Massive coal ash-spill in Tennessee

Power companies generate millions of tons of coal ash every year, enough to fill train cars that stretch from the North Pole all the way to the South Pole. EPA recently introduced a mish-mash plan for coal ash, one that was heavily influenced by lobbyists from coal and power companies who forced a plan that includes no preference from the EPA. Earthjustice and dozens of other groups have been pushing on the EPA to establish federally enforceable safeguards that truly protect public health and the environment.

And while we take on the EPA and the coal and power industry lobbyists, some other groups have been quietly and effectively working on the inside of these companies to push for recognition of the collosal problems of coal ash dumping and contamination.

Boston-based Green Century Capital Management proposed a resolution to be voted on this Wednesday at the annual meeting of Southern Company, one of the biggest power companies in the South. The resolution asks Southern to report on efforts and information about the company's coal ash dumps and waste ponds by August, which should run right during the EPA's public comment period on their proposed regulation.

Coal mining operation in the Powder River Basin. Photo: BLM

Late last week, Earthjustice filed a lawsuit against the State of Montana over the state's decision to lease 572 million tons of coal for strip mining at Otter Creek without examining the environmental impacts of the decision. The decision was supported by Democratic Governor Brian Schweitzer, who has been dubbed the "Coal Cowboy" by the national media.

The lease was awarded to St. Louis-based Arch Coal, the nation's second largest coal producer. Including the coal it acquired from the state, Arch Coal has amassed leases for at least 1.3 billion tons of coal in the area, which will make the proposed Otter Creek mine one of the largest strip mines in North America.

Even while our nation's leaders are claiming the need to achieve "energy independence," Arch Coal says that Otter Creek coal would be mined to serve the growing demand in Asian countries.

Einstein defined insanity as doing the same thing over again and expecting different results. Einstein, who had a particular knack for coming up with enduring and timeless ideas, may find application in our country's energy landscape today.

Looking out yonder, we see a devastating oil spill and possibly one of the worst and most costly ecological disasters in our country's history, mountains being destroyed by explosives and the resulting toxic sludge getting dumped into our waterways, communities and people being poisoned by coal ash and coal waste, and carbon pollution exacerbating heat waves, warming our oceans, and increasing ocean acidity until building blocks of our underwater life are killed off—and these are just some of the things we are seeing here in the U.S.

Looking beyond the U.S., we see unfriendly regimes getting stronger and richer from our reliance on foreign oil, we see China boosting its share of the renewables market in its quest for global economic leadership and to meet its growing thirst for energy.

Coal ash spill

During a tele-press conference today discussing a new report on coal ash sites, Charleston Gazette reporter Ken Ward asked environmental advocates whether West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin was correct in asserting that the U.S. EPA was "jumping to classify coal ash" as a hazardous waste. Earthjustice's Lisa Evans was quick to discredit this assertion.

"That's a patently absurd concept," she stated. Manchin is "ignoring science and ignoring concern for public health."

The EPA has been deliberating for 30 years on the issue of regulating coal ash as a hazardous waste and the evidence is overwhelming and mounting that this substance is a threat to public health.