Posts Tagged ‘EPA’
Despite Court Ruling, Obama Administration Can Still Protect Streams from Mountaintop Removal Mining – And Should
Environmental and community advocates got some jarring news Tuesday when a federal judge rejected EPA’s “guidance” on surface mine permitting in Appalachia — the centerpiece of its 3-year effort to curtail the environmental damage caused by mountaintop removal coal mining. While it was unwelcome news, it was not as devastating as portrayed in the initial…
Read MoreEPA Revising Air Pollution Standards
Last Friday, EPA announced it will be considering revisions to the first-ever standards for controlling mercury, arsenic, selenium and other toxic pollutants from coal fired power plants, issued in December. These standards are the result of a years-long process, and while Appalachian Voices applauded them, many coal and utility companies vocally opposed them because coal…
Read MoreAnother Coal Show in Abingdon
Yesterday I witnessed an award-winning political stunt attacking the EPA in defense of Big Coal. Representatives Griffith (VA), Roe (TN), and Whitfield (KY) led a field hearing in Abingdon, VA part of the House Subcommittee on Energy and Power series meant to investigate the EPA’s new greenhouse gas emission standards. The congressmen stated that Abingdon…
Read MoreOfficial EPA Comments on 36 Ky Permits
Appalachian Voices submitted official comments following the EPA’s public hearing on June 2nd and 4th. Our comments affirm the EPA’s objections to 36 water pollutant discharge permits for surface mines in Kentucky. The 36 draft permits were issued by the Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet. Under the Clean Water Act, the EPA must ensure state…
Read MoreVICTORY: Alexander, Hagan, Rockefeller vote for Clean Air
Inhofe Resolution fails despite support of Virginia Senators Webb, Warner Big news out of the Senate as Senator Inhofe’s most recent effort to stop clean air protections (SR 37) was killed by a vote of 46 to 53. Much more on the specifics of the legislation here. A handful of Republicans, including Senator Lamar Alexander…
Read MoreCongress’ Big Day: Voting on two polluter-friendly proposals
By Erin Burks Red, White and Water intern, Summer 2012 This is a critical week in the U.S. Congress. The House will vote on a bill that could have negative impacts on the quality of waterways in our nation for years to come. With the most anti-environmental Congress to date currently in charge, today is…
Read MoreSpeaking Out At EPA Hearings in Kentucky
Upon our arrival, we definitely stood out. I wondered if we exuded “tree hugger,” but it’s more likely that the “I Love Mountains” buttons gave us away. While no one approached us directly to ask what we were doing there or to start an argument, the rally cries and fire-and-brimstone speeches in the background gave…
Read MoreFront Row Seats at the Political Theater in Abingdon, VA
Last Saturday, June 2nd, FACES of Coal and Americans for Prosperity held the “Rally for Appalachian Coal Jobs” in Abingdon, VA. The flier for the rally touts the usual “War on Coal” rhetoric: “Appalachian Coal Jobs have been under regulatory assault from the bureaucrats in Washington D.C. It’s time we stand up and defend them!”…
Read MoreD.C. District Court Overrules EPA’s Spruce Mine No. 1 Permit Veto
By Brian Sewell On March 23, a District of Columbia District Court ruled in favor of Arch Coal and overturned a 2011 veto by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, restoring the permit of the Logan County, W.Va., Spruce No. 1 mountaintop removal mine. U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson ruled that the EPA had overstepped…
Read MoreOver the Line
A lot has been made of EPA’s proposed greenhouse gas rules, but a quotation from Cecil Roberts, President of the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) will likely grab the most headlines. The Navy SEALs shot Osama Bin Laden in Pakistan and Lisa Jackson shot us in Washington. – Cecil Roberts, 4/3/12 Sure, it’s pretty…
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