Coal is Dirty - Clean Coal Industry News

Activists on the Ground at the TVA's Coal Ash Spill Disaster

Scott Parkin — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 12:21:58 -0500

While many of us are spending the holidays with our friends and families, activists from United Mountain Defense and Mountain Justice are on the ground in eastern Tennessee providing relief to the coal ash disaster.

This is a monumental and unprecedented environmental catastrophe. The TVA (Tennessee Valley Authority) disaster is now estimated at 5.3 million cubic yards of coal ash, or almost twice as large as the 2.8 million cubic yards generated by the World Trade Center collapse.

You can see comphrehensive aerial footage here.

Dave Cooper, a longtime anti-Mountaintop Removal activist in the Huffington Post wrote:

"This spill is affecting two tributaries of the Tennessee River. The Tennessee is a major river system and a drinking water source for millions of people downstream in Chattanooga, plus Alabama, west Tennessee and Kentucky. Coal ash is the waste material captured after the coal is burned for electricity - burning coal generates about half of America's electricity and according to Rolling Stone Contributing Editor Jeff Goodell, there is three times as much coal ash as municipal solid waste generated in America every year. ( "Big Coal," Jeff Goodell page 123). About 130 million tons of coal ash and power plant scrubber sludge are generated annually.

Coal ash contains heavy metals like mercury, arsenic, and lead. An article in Scientific American magazine dated Dec 13, 2007 states that coal ash is more radioactive than nuclear waste. "

Cooper and Matt Landon, an organizer with United Mountain Defense, were detained by police after TVA officials saw them taking pictures of the disaster.

In 2000, the poster child of mountaintop removal, Massey Energy, dumped 300 million gallons of coal waste into streams in eastern Kentuckey and the TVA successfully kept the media from exposing the story by sealing off the area for "public safety" reasons, but now in the age of bloggers, independent media and online video that has been impossible. Out of nowhere, the New York Times and CNN reported on the spill after bloggers and independent media saturated the internet with images and stories from the disaster.

United Mountain Defense has set up an emergency convergence space in Kingston, Tn. They need support for various water testing materials, clean water, copies and communications. To support United Mountain Defense with donations and other support, go here.

To view an ongoing Twitter feed of disaster reports go here.

Clean Coal is a Joke

Kevin Grandia — Sun, 28 Dec 2008 23:04:35 -0500

A little Christmas humor from online personality Rob Cottingham at Social Signal who knows all too well that clean coal is a joke.

Not Exactly "Clean" Coal:Coal Ash Slurry Pond Bursts in Tennessee

Scott Parkin — Fri, 26 Dec 2008 16:43:48 -0500

On Mon., Dec. 22, at 1:00 am, a coal slurry impoundment at the Tennessee Valley Authority’s Kingston coal fired power plant in Harriman, Tennessee spilled at least 525 million gallons of toxic coal ash into the Tennessee River and surrounding areas.

Check the Video Here

The Kingston spill is over 40 times bigger than the Exxon Valdez spill in Alaska, if local news accounts are correct. This is a huge environmental disaster of epic proportions; approximately 525 million gallons of nasty black coal ash flowed into tributaries of the Tennessee River - the water supply for Chattanooga TN and millions of people living downstream in Alabama, Tennessee and Kentucky.

In Oct. 2000, the Big Branch coal slurry spill dumped 306 million gallons of toxic coal slurry down 100 miles of waterways. An EPA official called it "one of the worst environmental disasters in the southeastern United States." And this spill is *at least 70% bigger*.

A CT&E Environmental Services analysis of coal slurry from a sample taken in Dec. 2001 downstream from the Big Branch disaster found levels of lead 400 times higher than the EPA limit, beryllium 160 times the EPA limit, etc., etc. Coal contains huge amounts of heavy metals, and when coal is burned, the organic matter burns off, but many of the nasty chemicals stick around, in higher concentrations. Also, coal is “washed” using some really nasty chemicals, which are also left over in coal slurry. The bottom line: coal slurry is really, really toxic stuff.

Ironically, on the same day as this massive spill, 39 groups wrote a letter to Obama asking that he overturn a pending Bush administration federal rule change that would ease regulations on the disposal of coal waste. There’s been a campaign for many years against Massey’s Shumate coal sludge impoundment in Naoma, WV, which sits 150 feet above the Marsh Fork Elementary School, and holds 2.8 billion gallons (a group in West Virginia has been collecting pennies in order to save enough money to relocate the school ). This disaster proves that regulations around coal slurry impoundments need to be tightened, not loosened.

But more important than that, this disaster clearly demonstrates what we've been saying for years: coal ain’t clean. It’s really, really dirty. It’s dirty from cradle to grave. And most of the time, the toxic aftermath of the coal industry is hidden in slurry ponds, or pumped into abandoned coal mines, and its effects are secondary and very difficult to measure. But disasters like this demonstrate what the coal industry doesn’t want us to know: there’s no clean way to burn coal.

Scientists Finger Coal as Main Global Warming Culprit

Kert Davies — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 13:01:20 -0500

At the American Geophysical Union union meeting in San Francisco, Kenneth Caldeira of Stanford University presented new calculations that even if humanity zeroed out its use of oil, emissions from coal burning would rapidly push global warming to dangerous levels.

This echoes the findings of a new Greenpeace report, the Energy R[e]volution. This projection of a clean energy future, based on reducing carbon emissions very rapidly, was cowritten with the European Renewable Energy Council.

The analysis draws a bead on coal fired electricity, driving coal virtually out of the picture by mid-century with a combination of energy efficiency and renewables. Oh and we take nuclear out too. The pressure isn't off of oil, but if we don't solve coal, its game over.

In the chart above, the first bar on each year is the International Energy Agency's projection, the second is our, more hopeful, Energy R[e]volution scenario. Instead of doubling global greenhouse gas emissions, we cut them in half. And this is the least we can do, with available off-the-shelf technology and existing governmental incentives. Imagine what is possible if we really push.

Scientists Finger Coal as Main Global Warming Culprit

Kert Davies — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 12:37:31 -0500

In the chart below, the first bar on each year is the International Energy Agency's projection, the second is the more hopeful Energy R[e]volution scenario. Instead of doubling global greenhouse gas emissions, we cut them in half. And this is the least we can do, with available off the shelf technology. Imagine what is possible if we really push.

Make Climate Justice History

Scott Parkin — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 21:29:12 -0500

In late February 2009, the Energy Action Coalition will host Powershift 2009 in Washington DC, creating the largest youth mobilization on climate change in history. Conference organizers are hoping for 15,000 attendees (up from 6,000 in 2007) from across the country to attend the conference, focusing generally on making climate change, clean energy, and green jobs a priority for the new administration.

Greenpeace and Rainforest Action Network have proposed a mass non-violent civil disobedience to coincide with Powershift, with a goal of organizing at least 1,000 people (Powershift attendees as well as many other allies) to participate in a mass sit-in at the Capitol Power Plant. This is a mixed-burning facility that provides heat/steam/refrigeration to the entire Capitol Complex, including Congress. As part of the Greening The Capitol initiative, the House of Representatives has opted to replace their share of usage of the plant with natural gas, the Senate has refused to do so, and continues to use coal.

The scenario for this activity would be in the direction of peaceful line-crossing and sit-in at the power plant. An action framework will be created accessible to all – from students, to elderly, to parents, to frontline communities and beyond.

This event would aim to turn a new corner for the climate movement – we have already won the battles showing that climate change is real and that politicians and industry/people must act; now we are reflecting the urgency and depth of the required responses. Civil disobedience has played a vital role in every social movement for justice, and echoing the recent calls of people like Al Gore, James Hansen, Wendell Berry and others – we feel it is time to escalate our tactics and our demands, and show the new administration that the American people are demanding and taking action to in response to the urgency and seriousness of the climate crisis.

What You Can Do:

This peaceful action is about movement-building; about shifting the public’s understanding of the climate crisis; and inspiring others to act. We want to see a broad coalition of allies endorsing and supporting this action, and ensure the action reflects a diverse movement.

* Encourage your organization to publicly endorse this action
* Get involved in shaping the messaging and planning of the event
* Help mobilize your membership, networks, or constituents to support this action.
* Join us in Washington DC on March 2nd!

For further information- www.capitalclimateaction.org

ENDORSING ORGANIZATIONS:
350.org
Blue Ridge Earth First!
Chesapeake Climate Action Network
Coal River Mountain Watch
CoalSwarm
Energy Justice Network
Global Exchange
Green Delaware
Greenpeace
Heartwood
Mountain Justice
Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition
Rainforest Action Network
Rising Tide North America
Student Environmental Action Coalition
The Ruckus Society

ENDORSING INDIVIDUALS:
Wendell Berry - author
Edward Herman- author, professor Wharton School of Business
Bill McKibben - author
Billy Parrish - founder, Energy Action Coaltion
Gus Speth - author

"Green Banksy" Monkey Wrenches Kingsnorth Coal Plant

Scott Parkin — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 21:14:35 -0500

"At some point we must draw a line across the ground of our home and our being, drive a spear into the land and say to the bulldozers, earthmovers, government and corporations, "thus far and no further." If we do not, we shall later feel, instead of pride, the regret of Thoroeau, that good but overly-bookish man, who wrote, near the end of his life, "If I repent of anything it is likely to be my good behaviour."-Ed Abbey

Despite being the most heavily secured coal plant in the UK, this week a lone eco-activist known as the "Green Banksy" or "Climate Man" (or perhaps "Climate Woman") hopped the fence at the Kingsnorth Coal Plant, made their way through various security measures, shut down a 500MW turbine and left a calling card saying "No New Coal." They then left the same way they came in.

The action shut down enough power to power the city of Bristol for a day, effectively cutting the UK's emissions by 2%. Authorities and plant operators are baffled. The climate activists which have aggressively locked down and blockaded the plant many times over told authorities they had no idea of the culprit's identity.

The only thing that is known is that it was a successful monkey wrenching action.

Ed Abbey famously wrote a book called "The Monkey Wrench Gang" where a group of mountain state eco-activists travel the countryside sabotaging environmentally damaging machinery. Earth First! has long been known for this sort of work (and in fact Abbey was an early guru to EF!). Now we're seeing a new generation of climate activists that are essentially "carbon wrenching" the gears of the machine that are destroying the climate.

I'd expect more of this, not less.

Santa Claus Arrested for Opposing Mountaintop Removal Coal Mining

Scott Parkin — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 20:19:18 -0500

Santa Clause was arrested while delivering stockings of coal and bundles of switches to the CEO’s of the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA). Delivering coal is the least favorite part of Santa’s job but when TVA held a public meeting at their office in Chattanooga; Santa knew he had to deliver years of backlog coal first hand.

At the board meeting Santa waited patiently for his turn to talk and then he told all the bad children why he was there. Santa told the TVA board and the coal executives attending the meeting that he had to deliver them lumps of coal not because they needed any more coal but because he was sent by the little children of Appalachia.

TVA is the largest purchaser of coal in North America--if not the planet and Santa apparently got allot of letters from children asking for his help.

The letters to Santa read were from sad children who could not go outside and play sometimes because of days were it is literally unhealthy to breathe in Tennessee.

Santa read letters from children sad that to many of their grandparents die slow deaths of extended asphyxiation while lugging around bottled oxygen.

Santa read children’s letters complaining that mountains are being blown up to get at that coal. The children said they felt that the drinking water was important and that they liked playing in the forest.

While telling his story, Santa was surrounded by police officers hired by TVA, handcuffed and hauled away.

Santa is a long time activist and stands in solidarity with United Mountain Defense, Three River Earth First!, Mountain Justice and coal-impacted residents of Appalachia.

Please help Santa fill his stocking to get out of jail by sending jai support donations to the pay pal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org

You can also send checks to:
P.O. Box 20363
Knoxville, TN 37920
Please Mark Check: "For Jail Support"

For The Mountains
One angry elf

Big Coal CEO thinks environmentalist are communist, greeniacs who lie

Kevin Grandia — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 16:31:58 -0500

Don Blankenship, CEO of Massey Energy (NYSE: MEE) the fourth largest coal producer in the United States thinks Gore, Pelosi, Reid and environmentalists are crazy, atheist, communist Greeniacs who lie about climate change and other environmental issues.

Blankenship seems to either be a very confrontational sort of person or to have completely jumped the shark by the looks of this video footage released today by NRDC.

Blankenship's speech is quite disheartening because it shows very clearly the massive divide that continues to exist between environmental groups and people who care about environmental issues and the very companies that we need to convince to do something about these issues. Below are video excerpts of the speech Blankenship made in West Virginia on November 20, 2008.

"I don't believe climate change is real."

Blankenship: "I don't believe climate change is real, I do believe that the Arctic is melting and the Antarctic is getting colder. I believe it's a normal cycle. This is the first speech I've given at the Tug Valley Institute in November and it's snowing outside. So it's not my greatest concern." Blankenship's disbelief in the realities of climate change sure doesn't make sense when his company is touting its green credentials in its 2008 corporate social responsibility report by "Recognizing the increased focus on carbon dioxide and climate change, we [Massey] are taking steps to address emissions issues. operations and facilities in the United States and abroad, as well as significant resources allocated to research...." One word for this: marketing bafflegab. Another fitting term would be greenwashing.

Lies and more lies about global warming

Senators Reid and Pelosi and Al Gore are Crazy Greeniacs
Blankenship: "Let me be clear about it Al Gore, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid they don't know what they're talking about, they're totally wrong. What they do is nonsense... pretty simple, they're all crazy."
"The Greeniacs are taking over the world"
Blankenship: "Why doesn't somebody say something. The greeniacs are taking over the world. In Europe today you have green poverty and they're already going the other way. They've already learned that trying to sequester carbon and shut down the coal power plants is not going to work."
Our opponents are Communists and Atheists
So you tell me: How can we convince a Blankenship that his company has to deal with things like carbon, mercury and nitrogen oxide emissions when he thinks climate change is a lie and people who care about the environment are crazy "Greeniacs"? Most likely the answer is that we don't even try to convince the likes of Blankenship and instead we focus on convincing our politicians to put in place the environmental protection regulations that will force the necessary measures. Of course, this only leads to the widening of the gap between environmental and business concerns even further and with neither side ever really being satisfied with the terms of the cease fire agreement. Check out the Wonk Room at ThinkProgress for their take on Blankenship's comments.

Give the gift of asthma and a warmer planet this Christmas

Kevin Grandia — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 20:03:55 -0500

I don't even know what you call the latest marketing ploy by the coal industry lobby group the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity (ACCCE). But if there's one thing that is for certain it's that ACCCE has way too much time and money on their hands.

I encourage you to check out ACCCE's Clean Coal Carolers - I really don't mind sending a bunch of traffic their way because this latest publicity stunt is absolutely absurd and shows just how far the coal lobby is willing to go to market their dirty product as somehow being clean. In fact, I think you should send this to everyone you know, show them how ridiculous and over-the-top this clean coal marketing has actually become.

ACCCE's dancing coal carolers actually remind me of another marketing campaign from a few years back, maybe it's where they found their inspiration.

Or maybe it was this wonderful Christmas campaign.

These cute little bundles of mercury and soot even have a cute little Facebook page. By the looks of the number of "fans" they have though, it looks like nobody' buying into this marketing garbage.

Does ACCE honestly think that people will send this around like we all did the OfficeMax Dancing Elves last Christmas? What about the families of the estimated 24,000 people a year in the US who die prematurely because of pollution from coal-fired power plants? I wonder if they think these little coal carolers are funny?

Nothing like mercury emissions, asthma attacks and melting polar ice-caps to get me in the holiday spirit.

Maybe ACCCE thinks that this all very funny and maybe people like me pointing out the absolute idiocy of their coal carolers will look like the Scrooge. Who knows what they were thinking, but I can't imagine that even the coal companies footing ACCCE's multi-million dollar lobbying campaign will think that this latest stunt is anything but blatant over-the-top marketing blather.