WildEarth Guardians

Thursday, June 23, 2016
WildEarth Guardians Calls for an End to Mining Publicly Owned Coal

At Hearing in Grand Junction, Colorado, Obama Administration Called on to Keep Coal in the Ground, Advance a Just Transition
Contact: Jeremy Nichols, (303) 437-7663, jnichols@wildearthguardians.org

Grand Junction, Colo.—As the U.S. Department of the Interior moves to reform the way our publicly owned coal is managed, WildEarth Guardians is stepping up its calls for the Obama Administration to put an end to mining and help workers and communities transition.

“The coal industry is 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.”

At a public hearing today in Grand Junction, Colorado, the Interior Department is slated to take comments on its coal reform efforts. WildEarth Guardians intends to speak out in favor of ending the federal coal program and helping the American West move on from fossil fuels.

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.

WildEarth Guardians has won several lawsuits challenging coal mining in the western U.S. and most recently overturned a mine expansion in western Colorado.

Although urging the Obama Administration to keep coal in the ground, Guardians has been calling for “Just Transition” to ensure 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 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 in May in several western cities, WildEarth Guardians has been delivering the message that “coal miners have helped keep the lights on, now it’s time for us to help them transition.” The billboard directs people to the website, Just-Transition-Now.org, which urges people to call on President Obama to make “Just Transition” a priority.

Today’s hearing comes as the U.S. Department of the Interior has launched a sweeping review of the federal coal program. Last month, the Interior Department kicked off a public comment period and held public hearings in Casper, Wyoming, Salt Lake City, Knoxville, Tennessee, and Seattle.

Grand Junction is the final public hearing to be held in the western United States. 

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 steep decline. Because of excessive debt, declining demand, geologic realities, and business models that rewarded executives for poor business practices, companies are flailing. In the last year, Peabody Energy and Arch Coal—both major Colorado producers and the first and second largest coal companies in the U.S., respectively, filed for bankruptcy.

Industry’s decline is hitting hard in Colorado.  Two mines in the North Fork Valley have shut down, companies have laid off hundreds, and production in the state is expected to hit a 40-year low.

“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 helps advance transition.”

As public hearings unfold, 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.”