Elkton, VA wants clean coal. Who wants to tell them there ain't any?

On Monday, the town council of Elkton, Virignia submitted a request to Governor Kaine asking him to seek out state and federal funding for a proposed “clean” coal research facility outside the Shenandoah town. A short hop from Harrisonburg and James Madison University, the town hopes to harness the 100 or so jobs created by the project as a boost to the local economy.

Called the Elkton Energy Research Center, the facility would focus on developing two different types of carbon capture and sequestration, both of which are not yet commercially viable. Spearheaded by county democrats, hopes are that federal cash devoted to CCS tech will find its way to the town of only 2,000 residents situated along the south fork of the Shenandoah River. The proposal would require massive amounts of start-up cash from state and federal governments, approaching the $100 million mark.

No coal, no compromise

Last night 1Sky and the Energy Action Coalition hosted a conference call with House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairs Henry Waxman and Ed Markey to discuss the American Clean Energy and Security Act. Let me begin by thanking Gillian Caldwell at 1Sky for moderating, and the congressman and their staff for attending the call. The hour long conference call, attended by more than 600 listeners, answered about 15 specific policy questions about the bill. Annette Welch from WV asked about the provisions for coal and CCS in the bill, and what the legislation would do about the practice of mountain top removal coal mining and and pollutants from coal burning power plants…the answer from the chairmen was more than disappointing.

nope

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Column on Mountaintop Removal

Cross-posted from: here

I have a column out today in the paper about the Obama Administration’s shameful approval of 42 mountaintop removal permits. I want to be sure to post it for you.

Mountaintop removal: No science, no ethics

MATT DERNOGA

The Environmental Protection Agency recently approved 42 of the 48 permit applications for mountaintop removal operations in West Virginia, deeming them environmentally responsible. A review of mountaintop removal would serve the EPA well.

Mountaintop removal is a way for the coal companies to avoid having to mine the mountain the traditional way. Instead, they use millions of tons of dynamite to blow up the mountain so they can easily extract the coal underneath. Dynamite is cheaper than coal miners; no jobs created here. The toxic waste from this process is then dumped into the nearby valleys and riverbeds below, which can ruin the entire ecosystem.

More disturbing is the effect on the communities that live in the area. Coal slurry is a toxic byproduct of the mining waste, with billions of gallons stored in dams around the mining sites. At mountaintop removal sites like those in the Appalachia in West Virginia, this can shatter the community in two ways.

There was an incident last December in Tennessee where a coal slurry dam between Nashville and Knoxville burst, causing 500 million gallons of sludge to flow into the tributaries of the Tennessee River, which is also the water supply for millions living in Alabama, Tennessee and Kentucky. It was estimated to be 40 times larger than the infamous Exxon Valdez spill.

Living near a mountaintop removal operation and living near a coal slurry dam is like living in a war zone. Explosions are going off all the time. Ash and rock is raining down around communities. Machinery is clanging all day and night. The air and water is contaminated with toxic metals and chemicals, including arsenic, lead, selenium, boron, cadmium and cobalt. A friend of mine recently traveled to a West Virginia community to see the devastation and said residents have numbness in their extremities because what they are ingesting is so toxic.

In desperation, coalfield residents of West Virginia wrote a letter to the EPA and Department of Interior begging them to stop the madness. “You are our last hope for justice at this point,” they wrote.

The EPA responded to a different letter instead. They wrote back to a West Virginia Congressman who was determined to ensure the permits went through. The EPA letter said, “I understand the importance of coal mining in Appalachia for jobs, the economy and meeting the nation’s energy needs.” You know the rest.

The health hazards mentioned came to light as a result of the EPA’s own analysis and report on the impacts of living near coal ash and slurry ponds. Both President Barack Obama and EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson have pledged to base decisions on science. Science has returned to the White House, we’re told. Exactly what kind of “science” are we talking about? This reminds me of my sixth grade “science” fair project that involved lots of burnt bread and no numbers.

Jackson, the EPA and Obama have made a mockery of science. They placed the coal industry above human decency. They let the people of Appalachia’s hopes slip right through their fingers. In so doing, they’ve undermined (no pun intended) the moral integrity of America and failed West Virginia, as well as the rest of the country.

Matt Dernoga is a senior government and politics major. He can be reached at mdernoga@umd.edu

Sources

On the 42/48 approved…

http://blogs.wvgazette.com/coaltattoo/2009/05/15/rahall-epa-clears-42-of-48-permits-for-approval/

The EPA’s response to the Congressman

http://wvgazette.com/static/coal%20tattoo/epa2rahall.pdf

Link for the coal slurry disaster

http://madrad2002.wordpress.com/2008/12/23/coal-slurry-dam-disaster/ (article link is in the first paragraph, butthere’s a lot of background info in the entire post).

The following two highlight the dangers of being near coalslurry ponds.

http://www.environmentalintegrity.org/pub640.cfm

http://www.environmentalintegrity.org/pubs/FINAL%20COMING%20CLEAN%20EJEIP%20Report%2020090507.pdf

Source for the letter..

http://www.grist.org/article/urgent-letter-to-epa-and-

Just when I thought things couldn't get worse in Virginia…

As the rest of the nation rejects coal plant after coal plant… Virginia is building one in SW and proposing another one three times the size in the Hampton Roads area.

As our neighbors in Maryland pass the strongest state legislation to regulate carbon emissions… Virginia’s own Rick Boucher is working to water down and nullify any impact a federal climate bill could have.

It’s a tough fight here in Virginia, and I will continue to fight every single day to promote sustainable energy policy for the commonwealth.

Amidst it all, I still remember things could be worse, we could be WEST VIRGINIA!

Our friends in West Virginia just declared coal the state rock.

Cross posted from our friends at Center for American Progress’s Blog:

Gov. Joe Manchin (D-WV) has made coal the official state rock of his state. According to the West Virgina Coal Association, the teen-aged daughter of a coal company employee “got the measure placed before the state legislature this year with the help of Sen. Truman Chafin (D-Mingo) and Del. Harry Keith White (D-Mingo).” On Wednesday, Manchin signed the resolution into law:

Bituminous coal is now West Virginia’s official state rock. Gov. Joe Manchin has signed a House of Delegates resolution making the designation based primarily on coal’s contribution to the state’s economy and history.

Despite $118 million in coal-mining annual income, West Virginia has the nation’s lowest median household income, worst educational services, worst social assistance, the highest population with disabilities, and nearly a quarter of West Virginia children in poverty.

Seems to me the best way to preserve the state rock is to keep it in the GROUND! Who’s with me?

Shame on the EPA

Cross posted from here

Obama’s EPA has done some good things already, but there is one really big black mark on their record which is extremely disappointed. With the commotion of the climate bill moving through Congress, I hadn’t had a chance to comment on the EPA’s ruling that 42 of the 48 Mountaintop Removal mining permits were “environmentally responsible””. I’ve documented plenty of reasons why coal use needs to be phased out Continue reading

Is a Coal Plant in Surry County a Bad Idea? CCAN Asks Terry McAuliffe

terry_rallyThis morning the Chesapeake Climate Action Network successfully caught the attention of Virginia gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe at a rally he hosted at the 17th Street Farmer’s Market in Richmond, Virginia. Richmond Town Councilman Marty Jewel kicked off the morning, and former President Bill Clinton introduced Mr. McAuliffe. The theme of the rally was “New Energy for New Jobs,” and the candidate’s speech centered repowering the commonwealth and creating new jobs for Virginians. CCAN wanted to ask Mr. McAuliffe about his position on a recently proposed coal fired power plant for Surry County, a Hampton Roads community. Well, we got his attention!

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Volunteer Night to Stop Coal!

Are you ready to fight coal?

All across the country coal plants are being rejected. Yet somehow in Virginia we are building a new coal fired plant in Wise County and proposing a plant three times the size in the Hampton Roads area.

During the presidential campaign, both candidates invested a lot of time and energy to make phone calls in to key swing states to influence critical votes to win the election. This is a GREAT strategy to win.

In our campaign to stop this proposed plant, we have critical votes just like swing state votes. Right now, Virginians living in electric cooperatives served by Old Dominion Electric Coop have a unique voice in this fight. Tomorrow night we will start calling these folks to educate them on why this coal plant is a bad investment and get them to take action!

We will be meeting tomorrow at the St Charles Borromeo Parish in Arlington, near the Clarendon Metro stop for our first volunteer night to stop coal. The details are below, and I hope that you can join us.

What: Volunteer Night to Stop Coal!

Where: St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Parish
3304 Washington Blvd.
Arlington, Virginia 22201

When: Tuesday, April 13th 5:30-7:30pm

**We will have a couple of laptops on hand, but please if you have one, bring your own as well as your cell phone..**

Any questions please email: Lauren@chesapeakeclimate.org

Historic Shift: Wind Cheaper than Coal in MD!

Like residents of most other states, Marylanders who wanted to buy 100% clean energy were used to paying a premium to be green. Starting this summer, the roles will reverse.

In Maryland, all BGE and Pepco residential customers (about 80% of the population or 1.73 million people) can now sign up for 100% wind power through Clean Currents at rates that are below Pepco’s and BGE’s rates for conventional coal-powered electricity!

CCAN director Mike Tidwell joined Clean Currents president Gary Skulnik (pictured at right) at a press conference last week to announce the historic shift. Standing before a gaggle of TV cameras, microphones and reporters, Gary began: “Usually renewable energy requires an upfront investment, but we’re in a unique situation where you can choose green power and save money at the same time. It almost never happens.”

And he’s right. This crossing of cost lines between wind and coal energy doesn’t happen often, but the shift is beginning. When a similar shift happened in Austin, TX three years ago, Lester Brown described it as “a milestone in the U.S. shift to a renewable energy economy.” A similar situation also unfolded in Colorado around the same time as in Austin.

So what happened in Maryland to make this price shift possible?
Here in Maryland, the decreased rates are the result of a steady decline in wholesale energy prices. Utility companies set their customers’ rates periodically and have not reduced them to reflect the lower prices they are now paying for energy to produce electricity. But Clean Currents and other companies have taken advantage of the downturn in the price and are offering residents as much as two years of power for 10 to 15 percent less than the utilities’ summer rates.

How do I sign up?
To sign up, simply go to www.cleancurrents.com and click on “residential.” It only takes a few minutes to complete the enrollment process (you will need your Utility Account #). Once switched, there will be no interruption of service. Power outages are still fixed by Pepco and BGE, and billing is still handled by the utility. The only difference is that you will save money and be supporting clean, renewable wind power.

Energy: A tar-nished reputation

This is a crosspost from this blog: http://madrad2002.wordpress.com/2009/03/03/tar-sands-column/

So I have a column in the Diamondback today. I want to correct a couple of small things that the editors changed. I put “tar sands” everytime I discussed them, but they were changed to “oil sands” for some reason. Other thing is when I mention natural gas is being used to extract the oil from the sands, I say I would rather us be using that natural gas to replace coal plants because it is cleaner than coal. For the record I do recognize natural gas is not clean and not what we should be pursuing, I just would rather us burn it to replace coal rather than burn it to extract tar sands oil.

http://media.www.diamondbackonline.com/media/storage/paper873/news/2009/03/03/Opinion/Energy.A.TarNished.Reputation-3656037.shtml

Energy: A tar-nished reputation

Matt Dernoga

Issue date: 3/3/09 Section: Opinion

Last week, President Barack Obama met with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper to discuss energy. The United States and Canada share the largest energy trade partnership in the world, with Canada supplying the United States with more oil and natural gas than any other country. A major point of interest has been the Canadian oil sands, from which Canada is extracting increasing amounts of oil to export to the U.S. Continue reading