for Appalachia and many other working for social, economic and environmental justice in Central Appalachia were thrilled to see these powerful words come from Senator Byrd today.

We whole-heartedly agree with the Senator that:

“The old chestnut that “coal is West Virginia’s greatest natural resource” deserves revision. I believe that our people are West Virginia’s most valuable resource. We must demand to be treated as such.”

Below is the statement in full

For Immediate Release: Wednesday, May 5, 2010

“Our Greatest Resource”

U.S. Senator Robert C. Byrd, D-W.Va.

The recent explosion at the Upper Big Branch coal mine in my home county of Raleigh, which killed 29 West Virginians and injured 2 others, has brought West Virginia statewide sorrow and worldwide attention.

Reflecting on President John F. Kennedy’s death, Robert F. Kennedy once said, “Tragedy is a tool for the living to gain wisdom.”

As we seek to understand how and why the Upper Big Branch disaster occurred, we might also re-examine conventional wisdom about the future of the coal industry in our state.

Americans depend mightily on our coal to meet their energy needs. Coal is the major source of electricity in 32 states, and produces roughly half of all the electricity consumed in the United States.

As West Virginians, our birthright is coal. The ancient fossil is abundant here, and is as emblematic of our heritage and cultural identity as the black bear, the cardinal, and the rhododendron.

Indeed, the coal severance tax codifies the philosophy that the coal belongs to all West Virginians, and that they deserve meaningful compensation for its extraction. This philosophy has also been embraced nationwide, through the Black Lung Excise Tax, the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fee, and several other existing and proposed programs that provide additional compensation to the people and places that produce our coal, oil, gas, and other energy resources.

Coal brings much needed jobs and revenue to our economy. But the industry has a larger footprint, including inherent responsibilities that must be acknowledged by the industry.

First and foremost, the coal industry must respect the miner and his family. A single miner’s life is certainly worth the expense and effort required to enhance safety. West Virginia has some of the highest quality coal in the world, and mining it should be considered a privilege, not a right. Any company that establishes a pattern of negligence resulting in injuries and death should be replaced by a company that conducts business more responsibly. No doubt many energy companies are keen for a chance to produce West Virginia coal.

The industry of coal must also respect the land that yields the coal, as well as the people who live on the land. If the process of mining destroys nearby wells and foundations, if blasting and digging and relocating streams unearths harmful elements and releases them into the environment causing illness and death, that process should be halted and the resulting hazards to the community abated.

The sovereignty of West Virginia must also be respected. The monolithic power of industry should never dominate our politics to the detriment of local communities. Our coal mining communities do not have to be marked by a lack of economic diversity and development that can potentially squelch the voice of the people. People living in coal communities deserve to have a free hand in managing their own local affairs and public policies without undue political pressure to submit to the desires of industry.

We have coal companies in West Virginia which go out of their way to operate safely and with minimal impact on our environment. Those companies should be commended and rewarded.

But the coal industry has an immensely powerful lobby in Washington and in Charleston. For nearly a hundred years they have come to our presidents, our members of Congress, our legislators, our mayors, and our county commissioners to demand their priorities. It is only right that the people of West Virginia speak up and make the coal industry understand what is expected of it in return.

The old chestnut that “coal is West Virginia’s greatest natural resource” deserves revision. I believe that our people are West Virginia’s most valuable resource. We must demand to be treated as such.

Our friends at ILoveMountains.org are collecting signatures for a letter to West Virginia Congressman Nick Rahall to show support for his strong stance on mine safety. Lorelei Scarbro, whose husband died of black lung and who has relatives working at Upper Big Branch Mine, will hand-deliver the letter to Congressman Rahall.

Here’s an excerpt from the letter:

Our nation’s miners, who courageously go to work each day knowing that they are putting their lives in danger, deserve the strongest protections the law can provide. …

As hearings and legislation to strengthen mine safety laws move forward in Congress, we will stand behind your efforts to protect miners and hold irresponsible mining companies accountable. We furthermore urge you to take a broad view in providing safety and security for everyone in the communities where coal is mined.

To read more about this effort and sign on to the letter, click here.

A number of our members and friends are attending the Good Jobs, Green Jobs Conference in Washington DC this week. If you can’t be there in person, you can follow the action online courtesy of SOCM!

House speaker Nancy Pelosi is headlining the Good Jobs, Green Jobs Conference, which started today and ends May 6. Want to know what Rep. Pelosi had to say? Is she supporting green-collar jobs in a successful, involved way? If you want to know what’s going on, read up-to-the-minute tweets at http://twitter.com/SOCM.

You’ll find information about new green industries, transportation ideas, state and city progress and plans! SOCM is thrilled to share its D.C. experience with you, so make your way over to the world of Twitter, going green with SOCM’s help.

Update: Three New Co-Sponsors brings us to 170!

Rep. Martin Heinrich 1st term Democrat from New Mexico 1st District signed on as the 170th (including Rep. Pallone) cosponsor of the Clean Water Protection Act (HR 1310).  Mr. Heinrich serves on the Armed Services, and Natural Resources committees.

We’re excited to introduce you to our two newest supporters in Washington DC – bringing us up to 169 co-sponsors including Representative Pallone.

Earlier this year Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) promised to sign on as a cosponsor of the Appalachia Restoration Act (696), and yesterday, April 12, 2010 Senator Brown followed through on his promise and became the 11th cosponsor of the Appalachia Restoration Act.

Mr. Brown serves on the;  Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry committee where he is the chair of the Hunger, Nutrition, and Family Farms subcommittee, Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee where he is the chair of the Economic Policy subcommittee, Health, Education, Labor and Pensions committee, Select Committee on Ethics, and the Veterans’ Affairs committee.

Many thanks go out to the hard working Ohio activists, and to Ohio Citizens Action.
Continue Reading »

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 prayers continue for those who have lost their loved ones, and for the safe return of the four missing miners and those mine rescue team members who are also risking their lives to save their fellow West Virginians.”

“It is infuriating that in this day and age, and in this country, that such a disaster could still happen.  I am sick. I am saddened and I am angry.  We have the laws.  We have the resources.  These tragedies, on this scale, should no longer be happening.”

“Once we learn the cause of this disaster and investigations are completed whether it is wrongdoing by Massey, lack of enforcement by MSHA, or inadequacies with the mine health and safety laws, including the MINER Act of 2006, action will need to be taken.”

LEGISLATIVE CHANGES

“It is premature to say what changes in laws or regulations may be needed until the investigation is underway.  But I have called for a reexamination of the health and safety laws that have been put into place and what more may need to be done to avoid future loss of life.”

“I have received a commitment from Senator Tom Harkin, who is a true friend of the coal miner, and who Chairs both the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), and the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services and Education (LHHS), that a Senate hearing will occur on this overwhelming mining disaster.  This will be in addition to the hearings in the House of Representatives that were requested by my West Virginia colleague, Congressman Nick J. Rahall.  The House hearings will occur in the House Education and Labor Committee.”

MASSEY RESPONSE

“This has been one of Massey CEO Don Blankenship’s comments following this tragic mining disaster: ‘Violations are unfortunately a normal part of the mining process.  There are violations at every coal mine in America, and (the Upper Big Branch Mine) was a mine that had violations.’” (Source: http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/editorials/2010-04-08-editorial08_ST1_N.htm.)

“Well for this Senator, the more I learn about the extent of these violations by Massey at the Upper Big Branch Mine alone, the angrier I get.  57 citations in the month of March alone! Closed over 60 times during the past two years to correct problems!”

“To me, one thing is clear – for a company that has had this number of violations at just one coal mine – one must seriously begin to question the practices and procedures of this particular coal company and it needs the most serious scrutiny from the Congress and the federal regulators.”

MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION FUNDING

“Through my efforts as the senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, I have been able to increase funding for coal enforcement from $117 million in Fiscal Year 2006, to $159 million in Fiscal Year 2010 – a 36 percent increase.  In June 2006, the Senate Appropriations Committee directed MSHA to hire 170 new coal inspectors.  Since then, with the funding I have secured, MSHA has hired 444 coal enforcement personnel, including 119 in West Virginia – increasing the number of inspectors and specialists from 568 in January 2006, to 748 in March 2010.  I will continue to examine the funding needs of MSHA as this investigation moves forward.

“Media reports have stated that ‘Safety officials warned Congress three months ago that the backlog of violations could undermine a crackdown on repeat offenders. A backlog of some 82,000 violations and $210 million in contested penalties is pending before a review commission. In 2009, companies protested roughly two-thirds of the $141 million in penalties assessed by federal regulators.’”

“I secured additional funding in the Fiscal Year 2010 appropriations bill for the Solicitor of Labor and Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (FMSHRC) to help litigate the fines.  President Obama’s budget request for FY 2011 builds on that funding, and I am currently examining whether more funding is needed to help shorten the amount of time to litigate these fines.

The FMSHRC budget increased by $1.7 million in FY 2010 and the Solicitor budget has increased by $28 million in last two years.  And at my request, the Appropriations Committee has urged the Department of Labor to use additional resources to litigate mine safety penalties.

“In addition, I have secured $4 million in the last two years to increase spot inspections to enforce dust control limits.  This is necessary to reduce the risk of explosions and black lung.”

MARSH FORK ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

“Marsh Fork Elementary School sits at the foot of a Massey Energy mountaintop mining site which includes a pond that holds back hundreds of millions of gallons of toxic coal slurry. Since the Upper Big Branch Mine site is in close proximity to the Massey Energy mountaintop mining site, I inquired as to whether the stability of the impoundment lot could have been compromised as a result of the mine explosion.”

“According to information I received from the Department of Labor, the slurry impoundment, located above the Marsh Fork Elementary School, was inspected on Wednesday and determined by inspectors to ‘be fine.’”