Congressman Tom Perriello (VA-05) was just on Rachel Maddow talking about Bonner/ACCCE’s fraudulent attempts to get him to vote against climate legislation. The fossil fuel industry has completely destroyed their fragile credibility, and things are heating up for ACCCE and their corporate lobbying partners with increasing calls for action from the DOJ.

Update: Lots more coming out on this story from Pete Aldman at NRDC, Adam Siegel at GetEnergySmartNow, Kate Sheppard at Grist, and Sierra Club head Carl Pope weighs in at Huffington Post.

Update II: Surprise! Bonner and Associates is hiring more temp workers.

(Great story, originally posted by our friend Jeff Biggers at Huffington Post. Thanks Jeff! – jdub)

As the brilliant lights of the White House shine across Pennsylvania Avenue Monday evening, generated by a coal-fired plant that uses coal stripmined from devastating mountaintop removal operations in Appalachia, religious leaders and organizations representing over 45 million Americans from across the country will hold a special candlelight prayer vigil at 7pm in Lafayette Park.

“The purpose of the rally is to remember the nearly 500 mountains already destroyed by mountaintop removal mining,” according to Jordan Blevins, Assistant Director of the National Council of Church’s Eco-Justice Office, and the sponsor of the event, “and to have people of faith call upon the federal government to end this destructive practice.”

This little coal-fired light of mine: Will President Barack Obama be listening to these prayers to end a mining practice that detonates millions of pounds of ammonium nitrate/fuel oil explosives every day in the Appalachian coalfields in order to scoop up only 5-7 percent of our national coal production?

The National Council of Churches is the ecumenical voice of America’s Orthodox, Protestant, Anglican, historic African American and traditional peace churches, and represents over 45 million Americans in 100,000 congregations across the country. For more information on today’s event, visit their Eco-Justice site.

August 3rd should be a national day of atonement for our sins against the American mountains and mountaineers.

Today marks the 32nd anniversary of the signing of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act in 1977, which President Jimmy Carter called “a disappointing effort” and a “watered down” bill, and unleashed one of the most egregious environmental violations in our nation’s history. Carter’s main concern with SMCRA’s loopholes dealt with the atrocious political compromise engineered by Big Coal sycophants in Congress, which effectively granted federal recognition of mountaintop removal. Nearly four decades later, over 1.2 million acres of hardwood deciduous forests in our nation’s carbon sink have been wiped, historic communities have been depopulated and left in ruin, and over 1,2o0 miles of waterways have been jammed with mining waste.

For more history on Carter, SMCRA and the last 38 years of regulatory machinations and mountaintop removal mayhem, go here and here.

Religious leaders and ecumenical organizations have been outspoken on mountaintop removal destruction for years.

Over the past decade, six major denominations have issued anti-mountaintop removal resolutions of faith, stating that “the sanctity and sacredness of human life and the natural environment should not be destroyed in the name of corporate profit,” and “mountaintop removal coal mining is devastating the environment, economies, people, and culture in Appalachia.” Similar resolutions have been passed by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, the Episcopal Church, the United Methodist Church, the Unitarian Universalist Association, and the Religious Society of Friends.

The Presbyterian Church of the United States declared:

WHEREAS, mountaintop removal coal mining destroys both the beauty and productive capacity of the land thus eliminating future or alternative economic opportunities for the families of Appalachia WHEREAS, God instructs us to “not defile the land where you live and where I dwell” (Numbers 35:34) […]It is resolved that the 217th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church USA, urges state and federal agencies that regulate mining practices, as well as coal companies themselves, to abandon the practice of mountaintop removal coal mining and work to meet our nation’s energy needs in a manner that is just, sustainable and consistent with Christian values.

Click here for more information on the resolutions

Last spring, the West Virginia Council of Churches published a book of personal narratives about the human costs and human rights violations of mountaintop removal on coalfields residents. The booklet, Mountain Tops Do Not Grow Back, Stories of Living in the Midst of Mountain Top Removal Strip Mining, can be read here.

Two years ago, the Catholic Committee of Appalachia and the Kentuckians for the Commonwealth sponsored a tour of mountaintop removal sites for several national evangelical leaders in the United States, and announced their intent to “pledge voice and vote against mountaintop removal. Our voices will retell the testimony we have heard and the destruction we have seen through our sermons, writings, and conversations.” More information on the tour can be found here.

In 2004, Catholic Bishop Emeritus Walter Sullivan from Richmond, Virginia, the corporate home of mountaintop removal giant Massey Energy, toured the coalfields and released a statement:

The Church needs to stand with those who live lives of hopelessness and helplessness. The mountain culture and its way life are being destroyed. Thankfully, the Catholic Committee of Appalachia (CCA), under the direction of Sister Robbie Pentecost and the many Church workers in the area, are willing to stand up and be counted. “Mountain top removal” is just another example of profit taking preference over the lives of people, where the powerful wage a different kind of war against the powerless.

The Christians for the Mountains (CFTM) organization was founded a few years ago as a a “network of persons committed to advocating that Christians and their churches recognize their God-given responsibility to live compatibly and sustainably upon this earth God has created.” CFTM has been active in organizing in events and campaigns in the coalfield region.

Here’s a clip from the Christians for the Mountains role in “Mountain Mourning,” in the Mountains Don’t Grow Back film documentary by B. J. Gudmundsson:

At Least 3 Members of Congress Received Forged Letters from Disgraced Firm

There have been some very interesting developments since we first posted about Bonner and Associates fraudulent attempt at influencing votes on climate legislation. There is a great rundown at Enviroknow and I suggest you check out the whole thing, but the bottom line is that things have really taken a turn for the worst for Bonner. Sierra Club has been absolutely relentless, doing doing a major beltway ad buy, and asking Attorney General Eric Holder and the DOJ to look into the case in the event that further forgeries took place. MoveOn has an online petition encouraging action by the DOJ.

It has also come to light that on behalf of “c@$#n coal” industry front group ACCCE (of singing coal caroler fame) that the former Bonner employee sent at least 12 letters asking members to oppose climate legislation. Six of those letters were to Congressman Perriello (D-VA-05), but Perriello eventually voted for the bill. The other letters went to Pennsylvania Blue Dog Chris Carney (D-PA-10) and freshman Kathy Dahlkemper (D-PA-03), who each of them voted against the bill.

Enviroknow notes:

This raises the very real possibility that Members of Congress were influenced by fraudulent letters paid for by the coal industry, and voted against environmental regulation as a result of this influence. Given the razor thin margin and last-minute negotiations surrounding the House vote, this was a clear attempt by both Bonner and Associates and ACCCE to subvert the Democratic process. Now, we can’t say for with 100% certainty that fraudulent letters persuaded any particular Member of Congress to oppose the legislation, but that was certainly the intent. To make matters worse, the background document includes ACCCE’s less-than-inspiring “belief” that the fraudulent letters were limited to the three congressional districts mentioned previously

NRDC meanwhile, is hot on the tail of “c@#$n coal” industry front group ACCCE, who admitted yesterday to being the offending clients of Bonner and Associates. NRDC notes that ACCCE made a $10.5 milion amendment to their lobbying report forms for the 2nd quarter, and Pete Altman wonders aloud if that change had anything to do with Bonner.

Congressional allies are pursuing the case as well. Senator John Kerry posted at DailyKos yesterday about the incident, and not only has Representative Markey sent a harshly worded letter to Jack Bonner with 14 poignant questions, but Markey’s Subommittee stands at the ready with subpoena powers.

ACCCE comes clean, admits to being Bonner client

ACCCE Statement Regarding Falsified Constituent Contacts Made to Congressional Offices by Bonner and Associates
August 03, 2009
Contact: Lisa Camooso Miller, 703/302-1228

ALEXANDRIA, VA – Statement on behalf of Stephen L. Miller, President and CEO of the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity (ACCCE), in response to falsified constituent contacts made to congressional offices by Bonner and Associates:

“We are outraged at the conduct of Bonner and Associates. Bonner and Associates was hired by the Hawthorn Group – our primary grassroots contractor – to do limited outreach earlier this year on H.R. 2454. Based upon the information we have, it is clear that an employee of Bonner’s firm failed to demonstrate the integrity we demand of all our contractors and subcontractors. As a result, these egregious actions led to falsified letters being sent to Members of Congress.

…

“ACCCE has always maintained high ethical and professional standards. In this case, the standards and practices that we require for grassroots advocacy outreach were not adhered to by Bonner and Associates. In this sense, the community groups involved, the Members of Congress who received the fraudulent letters, as well as ACCCE, were all victimized by this misconduct.

“ACCCE has initiated an extensive review to gather all relevant facts pertaining to this situation. Additionally, we are evaluating all possible measures – including potential legal action – as a part of our commitment to ensure that high ethical standards are followed when conducting outreach to community groups, elected officials, and other members of the public.

“Over the past ten years, ACCCE’s public outreach program, as managed by the Hawthorn Group, has enabled more than 100,000 constituents to legitimately communicate with their elected and appointed officials on behalf of energy and environmental policies that sustain economic growth. We are proud of this work, and will continue to promote policies that will advance environmental progress, greater energy security, and economic prosperity in the United States.

Because of Bonner and Associates’ misconduct, we apologize to the community groups and the Members of Congress involved. There is no place for this type of deception. We applaud efforts to ensure that everyone involved in the public policy dialogue lives up to the highest ethical standards.”

In wake of “soft market, high costs” Patriot Coal will be closing the gigantic Samples MTR mine in Boone County

New production numbers from the Energy Information Administration, coupled with the news that Patriot Coal will be ceasing operations at one of West Virginia’s largest mountaintop removal mines paints a bleak economic picture for Central Appalachian coal.

For the Appalachian region as a whole, production is down 7.1% from this point in 2008. However, as you can see on the chart below, the decline in production is much starker in Central Appalachia. In eastern Kentucky, for example, production for January-June is down 8.6% from 2008. In southern West Virginia, production is down 10.9% from the same time last year.

Its important to note that monthly data is just a snapshot, and not as useful at looking at all the production data as a whole. Nevertheless, its startling that Central Appalachian production in May 2009 is down 21.5% from May 2008.

With a continued reliance on a declining resource, we are going to see a lot more mine closings like the one that was announced at the Samples Mine in Boone County. In a statement,Patriot CEO Richard Whiting explains:

“As we continue to balance our production levels with the soft thermal coal demand, our strategy is to concentrate production at lower-cost mining complexes. By ceasing operations at this higher-cost surface mine, Patriot will keep valuable permitted reserves in the ground until the market yields more favorable pricing and margins.

We appreciate the contributions of the employees at the Samples mine over the years and regret that these challenging markets have required us to take this action.

You can read more about Kayford Mountain on iLoveMountains.org, and if you’ve never visited, here’s an interactive panorama from one vantage point on the mountain.

Kayford in 1985

Kayford now

Our best wishes are truly with the families of the 314 employees of the Samples mine in Boone County. Although we don’t agree with mountaintop removal, it is never ideal when someone loses their job, and we hope that elected officials invest in new economic opportunities in Appalachia such as energy efficiency and clean energy.

Polluting Industries Caught Forging Support

When you are a small non-profit working to reform billion dollar industries, you can take some solace when the other side is damaging their own case far more seriously than regular citizens ever could. The last few days have been a highlight reel of the fossil fuel lobby tripping over their own feet, culminating in a buffoonish failed attempt at forging opposition to the climate bill.

Specifically, Washington, D.C. based lobbying firm Bonner and Associates has been found to have forged letters of opposition to the climate bill under the names of Charlottesville area non-profits. Bonner and Associates then sent those letters to a targeted Congressional office in hopes of influencing votes on climate legislation. Appalachian Voices opposes these tactics because they undermine the public trust upon which democracy is ultimately built.

More than that, Appalachian Voices is also a non-profit with an office in Charlottesville, and could have just as easily been one of the victims of this fraudulent behavior. It is a shame that our neighbors who work so hard in our community have to deal with this corporate identity theft. It is wrong and sad that the industry felt as though it had to resort to these underhanded and dishonest tactics.

By misrepresenting themselves, the fossil fuel industry is doing the same thing to their own fragile credibility that they are doing to the Appalachian Mountains. But, their actions become even more appalling when put in context.

The recession has even reached the corporate lobbying world, which saw its own spending decrease last quarter (by a whopping one percent.) However, today’s Wall Street Journal notes that the fossil fuel lobby seem to be the only ones bucking the trend and upping their spending in this time of crisis:

Debate over a broad-ranging climate and energy bill prompted more spending by energy interests. Chevron Corp., ConocoPhillips, BP PLC and other oil-and-gas companies increased spending on lobbying by 30% to $37.7 million in April, May and June of this year, compared with the same quarter in 2008.

Lobbying expenditures, campaign contributions, and the resulting public policy from the last several decades has shown us time and time again that we are not exactly on an even playing field as the coal, oil, and gas lobby. When it comes to Congressional influence, environmental groups aren’t even playing the same game as the fossil fuel industry. For comparison, the “blue-green alliance,” a coalition of labor and environmental groups and the second largest labor lobby, spent just 2% of what the aforementioned oil and gas giants did during the same time period.

Thanks to a few sharp staffers for Virginia Congressman Tom Perriello, we are able to see how far the other side is willing to go. The following letter is one of six forged documents that were sent to Congressman Perriello in opposition to the climate bill, which Congressman Perriello ultimately voted for. This letter is purportedly from “Creciendo Juntos“ which is a Hispanic advocacy organization in his district.

[See 5 other forged letters here]

However, it turns out that these letters were forged by DC based “Bonner and Associates,” who dismissed the incident as a “mistake.” Needless to say, the groups who were victims of the forgery strongly disagreed:

This was not a “mistake,”…This was a deliberately and carefully forged letter…They stole our name. They stole our logo. They created a position title and made up the name of someone to fill it. They forged a letter and sent it to our congressman without our authorization,” said Tim Freilich, who sits on the executive committee of Creciendo Juntos, a nonprofit network that tackles issues related to Charlottesville’s Hispanic community.

But this may not be the first time. A former employee of Bonner and Associates says differently, via TPM:

A former Bonner and Associates employee who spoke to TPMmuckraker significantly complicated that picture, portraying Bonner and Associates as a place where ethical missteps were far from rare. “They just got caught this time,” he said.

After a similar incident in Maryland in 2002, Bonner and Associates founder Jack Bonner dismissed their behavior, calling it “…a great exercise in the first amendment.”

This is inexcusable. Appalachian Voices disagrees with these tactics and applauds Congressman Ed Markey’s call for Congressional investigation into the case. Congressman Markey, who chairs the Select Committee on Energy Independence and Climate Change, said in a statement:

This fraud on Congress shows that some opponents of clean energy have resorted to forgery and theft to block progress.

This is an appalling abuse, and Congressman Tom Perriello deserves great credit for seeing through it and casting a vote that will create clean energy jobs in Virginia and throughout the United States. I encourage all Members of Congress to be on the lookout for other suspicious and illegal materials.

My Select Committee will immediately begin an investigation of the extent and scope of this activity.

…

But it gets better. Nearly simultaneously, ICG coal executive Eugene Kitts declared “war” on Appalachia, going so far as to claim that the coal industry is a victim. Mr. Kitts asserted that local mountain communities are, in fact, the aggressors in this “war” on the poor coal industry, saying:

We are in a war…I believe that mining is going to survive this attack. I think when the public is informed and their political representatives are informed that this assault on surface mining is based on such a strenuous type of basis, that we will prevail in this battle. We are in a war, and that war will continue…

Part of this “war,” has been to try and punish places that want to keep their mountains in tact. Coal industry leaders have recently been pushing with all their might to have their employees and other miners boycott the state of Tennessee because of Senator Lamar Alexander’s exemplary leadership on the Appalachia Restoration Act (S 696.) To me that sounds like someone saying, “Let us destroy your kitchen or we’re not coming over to your house.” Hmmm…I wonder how Tennessee will react to that?

Of course, the coal executive boycott has been a pathetic joke, with several industry leaders already pulling out. A TECO spokesman explained why his company was “out” of the boycott just as soon as they had been “in,” saying:

We regret our previous action, which was an emotional response that doesn’t benefit our 1,200 employees, the eastern Kentucky communities we support, the environment we work to protect or our neighbors in Tennessee.

Over the weekend, the coal executive boycott of Tennessee was wildly lampooned by the two largest newspapers in east Tennessee. But the Chattanooga Times-Free Press was especially brutal, saying:

Among the most destructive environmental abuses in this nation, the most deliberate, unconscionable and widespread has to be the form of coal-mining known as “mountain-top removal” mining. Indeed, “mining” is hardly the word for this premeditated, callously calculated, man-made catastrophe.

The Times-Free Press lets the coal industry have it for their behavior, while praising Senator Alexander’s push for responsible mining via introduction of the Appalachia Restoration Act (S 696.)

That has riled coal company executives, who, in turn, have rounded up West Virginia miners to sign petitions pledging to retaliate against Sen. Alexander’s legislation by mounting a boycott of Tennessee’s tourism industry. That’s akin to hostage-taking, of course. The state’s tourism industry, particularly the Gatlinburg-Pigeon Forge-Dollywood areas around the Smokey Mountains, is an innocent bystander in the miners’ dispute.

The campaign, and its nasty component of threatening calls to tourism facilities, should be rejected. People who love visiting our mountains should be appreciative of Sen. Alexander’s efforts. Indeed, tourism is far more lucrative to mountain communities than mining.

Mountain-top removal mining should be banned. It employs far fewer miners than traditional mining practices, and its environmental costs are vast. It has already destroyed scores of mountain tops and over 2,000 miles of valley streams and the communities they support. It should be banned as soon as possible.

In case this long list of incidents has left you scratching your head in confusion, don’t worry. Massey CEO Don Blankenship, as he often does, inanely fills in the blanks for us with his deep thoughts at the anti-science “American Thinker”. Here it is, your moment of zen:

A religion is a belief in a supernatural being, a system of faith or worship. Obviously, global warming does not fit this definition.

Unofficial transcript on mountaintop removal question:

I think everybody acknowledges it, the President has said it, everybody we talk to acknowledges that there are serious impacts associated with mountaintop mining and we have to address that. Going forward we have to look at what we can do under existing authority to strengthen the oversight of these projects and to see that we are using those authorities fully to try to address the environmental impacts of mountaintop mining. So, does it mean fewer projects? I don’t know the answer to that. But it will mean that we will deal with the environmental impacts of those projects.

If that is the question, then the answer is easy. Dealing with the environmental impacts of mountaintop removal means there will be fewer projects. In fact, it means there will be zero mountaintop removal projects. No amount of regulation can make it environmentally sound, economically practical, or ecologically beneficial to blast the tops of of our mountains and dump the waste into our streams. Dealing with the environmental impacts of mountaintop removal means that we stop the practice. Its that simple.

Congressman Kennedy said these words earlier this year when speaking to a group of Appalachian citizens, and I hope we can all keep them close to heart:

Unfortunately, we live in a culture that places a value on human beings according to how much money they have. If you happen to be wealthy, you must have done a great job and you deserve everything you get. That’s what our culture tells us. And you know what? After a while, you start to believe it.

And if our culture tells people who are poor in this country that they are worthless enough times, it’s not surprising that after awhile people begin to believe it. They start to internalize that they don’t deserve a voice, and they shouldn’t fight the big corporations who are destroying their land and taking all of their natural resources. They start to accept that companies are making all this money at their expense and dumping all the refuse in their backyard.

It’s quite extraordinary to see it happen. Frankly, it’s the part of our society and its culture that needs to change the most. We’ve got to pass laws. But moreover we’ve got to change the culture.

That’s what Dr. King created in the civil rights movement. He understood very fundamentally that we are all endowed by our creator with certain inalienable rights. Dr. King understood that we were all worth something. And then he said, “We need everybody to be part of this in order for this to work.” Dr. King didn’t just go to the preachers. He reached beyond the powerful few and enlisted every person in America who believed the time for justice and equality was now. Everybody had a role to play. People weren’t waiting for someone else to do the job.

There are people out there who fought and died to make this country a better place. They did it because they knew this was about making our country a land of opportunity where everybody could live.

Right now this isn’t a land of opportunity if our most basic natural resources, which belong to everybody, are being polluted and torn apart. Instead of being stewards of our future and preserving our natural commons, we are absolutely despoiling them for future generations. We need to do better than that. And we have an opportunity to pass on a much better future to our children.

I’d like to thank all of you for what you are doing to make this movement so much deeper in meaning. It’s a great effort that you’re undertaking. It’s much more than legislating. It’s about educating people that we learn who we are as a people through nature. It is part of our whole culture as a country.

It is impossible to overstate the support the Kennedys have given to the people of Appalachia over many many generations, and our thoughts and prayers are certainly with Congressman Kennedy and his family during this turbulent time for them. He remains one of my heroes and a true advocate for change in Washington, DC and we wish them all the best.

As many of you know, yesterday the Army Corps announced that they would be moving forward with suspending the Nationwide Permit 21(NWP 21) process for mountaintop removal and valleyfill operations for Appalachian states. Instead, the Army Corps will be using a slightly more in-depth “individual permitting process” in their review of Section 404 Clean Water Act permits. Notably, the individual permits will include a period of public comment for individual projects. This is a step in the right direction for Appalachian communities and something that many coalfield groups – including members of the Alliance for Appalachia – have been fighting for for many years.

However, one of the main concerns (discussed in Ken Ward’s article below) is that the Corps will continue to allow the use of the NWP 21 permits until a final decision is reached, even though they acknowledge that NWP 21 permits are not sufficient for assessing impacts from large-scale mining operations like mountaintop removal.

The official notice is here, and Ken Ward has a handy summary over at Coal Tattoo.

There is also a 30 day public comment period on the change, and we encourage everyone to please take a moment to comment on this important step.

How much does a ton of coal weigh?

It sounds like a funny question, but – if you’re burning coal for energy – all tons are not created equal. The value of coal comes not from the raw tonnage, but from the heat content of that coal. The higher the heat content, the fewer tons you have to burn to get the same amount of energy.

Appalachia has been mined for coal for centuries, and everyday we are mining deeper, thinner seams of poorer quality coal. The declining heat content means we have to dig even more coal just to produce the same amount of energy we used to.

Heat content is measured in “British Thermal Units,” or “Btu”s for short. Using data from the Energy Information Administration (and some admittedly poor graph-making skills in Microsoft Word) we can see that the heat content (Btu/ton) of a ton of coal has been steadily in decline for the last several decades.

From our friends at Wild South, please contact the Forest Service to help protect the national treasure that is the Pisgah:

Protect and Restore the Pisgah National Forest!

The Forest Service has released plans to log 1800 acres of the Pisgah National Forest in the Brushy Ridge area. This area located near the North Mill River is a beloved site for hunters, anglers, hikers, campers, and bikers. Wild South encourages all of its members to let the Forest Service know what you value most about this special place. We have included contact information and some helpful talking points for you to consider.

Talking Points:

* The North Mills River is one of the most popular trout streams in North Carolina, a source of drinking water for Buncombe and Henderson Counties, and has a notable population of rare hellbenders and other rare aquatic organisms. Therefore, protecting water quality is paramount.
* The Foster Creek Bog, locate din the project area, is one of the few and highest quality bogs in Pisgah National Forest and provides habitat for state and federally listed plants and animals. This area must be preserved.
* The forests of the area are notable for their maturity and the scenic vistas they provide from the Blue Ridge Parkway. All mature forests within view of the Parkway should be protected.
* The aquatic resources are currently being impacted by an over-built road system that is contributing sediment to local streams. A careful examination of the road system shoul be conducted. No new roads should be built.
* Non-native invasive plants (NNIPs) are dispersing along roadways deep into the forest interior and are damaging habitat for native plants and animals. A comprehensive NNIP control program should be incorporate din the project.
* Off-road vehicle use and non-native invasive plants (NNIPs) are damaging the Foster Creek Bog. These threats must be eliminated.
* Fire suppression is contributing to structural changes on ridge and slope forests resulting in a reduction of pine and oak regeneration. We recommend the Forest Service consider the ecological use of fire in the project area.
* The project should be based on ecological restoration: repairing damaged or degraded ecosystems. Fixing erosion problems, returning fire to appropriate forest types, native species re-introductions, NNIP control, and enhancing structural attributes in young or anthropogenic forests are all examples of legitimate and needed ecological restoration in the Brushy Ridge Project Area.
* We support activities that strive to increase the structural, species and age class diversity of individual stands without regenerating the entire stand.
* There are three white pine plantations that should be removed and replaced with native vegetation whether they are commercially valuable or not.
* We support and request that all old clearcuts in the project area be thinned to encourage a diverse mix of species and to hasten the development of physical diversity in those stands.
* We support converting some roads to trails and link them to existing trails to form an integrated trail network. priority should be given to enhancing recreational opportunities.

Here is a link to the Forest Service’s Scoping Notice with Maps.

You can contact the Forest Service at the following address:
Pisgah Ranger District
1001 Pisgah Hwy
Pisgah Forest, NC 27868-7721

Email your comments:
comments-southern-north-carolina-pisgah-pisgah@fs.fed.us

Governor Tim Kaine of Virginia, a close ally to President Obama and current head of the Democratic National Committee (DNC), came out with this statement in favor of the Administration’s proposal regarding mountaintop removal removal yesterday.

“I applaud the new guidelines announced by the administration which will impose tighter restrictions on mountaintop mining.

“In Virginia, we’ve always taken a common sense approach to how we meet our energy needs. At the same time—for the sake of this generation of Virginians and the next—we have made conserving the natural beauty of our Commonwealth and protecting our environment more broadly a real priority.

“The improved coordination inherent in the review process proposed by the Obama administration today will ensure we address both our energy and our environmental needs. Moving forward, it is critical we maintain transparency in the review process to ensure all stakeholders—including our citizens and representatives of the coal-mining industry—have faith that their concerns are taken into account.

“As we continue to meet the challenges of the global financial downturn, we have an obligation to permit the recovery of traditional energy sources that fuel our economy. However, we also have a responsibility to discourage the use of mining methods that exploit our mountains and valleys. While we continue investing in and developing renewable energy sources, we must focus on using those mining methods that complement our conservation goals instead of moving our nation backwards.

“Along with the Department of Mines, Minerals, and Energy and the Department of Environmental Quality in Virginia, I look forward to working with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Army Corps of Engineers, and the U.S. Department of the Interior as we move towards a new process for implementing the proper environmental protection around mining operations.”

Congressman Yarmuth applauded the Obama Administration’s action yesterday, but calls for Congress to address valleyfills by taking action on the Clean Water Protection Act (HR 1310), which was introduced by Congressmen Pallone (D-NJ), Reichert (R-WA), and Yarmuth (D-WA)

(Washington, DC) Today, Congressman John Yarmuth (KY-3) expressed his support of federal policies designed to reduce the environmental impacts of mountaintop removal mining in the Appalachian Region.

“It is encouraging that the Obama Administration is taking a step forward to halt the devastating and irreversible damage of mountaintop removal,” said Congressman Yarmuth. “I call on my Congressional colleagues to build on these efforts to ensure that this irresponsible practice no longer threatens the Appalachian region or the health and security of its residents.”

A new, coordinated approach announced today by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Army Corps of Engineers, and the Department of the Interior (DOI) includes the following efforts:

• The Corps will modify the usage of Nationwide Permit (NWP) 21 to prevent its use for authorizing mountaintop removal permits in the Appalachian region.

• The EPA and the Corps will strengthen the regulation, enforcement, and permitting of surface mining operations.

• The EPA will improve and strengthen oversight and review of water pollution permits for discharges from valley fills.

• The Corps and EPA will jointly clarify how to evaluate impacts on proposed mitigation projects and streams.

“This is an important step, but much more action is needed to protect the Appalachian Region,” Congressman Yarmuth added.

Congressman Yarmuth then called on his fellow legislators to support the Clean Water Protection Act, which would change environmental standards to end mountaintop removal mining. The Clean Water Protection Act would amend the Water Pollution Control Act to clarify that the “fill material”- which mining companies are presently permitted to dump in valleys in streams and valleys – cannot be waste material from mountaintop removal sites.