WildEarth Guardians

Tuesday, May 3, 2016
WildEarth Guardians Launches "Just Transition" Push Around Obama Administration Coal Reforms

Media Blitz Starting With Billboards in Western Cities, New Website "Keeping Coal in the Ground Shouldn't Mean Turning our Backs on Workers"
Contact: Jeremy Nichols (303) 437-7663 jnichols@wildearthguardians.org

Casper, WY—As the Obama Administration moves to reform the way it manages coal, WildEarth Guardians is launching a media blitz—starting with billboards in Salt Lake City and Casper, Wyoming—to call attention to the need to help communities and workers transition away from coal in the American West.

“The coal industry collapsing, people are losing jobs, and towns are in decline, yet with reforms underway, we have a tremendous opportunity to shift the focus to helping communities move on,” said Jeremy Nichols, Climate and Energy Program Director for WildEarth Guardians. “The reality is, coal is going away, but that doesn’t mean we turn our backs on workers and the need for a just transition.”

WildEarth Guardians has been an outspoken critic of coal mining in the western United States, citing its impacts to the climate, a position that has drawn fire over the years. All told, more than 11% of all U.S. greenhouse gas emissions can be traced back to the mining of publicly owned coal, most of it in the American West.

Although urging the Obama Administration to start keeping coal in the ground, Guardians is bolstering its calls for “Just Transition” to ensure that a move away from coal is coupled with support for communities and workers.

“Keeping coal in the ground shouldn’t mean leaving communities and workers hanging,” said Nichols. “We’re here to say that we can safeguard our climate and help coal towns throughout the American West move on from coal to more prosperous and sustainable economies.”

In digital billboards launched this week in Salt Lake City and Casper, WildEarth Guardians is delivering the message that “coal miners have helped keep the lights on, now it’s time for us to help them transition.” The billboards, which are located off I-80 and Main St. in Salt Lake and off I-25 and Elma St. in Casper, direct people to the website, Just-Transition-Now.org, which urges people to call on President Obama to make “Just Transition” a priority.

The billboards and broader media push are tied to the U.S. Department of the Interior’s sweeping review of the federal coal program. Last month, the Interior Department kicked off a public comment period and scheduled several public hearings across the nation, including on May 17 in Casper and May 19 in Salt Lake City. Other meetings are planned in Grand Junction, CO, Seattle, WA, Pittsburgh, PA, and Knoxville, TN.

The reform efforts come on the heels of mounting controversy over the federal coal program, particularly over the climate impacts of authorizing more coal mining and over whether Americans are receiving a fair return as publicly owned coal is leased and mined.

The public hearings also come as the coal industry is in a tailspin. Because of excessive debt, declining demand, geologic realities, and business models that rewarded executives for poor business practices, companies are in decline. In the last year, Peabody Energy, Arch Coal, and Alpha Natural Resources—the first, second, and fourth largest coal companies in the U.S., respectively, filed for bankruptcy.

Industry’s decline is hitting communities hard, with hundreds laid off in Wyoming, declining revenue, and mines being shut down.

“The coal industry’s decline is leaving a trail of disaster here in the western United States,” said Nichols. “It’s time to move on, but we need to take deliberate and effective steps to make that happen, including making sure coal companies themselves pay up and ensuring the Interior Department also advances transition.”

In advance of public hearings, Guardians is calling for people to support a four point “Just Transition” plan, which includes:

• Raising royalty and rental rates that are assessed for publicly owned coal production and invest the increased returns into community support initiatives.

• Establishing an Economic Transition Fund, which would be sustained by an increase in reimbursement fees charged by the Interior Department when processing coal-related applications.

• Setting deadlines for full coal mine reclamation to ensure taxpayers are not on the hook for cleanups, to restore fish and wildlife habitat, and to secure reclamation jobs.

• Prioritizing support and assistance to help communities transition.

“We have an obligation to ensure that as we’re confronting the coal industry, we’re also advancing a meaningful transition,” said Nichols. “Instead of sitting idly by while the coal industry collapses, we’re stepping up to say we want to do everything we can to help communities and workers get the support they need to move on.”