WildEarth Guardians

Friday, May 3, 2013
Congressional Leaders Urge EPA to Reconsider Stand on Coal Mine Pollution

WildEarth Guardians Applauds Leadership
Contact: Jeremy Nichols (303) 437-7663

Washington, D.C.—U.S. Representative Henry Waxman and U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse today called on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to reconsider its decision to reject regulating air pollution from coal mines in the U.S.

“The EPA’s decision leaves our climate, our clean air, and our communities at risk,” said Jeremy Nichols, WildEarth Guardians’ Climate and Energy Program Director.  “We applaud Representative Waxman and Senator Whitehouse joining us in calling on the EPA to rethink its decision to allow unfettered air pollution to go unchecked when we have win-win solutions at hand to do better.” 

Last week, the EPA denied a petition filed by WildEarth Guardians, together with Earthjustice, the Center for Biological Diversity, Environmental Integrity Project, and the Sierra Club, calling on the agency to regulate harmful air pollution from coal mines.  At issue is the fact that coal mines release large amounts of methane, a key global warming gas, as well as a host of other harmful pollutants.

In rejecting the petition, the EPA refused to address the issue, citing resource and priority constraints. 

In their letter, the Congressional leaders chided EPA stating:

Your position is that it is appropriate for EPA to fail to address a public health risk because of a belief that there may be inadequate funds to address the risk.  That approach is a terrible precedent and a dereliction of duty.  In these circumstances, your first responsibility should be to assess the risk and alert the public.  If the risk is a significant one that you cannot find resources to address, you should at least inform the President and Congress and appeal for additional resources.

WildEarth Guardians is weighing a legal challenge to the EPA’s rejection.