Live blog (See release below for more details:)

2:02 All activists still sitting inside.  Outside protest marched under EPA archways chanting loudly and are still causin’ a ruckus outside in solidarity.  Activists aren’t leaving until blasting on Coal River Mountain stops

1:57 more great photos and accounts from around the country from Jeff Biggers at HuffPo

1:07 first video looking into the protest in the main lobby (photographers not allowed inside…)

1:04 from Scott Parkin’s twitter: “rally outside holdin strong while sit in still goin”

12:56 Photos uploaded here

12:50 Here’s the letter WV resident Bo and Chuck tried to deliver to the EPA today. Download PDF

12:20 pm After 45 minutes, all activists still sitting with arms linked inside EPA main entrance.

14 Activists Stage a Sit-In at the EPA to Spark Urgent Action on Mountaintop Removal

Environmentalists Ask EPA to Stop Recent Blasting on Coal River Mountain, WV; Site of Proposed Wind Farm
WASHINGTON– As part of a national day of action to stop mountaintop removal coal mining, 14 activists have staged a sit in at 11:30 the EPA. Dozens others are also holding a rally in front. They are asking the EPA to take immediate action to stop the mountaintop removal blasting that began this week on Coal River Mountain, WV, the site of a proposed wind farm.

While President Obama spent the week trumpeting his administration’s support for clean energy, Massey Energy began dynamiting Coal River Mountain in West Virginia, which is the site of the proposed 328-megawatt wind farm. Coal River Mountain gained national notoriety after a study showed that its peaks and ridges have enough wind potential to provide 70,000 households with electricity, support 700 long-term green jobs and give back $1.7 million in annual county taxes. Massey Energy began dynamiting those peaks this week in preparation for a massive mountaintop removal project.

Today, environmentalists have delivered a letter to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson asking the EPA to intervene quickly and decisively to save Coal River Mountain for the safety of the community and the protection of their water protection.

Mountaintop removal (MTR) has been called the worst of the worst coal mining. MTR decapitates Appalachian peaks, denudes lush forests, and dumps debris into valley streams — destroying or damaging more than a thousand miles of mountain waterways to date.

In recent months, the EPA has set out a number of new restrictions on the mining practice, including a recent decision to initiate a veto on the Spruce Mine in West Virginia due to water quality impacts—the first time the agency has done this with an existing valley fill permit. Environmentalists believe that the urgency of the Coal River Mountain case necessitates that the EPA intervene, and use their full authority to protect the Coal River Watershed.

“The Coal River Wind Campaign has been a symbol of hope for the people of the Coal River Valley,” said Lorelei Scarbro, organizer for Coal River Mountain Watch. “My neighbors are excited about the idea of jobs that allow them to produce energy in a way that is sustainable. Coal River Mountain, the last standing mountain in the valley, should remain intact as a symbol for a new day in the Appalachian coalfields.”

In the case of Coal River Mountain, MTR mining is not only destroying one of the last intact mountains in the area, but it is also creating blasting less than 100 yards from the largest coal sludge impoundment in the country. Massey Energy’s own assessment indicates that if the impoundment, an earthen dam, is breached more than eight billion gallons of coal slurry would spill out endangering hundreds of people who would have less than five minutes to evacuate.

Press Contacts: :
Stephanie Pistello, Nell Greenberg, 510.847.9777

Hi-res photos will be available

Posted in global warming

Washington, Oct 28-Congressman Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) yesterday sent a letter to the President and CEO of American Municipal Power Ohio (AMP) at AMP’s annual meeting in Cleveland, requesting a delay in the final decision on proceeding with a proposed coal-fired power plant to serve the municipal-owned power companies in Ohio.

In the letter, Kucinich says to AMP CEO Marc Gerken:

As you gather for your annual conference, I strongly urge you to defer any final decision which would commit AMP to moving forward with large-scale coal-fired power generation and place your member municipalities at risk. At a time when the need for legislative action on climate change has never been greater and Congress and the EPA are more poised than ever to take action, the regulatory landscape remains in flux. Now is not the time to put cities, and the people who live there, in greater financial straits. I urge you to not issue a final notice to proceed.

Full text available here.

Posted in Coal, Corporate Responsibility, Government

The CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation), Canada’s largest news service, asked this question yesterday on their Power & Politics program. My answer is below, and you can add yours or ‘agree and disagree’ with posted comments by clicking here.

No and yes.

The federal government knows, and agrees with, what the science is saying. The sticking point is it is acting in a manner that assumes Canada deserves to pollute more than other rich and industrialized countries.

The government should step up to the plate and commit to doing our part. Canada is now among the top 10 greenhouse gas polluters in the world and is among the top 3 polluters per capita. Yet, every single G8 country is doing more than Canada on global warming. The US, for example, is investing 14x more in renewable energy per capita this year than Canada.

[Read: It's like showing up to a world pot-luck where every one else has cooked a meal and Canada thinks it's appropriate to show up with a bag of potato chips.]

Canada should recognize it is in a very lucky situation in the world to have the ability to invest in, build and develop a clean economy based on leading edge energy efficiency and renewable energy.

[Read: We're the ones that could show up to our place at the table and offer a whole lot more - preferably with ambition, i.e. to the tune of brie, rosemary olive bread, and molten brownies.]

Canada should sign, adopt and implement Bill C-311. It is the government’s responsibility to develop a tough plan that includes Canadian laws to control greenhouse gas pollution to match the recommendations of scientists.

We did it to stop the pollution that caused the hole in the ozone layer – We can do it to fill the hole in our country’s leadership.

Posted in Act Locally, Canada, Economics, Efficiency, global warming, Government, International Affairs, News and Media, Polls, Renewable Energy

As I mentioned in a previous post, Secretary of Energy Steven Chu is an energy efficiency geek and that’s why he is loved by anyone that has a rational view on energy policy.

Today he gave us efficiency geeks another reason to gloat by writing a fantastic piece on HuffingtonPost explaining in plain words the importance of home weatherization (or “saving money by saving energy” as he likes to say) and outlining new federal programs to help average Americans cope with the high upfront cost that comes with reducing residential energy use.

Read more here

(Photo Credit: Emmett McGregor)

Posted in global warming

Today we took our protests against mountaintop removal national.  Decision-makers from in New York and Washington D.C. have been getting the message loud and clear that mountaintop removal’s end must come soon.  Hundreds participated today with Mountain Justice, Rainforest Action Network, Energy Justice Network and other environmental groups in nationwide protests demanding an end to mountaintop removal mining in Appalachia.

Furthermore, activists raised the issue of Coal River Mountain, the last intact mountain in the Coal River Valley that Massey Energy started mountaintop removal operations on in recent weeks.  A national outcry has gone out over Coal River Mountain prompting many environmental groups to call EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson and President Obama.

As part of the national day of, 13 people staged a sit-in at the EPA headquarters in Washington, DC. They were joined by 50 coalfield residents and allies who held a rally in front of the building.  The sit-in ended peacefully with no arrests after it was evident that the EPA is getting the message about mountaintop removal loud and clear.

In San Francisco, a zombie march worked it’s way to the EPA Regional Office there with a message for the EPA to use it’s braaaaiiins and end mountaintop removal.  In New York City, yesterday activists gathered for the Carnival of Destruction at JP Morgan Chase’s HQ in mid-town Manhattan (Chase is the biggest funder of MTR on Wall Street.)  In Philadelphia, activists dropped a banner saying “Save Coal River Mountain” near EPA regional headquarters.  Both NYC and Philly had actions at the EPA regional offices today as well.  Tonight in New York, there will be a reading of “Light Comes” a theatrical play about mountaintop removal in Kentucky.  Boston activists flyered their regional EPA Offices and met with the regional director.

Cities from Seattle to Atlanta will be reporting back about their actions at EPA offices and JPMorgan Chase branches in the next few hours.  Look for more pics, video and reportbacks. If you got some you want posted, please email them to sparkin@ran.org

Posted in global warming