In December 2011, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued the Mercury and Air Toxic Standards, the first-ever national standards to protect families from mercury and toxic air pollutants emitted by power plants. Pollutants from coal-fired power plants include arsenic, acid…
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BLM/OSM Merger Postponed | Newsbites
Interior Secretary Ken Salazar has announced a postponement of a merger between the Bureau of Land Management and the Office of Surface Mining and Reclamation Enforcement to Feb. 15, 2012. In late October, Salazar announced the proposal and received immediate…
TAGS: American Recovery and Reinvestment Act ammonium nitrate Appalachian politics Baard Energy Bureau of Land Management carbon capture Coal coal-to-liquids plants Energy and Natural Resources Committee EPA high-sulfur coal military training mine inspection National Mining Association Office of Surface Mining Ohio Politics reclaimed surface mine land surface mining Upper Big Branch mine disaster West Virginia University
Appalachian Coal Mining Jobs Reach 14-year High
Increase Comes Despite Arguments that Regulations Kill Jobs Some congressional representatives claim that federal oversight of mountaintop removal mining in Appalachia threatens domestic coal production and the regions coal mining jobs, but new government data indicates the opposite is true.…
TAGS: Appalachian politics Coal coal production EPA Mine Safety and Health Administration Mining Jobs Mountaintop Removal Mountaintop removal permits Office of Surface Mining surface mining
Proposed Coal Ash Regulations Weaker than Household Waste Laws
Nearly three years after the Tennessee Valley Authority coal ash disaster spilled over a billion gallons of toxic sludge into the Emory River in Harriman, Tenn., the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is set to finalize guidelines regulating coal ash ponds.…
TAGS: Appalachian politics Arsenic cancer Coal Ash coal ash health effects coal ash ponds coal ash slurry Coal Residuals Reuse and Management Act EPA Lake Michigan Mining Jobs senate bill 1751 TVA Kingston coal ash spill We Energies coal plant Wisconsin
Mercury Proposal Receives Support, Opposition
This spring, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency proposed a rule that would reduce mercury, particulate matter and sulfur dioxide emissions from coal plants. According to the agency, the proposed rule would save an estimated 17,000 American lives a year beginning…
TAGS: Battle of Blair Mountain carbon capture Clean Water Act Coal Report EPA Massey Energy mercury and air toxic standards Tennessee Valley Authority TRAIN Act TVA West Virginia
Congressional Hearing on Stream Buffer Zone Neglects Residents
By Jamie Goodman On Sept. 26, a Congressional hearing took place in Charleston, W.Va. to discuss proposed revisions to the controversial stream buffer zone rule designed to further protect waterways in Appalachia. Conducted by Representatives Doug Lamborn (R-CO) and Shelley…
TAGS: cancer Central Appalachia coal decline Coal Report Mountaintop Removal MSHA Office of Surface Mining Powder River Basin Stream Buffer Zone West Virginia Coal Association
The Coal Report
Cross-State Air Pollution Rule Will Save Lives By Meg Holden The Cross-State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR), the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) newest regulations to limit air pollution from coal-fired power plants, will take into account the problem of air currents…
TAGS: arch coal Beyond Coal campaign brownfields Coal Report Cross-State Air Pollution Rule Duke Energy EPA Kentuckians for the Commonwealth Pennsylvania Progress Energy Sierra Club Upshur County West Virginia
The Coal Report
Controversy over Coal Jobs, Mercury Poisoning and Liquid Coal By JW Randolph The often slow pace of progress in Washington D.C. hasn’t stopped the Obama Administration—or a divided Congress—from continuing an uproarious debate about coal, carbon and climate in the…
The Coal Report
Coal Industry Backlash Against Clean Water Act Continues By Sandra Diaz Much to the ire of the coal industry, the Environmental Protection Agency has taken unprecedented steps to mitigate coal-related pollution on Appalachian waterways over the past two years. The…
After The Hoopla: What The 2010 Elections Mean for Mountaintop Removal
Story by J.W. Randolph & Bill Kovarik The mid-term elections this November will have mixed results for efforts to end mountaintop removal coal mining, with Republicans gaining control of the U.S. House of Representatives for the next two years and…
