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Fwd: PennFuture Appeals AMDRI permit for Dunkard Creek
by James Kotcon 05 Jan '10

05 Jan '10

The actual appeal (filed Dec. 30) mentioned below is available at the link at the end of this article. It appears to be a very well-documented case and ties together Dunkard Creek, Longview, ConSol (Himphrey Mine), Dana Mining, PA-DEP, and AMD Reclamation, Inc. This is some important reading. JBK >>> Betty Wiley betty.w304(a)gmail.com> 1/4/2010 11:27 PM >> ( mailto:betty.w304@gmail.com> ) http://www.businesswire.com/portal/site/home/permalink/?ndmViewId=news_view… Business Wire January 04, 2010 05:12 PM Eastern Time PennFuture, Friends of Dunkard Creek File Appeal on Mine Water Treatment Permit Allowing Dirty Water to Be Released into Creek Permit Changed without Public Notice HARRISBURG, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Attorneys with Citizens for Pennsylvania's Future (PennFuture) last week filed an appeal before the Environmental Hearing Board challenging an amendment to the permit for the Shannopin Mine Dewatering Project. The appeal was filed on behalf of Friends of Dunkard Creek, as well as PennFuture. "The relaxed standards do not apply to the water being pumped from Consol's permitted Humphrey No. 7 Mine, which is not being done to avert a disaster, but to allow mining of the coal reserves above the Humphrey Mine." The Shannopin Mine Dewatering Project, which was designed to prevent a catastrophic breakout of acid mine water from the abandoned Shannopin Mine into Dunkard Creek, was originally granted a permit allowing less stringent cleanup of the dangerous water. The challenged permit amendment, for which no public notice was given, would allow the project to collect water from Consolidation Coal Company's (Consol) permitted Humphrey No. 7 Mine, where no breakout risk exists, and to treat that water to the less than optimal cleanup allowed in the original emergency situation. The permit amendment was granted by the Department of Environmental Protection's (DEP) Mining Program despite a finding nine months before by a DEP biologist that the Shannopin Project's discharge into Dunkard Creek contained high levels of Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) and other pollutants, which were causing harm to aquatic life in the creek. The permit amendment was issued two months after a massive kill of fish, mussels, and salamanders occurred in more than 40 miles of Dunkard Creek. "The lax water cleanup standards were allowed originally to avert an emergency - an impending breakout of acid mine pollution from the abandoned Shannopin Mine that would have severely polluted miles of Dunkard Creek and the Monongahela River," said PennFuture Senior Attorney Kurt Weist. "The relaxed standards do not apply to the water being pumped from Consol's permitted Humphrey No. 7 Mine, which is not being done to avert a disaster, but to allow mining of the coal reserves above the Humphrey Mine. "In March, DEP's water quality experts recommended that more stringent water quality limits be included in the renewal of the discharge permit for the Shannopin Project, which is now nearly sixteen months overdue," continued Weist. "It obviously is unreasonable to issue an amendment allowing another source of mine drainage to be connected to the Shannopin Project's treatment system before DEP renews the existing permit and puts the more protective limits into effect." Jim O'Connell of Friends of Dunkard Creek agreed, "How anyone could have granted this permit revision after the destruction we experienced last summer is beyond me. And you can bet that if there had been any public notice, DEP would have heard our objections loud and clear. It's time to reverse this backroom deal and clean up the water." A copy of the appeal filed by PennFuture is online at http://www.pennfuture.org/userfiles10/CalvinRunNOAwithoutattachments.pdf Contacts Citizens for Pennsylvania's Future Jeanne K. Clark, 412-258-6683 or 412-736-6092 info(a)pennfuture.org www.pennfuture.org ( http://www.pennfuture.org/ ) At A Glance Citizens for Pennsylvania's Future (PennFuture) Headquarters: Harrisburg, PA Website: http://www.pennfuture.org ( http://www.pennfuture.org/ ) CEO: Jan Jarrett Employees: 21 Organization: Non-profit Source: via Business Wire Updated 03/24/2009 by company Permalink: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20100104006386/en/PennFuture%2C-Frien…

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PATH drops out in Virginia
by James Kotcon 29 Dec '09

29 Dec '09

You have to read the footnotes, but PATH now says, not only that they want to withdraw their application in VA, but that they won't re-file before the third quarter of 2010, and they pledge not to appeal to FERC for backstop authority before a new application goes through the process. It would be good for them to do that here in WV as well. Happy New Year! JBK

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Fw: COG Digest, Vol 10, Issue 134
by Jim Sconyers 28 Dec '09

28 Dec '09

Wow! As little as 15-20% of the fracking fluid may be recovered. Lotta crap staying in the Earth... Jim Sconyers jim_scon(a)yahoo.com 304.698.9628 Remember: Mother Nature bats last. --- On Sun, 12/27/09, Donald C. Strimbeck <dcsoinks(a)comcast.net> wrote: From: Donald C. Strimbeck <dcsoinks(a)comcast.net> Subject: Fw: COG Digest, Vol 10, Issue 134 To: "Werner Loehlein" <werner.c.loehlein(a)usace.army.mil>, "Tom Mroz" <THOMAS.MROZ(a)NETL.DOE.GOV>, "Tom Konchesky" <scmayor(a)comcast.net>, "Steve Garvin" <SGarvin194(a)aol.com>, "Skip Pratt" <Skip.Pratt(a)eg.netl.doe.gov>, "Shanda Minney" <sminney(a)wvrivers.org>, "Scott Mandirola" <Scott.G.(a)yahoo.com> Date: Sunday, December 27, 2009, 11:47 AM Donald C. Strimbeck, Sec/Treas Upper Mon River Assoc UpperMon.org Vice Chair, Mon River Rec & Comm Com MonRiverSummit.org 109 Broad Street, P. O. Box 519 Granville WV 26534-0519 304-599-7585 (fax 4131) dcsoinks(a)comcast.net ----- Original Message ----- From: "Donald C. Strimbeck" <dcsoinks(a)comcast.net> To: Sent: Sunday, December 27, 2009 11:45 AM Subject: Fw: COG Digest, Vol 10, Issue 134 > News item of interest to those of us in Mon river watershed. > > Donald C. Strimbeck, Sec/Treas > Upper Mon River Assoc > UpperMon.org > > Vice Chair, Mon River Rec & Comm Com > MonRiverSummit.org > 109 Broad Street, P. O. Box 519 > Granville WV 26534-0519 > 304-599-7585 (fax 4131) > dcsoinks(a)comcast.net > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: <cog-request(a)lists.earthworksaction.org> > To: <cog(a)lists.earthworksaction.org> > Sent: Sunday, December 27, 2009 10:26 AM > Subject: COG Digest, Vol 10, Issue 134 > > >> Send COG mailing list submissions to >> cog(a)lists.earthworksaction.org >> >> To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit >> http://lists.earthworksaction.org/mailman/listinfo/cog_lists.earthworksacti… >> >> or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to >> cog-request(a)lists.earthworksaction.org >> >> You can reach the person managing the list at >> cog-owner(a)lists.earthworksaction.org >> >> When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific >> than "Re: Contents of COG digest..." >> >> >> Today's Topics: >> >> 1. Lustgarten: Junk stays in ground! (scobies) >> >> >> ---------------------------------------------------------------------- >> >> Message: 1 >> Date: Sun, 27 Dec 2009 10:52:07 -0500 >> From: scobies <scobies(a)frontiernet.net> >> Subject: [COG] Lustgarten: Junk stays in ground! >> To: cog(a)lists.earthworksaction.org >> Message-ID: <93D2336B-F2D4-42C6-B83B-310304B3BA87(a)frontiernet.net> >> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="windows-1252"; Format="flowed"; >> DelSp="yes" >> >> Relates directly to the original rationale for the Halliburton >> exemption. Powerful quotes from industry. >> >> NYStan >> Stan Scobie, Binghamton, NY <scobies(a)frontiernet.net> >> ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ >> >> http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1209/30978_Page3.html >> >> New gas wells leave more chemicals in ground >> By: Abrahm Lustgarten - ProPublica >> December 27, 2009 07:11 AM EST >> >> For more than a decade the energy industry has steadfastly argued >> before courts, Congress and the public that the federal law >> protecting drinking water should not be applied to hydraulic >> fracturing, the industrial process that is essential to extracting >> the nation?s vast natural gas reserves. In 2005 Congress, persuaded, >> passed a law prohibiting such regulation. >> >> Now an important part of that argument ? that most of the millions of >> gallons of toxic chemicals that drillers inject underground are >> removed for safe disposal, and are not permanently discarded inside >> the earth ? does not apply to drilling in many of the nation?s >> booming new gas fields. >> >> Three company spokesmen and a regulatory official said in separate >> interviews with ProPublica that as much as 85 percent of the fluids >> used during hydraulic fracturing is being left underground after >> wells are drilled in the Marcellus Shale, the massive gas deposit >> that stretches from New York to Tennessee. >> >> That means that for each modern gas well drilled in the Marcellus and >> places like it, more than three million gallons of chemically tainted >> wastewater could be left in the ground forever. Drilling companies >> say that chemicals make up less than 1 percent of that fluid. But by >> volume, those chemicals alone still amount to 34,000 gallons in a >> typical well. >> >> These disclosures raise new questions about why the Safe Drinking >> Water Act, the federal law that regulates fluids injected underground >> so they don?t contaminate drinking water aquifers, should not apply >> to hydraulic fracturing, and whether the thinking behind Congress? >> 2005 vote to shield drilling from regulation is still valid. >> >> When lawmakers approved that exemption it was generally accepted that >> only about 30 percent of the fluids stayed in the ground. At the >> time, fracturing was also used in far fewer wells than it is today >> and required far less fluid. Ninety percent of the nation?s wells now >> rely on the process, which is widely credited for making it >> financially feasible to tap into the Marcellus Shale and other new >> gas deposits. >> >> Congress is considering a bill that would repeal the exemption, and >> has directed the Environmental Protection Agency to undertake a fresh >> study of how hydraulic fracturing may affect drinking water supplies. >> But the government faces stiff pressure from the energy industry to >> maintain the status quo ? in which gas drilling is regulated state by >> state ? as companies race to exploit the nation?s vast shale deposits >> and meet the growing demand for cleaner fuel. Just this month, Exxon >> announced it would spend some $31 billion to buy XTO Energy, a >> company that controls substantial gas reserves in the Marcellus ? but >> only on the condition that Congress doesn?t enact laws on fracturing >> that make drilling ?commercially impracticable.? >> >> The realization that most of the chemicals and fluids injected >> underground remain there could stoke the debate further, especially >> since it contradicts the industry?s long-standing message that only a >> small proportion of the fluids is left behind at most wells. >> >> But while the message has not changed, the drilling has. >> >> In the nation?s largest and most important natural gas fields, far >> more chemicals are being used today than when Congress and the EPA >> last visited the fracturing issue, and far more of those fluids are >> remaining underground. Drilling companies say that as they?ve drilled >> in the Marcellus they?ve discovered that the shale rock ? which is >> similar to many of the nation?s largest natural gas projects in >> Louisiana, Texas and several other states ? holds more fluids than >> they expected. >> >> During hydraulic fracturing, drillers use combinations of some of the >> 260 chemical additives associated with the process, plus large >> amounts of water and sand, to break rock and release gas. Benzene and >> formaldehyde, both known carcinogens, are among the substances that >> are commonly found. >> >> >> If another industry proposed injecting chemicals ? or even salt water >> ? underground for disposal, the EPA would require it to conduct a >> geological study to make sure the ground can hold those fluids >> without leaking and to follow construction standards when building >> the well. In some cases the EPA would also establish a monitoring >> system to track what happens as the well ages. >> >> But because hydraulic fracturing is exempt from the Safe Drinking >> Water Act, it doesn?t necessarily have to conform to these federal >> standards. Instead, oversight of the drilling chemicals and the >> injection process has been left solely to the states, some of which >> regulate parts of the process while others do not. >> >> As the industry was lobbying Congress for that exemption ? and ever >> since ? the notion that most fluids would not be left underground >> continued to emerge as a recurring theme put forth by everyone from >> attorneys for Halliburton, which developed the fracturing process and >> is one of the leading drilling service companies, to government >> researchers and regulators. >> >> ?Hydraulic fracturing is fundamentally different,? wrote Mike Paque, >> director of the Ground Water Protection Council, an association of >> state oil and gas regulators, to Senate staff in a 2002 letter >> advocating for the exemption, ?because it is part of the well >> completion process, does not ?dispose of fluids? and is of short >> duration, with most of the fluids being immediately recovered.? >> >> The Ground Water Protection Council did not respond to a request for >> further comment. >> >> EPA officials maintained in 2005, and say now, that the volume of >> fluids left underground had little to do with its opinion that >> hydraulic fracturing for gas wells is not the same as underground >> injection. They say that distinction is because the primary function >> of the two types of wells is different: Gas wells are for production >> processes, while most EPA-regulated underground injection wells are >> intended for storage. >> >> But Stephen Heare, director of the EPA?s Drinking Water Protection >> Division in Washington, said that both the circumstances and the >> drilling technology have evolved. When asked to explain how hydraulic >> fracturing today is different from other forms of underground >> injection, he said the bottom line was simple: >> >> ?If you are emplacing fluid, it does not matter whether you are >> recovering 30 percent or 65 percent of it, if you are emplacing >> fluids that is underground injection,? Heare said. ?The simple >> explanation for why hydraulic fracturing is different from other >> injection activities,? he added, is that hydraulic fracturing ?is >> exempt from regulation under the Safe Drinking Water Act.? >> >> The argument that fracturing should not be regulated by the EPA >> became prominent in the 1990s, after the EPA said that fracturing lay >> outside the scope of the Safe Drinking Water Act, because the primary >> purpose of gas wells was energy production, not fluid disposal. >> >> A 1997 Alabama lawsuit challenged that position, and the 11th Circuit >> Court of Appeals ruled against the EPA. >> >> In that decision, the judges wrote that "According to the state >> agency, hydraulic fracturing is not underground injection because it >> does not result in permanent subsurface ?emplacement? of the fluids, >> as these fluids are pumped out of the ground before methane gas is >> extracted out of the well." But the judges called that assertion >> ?untenable? and ordered the EPA to regulate fracturing in Alabama >> under the Safe Drinking Water Act. They also ordered the EPA to more >> clearly define fracturing as a type of underground injection, a move >> that could have paved the way for regulation in other states as well. >> >> But in 2005, before such regulation could happen, Congress stepped in >> and gave hydraulic fracturing its special exemption from the Safe >> Drinking Water Act. >> >> When Congress voted for the exemption it referred to a 2004 EPA >> report, which concluded that fracturing did not pose a threat to >> drinking water. That report, which has since been criticized as >> incomplete, said that while some of the fracturing fluids remained >> underground, ?Most of the fracturing fluids injected into the >> formation are pumped back out of the well along with groundwater and >> methane gas." >> >> >> Lee Fuller, vice president of government affairs for the Independent >> Petroleum Association of America, said that the emphasis on >> wastewater removal was made to help legislators understand how >> fracturing was different from underground injection, but that those >> legislators also knew that much of the water stayed underground when >> they voted for the exemption. >> >> ?The EPA study said there was a certain amount of the water that does >> stay in the fractured formation. That information was known,? he >> said, adding that more of the water may seep out over the lifespan of >> the well. ?So I think there was an understanding of it on the part of >> the proponents of the proposal.? >> >> In the 2004 report, the EPA said as much as 59 percent of fracturing >> fluids can remain underground. A 2009 Department of Energy report >> titled Modern Shale Gas put that figure at 30 to 70 percent, but >> emphasized that most wells fall into the lower end of that range, >> explaining that "The majority of fracturing fluid is recovered in a >> matter of several hours to a couple of weeks." >> >> Just six months ago that point was reiterated in testimony before the >> House Committee on Natural Resources, when the Interstate Oil and Gas >> Compact Commission repeated a statement that former Alabama state >> geologist Donald Oltz made in the 1997 Alabama court case: "Almost >> all hydraulic fracturing fluid is recovered to the surface after a >> hydraulic fracturing operation." >> >> That statement contrasts sharply with the latest reports from regions >> where gas drilling is on the upswing. >> >> Spokesmen for Cabot Oil and Gas, Range Resources and Fortuna Energy ? >> three of the most active companies developing gas resources in the >> Marcellus Shale ? say >> that more water is trapped underground in newer drilling areas >> because the ?tight shale? that is loath to give up the gas is likely >> to hold onto the fluids too. >> >> ?It?s not like you pump a volume of water into the frack and then it >> gives you that volume back,? said Ken Komoroski, a spokesman for >> Cabot Oil and Gas, who says only 15 to 20 percent of the fluid comes >> back out. ?Most of the water and sand stays in the formation compared >> to in other geologic formations.? >> >> Gas industry officials say the amount of fluids they leave behind in >> their wells should have no bearing on whether hydraulic fracturing is >> or is not regulated by the federal government. What?s important is >> managing the risk, says the Independent Petroleum Associations? Lee >> Fuller, a job he says the industry is doing very well without >> additional oversight. >> >> ?You are wrapping yourself around a distinction of whether something >> should or should not be regulated under the Safe Drinking Water Act >> as opposed to whether something does or does not pose an >> environmental risk,? said Fuller, who asserts that despite numerous >> reports of contamination in drilling areas, the fracturing process >> has never been conclusively proven to be the cause. >> >> Regulation, Fuller said, ?may shut down natural gas drilling for a >> long time, but it is not going to make the environment any better.? >> >> It will fall to Congress ? and then to the EPA ? to decide whether >> that is truly the case. Sponsors of the Frack Act hope for a vote >> this spring. If it passes, and if the EPA finds reason to change the >> conclusions it reached in 2004, the agency would then have to decide >> exactly how fracturing will be addressed by the Safe Drinking Water Act. >> >> ?The thinking we did then, the study that we did then, we were really >> looking at a different set of circumstances,? said Heare, the EPA?s >> Drinking Water Protection Division director. ?The agency has not >> investigated the impacts of hydraulic fracturing in other settings >> such as shale gas production and at this time is unable to quantify >> the potential threat.? >> >> ProPublica is an independent, nonprofit newsroom that produces >> investigative journalism in the public interest. For more stories on >> natural gas drilling, go to propublica.org/naturalgas. >> >> ? 2009 Capitol News Company, LLC >> >> >> >>

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Comments on proposed Air permit modification for Longview
by James Kotcon 24 Dec '09

24 Dec '09

Attached is a draft of comments I offer regarding the proposed air permit modification for Longview Power. As you may recall, Longview originally agreed to acquire SO2 emissions offsets from an area within ~100 miles of Dolly Sods in order to offset the impact their plant would have on acid rain in Class I Areas. Longview has had difficulty acquiring the needed offsets and now is seeking to expand the area to include plants to the west of the original area. Our policy optons are: 1) Do Nothing. We signed a settlement agreement to not oppose the opriginal air permit, although we did include public notification requirements just in case something like this came up. If Longview proposed a change, do we violate our Settlement by asking for something different? Does this jeopardize the mitigation funding for the non-profit we are setting up? 2) Ask for further offsets, but do not oppose the permit modification altogether. This is a relatively minor permit modification for WV-DEP, so it seems unlikely to get denied, and a request for additional offsets is about as much as I think we can get from this. 3) Oppose a permit modification altogether. If Longview can't find the offsets they need, they don't have to operate the plant. I am still not convinced that Longview has made a serious effort to secure those offsets from Alleghny or Dominion, which is why I suggested that WV-DEP needs firm evidence of Longview's eforts and their complete inability to acquire the offsets. I think that Longview is a bunch of cheapskates and will do anything to save a buck. Let me know what you think. I would like to get a response out to DEP before Jan. 1 Jim Kotcon 304-293-8822 (office) 304-594-3322 (home)

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Fwd: [GW-ACT-LEADERS] Fw: Friedman: The Copenhagen That Matters
by James Kotcon 23 Dec '09

23 Dec '09

Definitely worth a read. Why not West Virginia? JBK >>> Ron McLinden <ronmclinden(a)YAHOO.COM> 12/23/2009 1:13 PM >>> OPINION | December 23, 2009 The Copenhagen That Matters By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN The climate summit may not have solved our problems, but we can't ignore the issues - or how individual countries, like Denmark, have effectively addressed them. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/23/opinion/23friedman.html?emc=eta1 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To unsubscribe from the CONS-SPST-GLOBALWARM-CHAIRS list, send any message to: CONS-SPST-GLOBALWARM-CHAIRS-signoff-request(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Check out our Listserv Lists support site for more information: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp Sign up to receive Sierra Club Insider, the flagship e-newsletter. Sent out twice a month, it features the Club's latest news and activities. Subscribe and view recent editions at http://www.sierraclub.org/insider/

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Fw: [CCL] Wall St. Journal: Sierra Club's Pro-Gas Dilemma
by Jim Sconyers 23 Dec '09

23 Dec '09

Our own Beth Little quoted in the WSJ! Jim Sconyers jim_scon(a)yahoo.com 304.698.9628 Remember: Mother Nature bats last. --- On Mon, 12/21/09, Rachel Treichler <rachel(a)ecobooks.com> wrote: From: Rachel Treichler <rachel(a)ecobooks.com> Subject: [CCL] Wall St. Journal: Sierra Club's Pro-Gas Dilemma To: CCL-DELEGATES(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Date: Monday, December 21, 2009, 10:14 AM Sierra Club's Pro-Gas Dilemma National Group's Stance Angers On-the-Ground Environmentalists in Several States Wall Street Journal, Dec. 21, 2009 http://online.wsj.com/article_email/SB126135534799299475-lMyQjAxMDI5NjIxMTM… By BEN CASSELMAN LIVERPOOL, N.Y. -- When energy companies began preparations to drill for natural gas in upstate New York last year, the local Sierra Club quickly organized against them. The group's New York chapter demanded studies on the environmental risks, pushed for stricter regulations and called for a statewide ban on most gas drilling. The drilling hasn't begun as the state works to develop regulations. It would have been a typical story of environmentalists battling industry, except for one thing: The national Sierra Club is one of natural gas's biggest boosters. Carl Pope, the Sierra Club's executive director, has traveled the country promoting natural gas's environmental benefits, sometimes alongside Aubrey McClendon, chief executive of Chesapeake Energy Corp., one of the biggest U.S. gas companies by production. The national group's pro-gas stance has angered on-the-ground environmentalists in several states who say their concerns are being marginalized. "It makes us look like the extremists that the industry wants to call us anyway," said Beth Little, a board member of the Sierra Club's West Virginia chapter, which is more skeptical about drilling than the national organization. The rift in the Sierra Club, one of the country's oldest and most prominent conservation groups, highlights deep divisions in the broader environmental community over natural gas. And pressure from local activists is forcing some major environmental groups to revisit their positions on drilling. Some activists, such as Mr. Pope, believe increased drilling -- with appropriate safeguards -- is the best way to wean the U.S. off coal, which they see as the greater environmental threat. Others, many of them in areas affected by drilling, see potential risks -- air pollution, increased water use and soil and water contamination -- as too high. "It's been an at-times rancorous debate in the environmental community," said Bruce Baizel, an attorney for Earthworks, a national environmental group focused on energy issues. That debate will likely grow more heated following Exxon Mobil Corp.'s announcement last week that it is buying XTO Energy Inc. The deal will make Exxon, already a significant target of environmentalists, into the country's biggest natural-gas producer. The industry has made the environmental benefits of gas a centerpiece of an $80 million lobbying effort that aims to promote increased use of gas to generate electricity and fuel cars and trucks. Burning natural gas releases about half as much carbon dioxide as burning coal to produce the same amount of energy and also emits far fewer smog-causing gases such as nitrogen oxide. National groups such as the Sierra Club, the Environmental Defense Fund and the Natural Resources Defense Council have backed natural gas as a so-called bridge fuel that can help the country move away from coal and oil without waiting for renewable sources of energy, such as wind and solar power, to catch up. The support of environmental groups has helped the industry win key backers in Congress, where a bipartisan "Congressional Natural Gas Caucus" formed this year. But local opposition presents a challenge to the coalition. Grassroots groups have sprung up across the country to raise environmental concerns, particularly about the alleged risk of drinking-water contamination from hydraulic fracturing, a process in which large volumes of chemical-laced water are injected down wells to release gas trapped in underground rock formations. Companies say that their drilling practices, including hydraulic fracturing, are safe, and that existing regulations are sufficient. There have been few independent studies to assess how widespread problems are. "There are legitimate questions, and they can be answered legitimately," said Mr. McClendon, Chesapeake's CEO. "I feel we're on the right side of history here." The pressure from local environmentalists appears to be having an impact. The Natural Resources Defense Council is now pushing for stricter regulation of drilling, the Environmental Defense Fund is working with companies to encourage them to adopt stronger environmental safeguards, and the Sierra Club has formed a task force to draft a policy on hydraulic fracturing. James Marston, director of the Environmental Defense Fund's energy program, said the pros and cons of increased natural-gas use have turned out to be "more complicated than some of the early reports" indicated. Concern appears to be growing in Congress, too, about the environmental impact of drilling. A House bill to regulate hydraulic fracturing has drawn 49 co-sponsors, and a companion bill has been introduced in the Senate. Exxon is sufficiently concerned about the legislation that its merger agreement with XTO allows the company to back out of the deal if Congress makes hydraulic fracturing illegal or "commercially impracticable." The grassroots opposition the industry faces was on display here on a recent Tuesday afternoon, when more than 50 people filled the community room of the public library in this town of 2,500 just outside of Syracuse, N.Y. As local environmental leaders talked about the thousands of acres of local land that had been leased for drilling, Syracuse resident Larry Paul shook his head. "I don't trust the industry," Mr. Paul said after the meeting. "This is a disaster waiting to happen." Still, Mr. Pope, of the national Sierra Club, said many of the same people who complain about drilling are using oil, gas and coal produced elsewhere -- often at a greater environmental cost. "Will the 20% of the membership that happens to live in places where drilling is happening be unhappy?" he asked. "I'm sure that's true." Write to Ben Casselman at ben.casselman(a)wsj.com Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page A3 Copyright 2009 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To unsubscribe from the CCL-DELEGATES list, send any message to: CCL-DELEGATES-signoff-request(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Check out our Listserv Lists support site for more information: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp

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Fwd: Comments on Mingo CTL plant
by James Kotcon 21 Dec '09

21 Dec '09

To the Energy Committee: Attached are the comments submitted on behalf of the Club for the TransGas Coal-To-Liquids air permit last Friday. While I put some time into this, we also got a substantial amount of help from National Sierra Club and a couple experts they retained, and these comments would not have been anywhere near as extensive without them. Our first major issue is that TransGas and WV-DEP have significantly underestimated the pollution emissions as part of an effort to have this plant be permitted as a "minor" source. As such, the applicant is attempting to avoid a lot of pollution modeling requirements, BACT analyses, and many other permitting requirements under the Clean Air Act. Thus, the bulk of the comments identify the numerous emissions sources that were ignored or underestimated by WV-DEP. The second big issue is that the applicant has not proposed any controls or limits on greenhouse gas emissions. While West Virginia does not currently have an emissions standard for greenhouse gases, we argued that they have an obligation to impose limits based on their broad responsibility to protect the public welfare. There are also numerous other issues with monitoring, enforceability, and "confidential business information". This is a great read for policy wonks or simply for educational purposes. I am grateful to Elena and all the support from National on this issue. Jim Kotcon >>> Elena Saxonhouse <Elena.Saxonhouse(a)sierraclub.org> 12/18/2009 7:33 PM >>> This is a corrected version of what we sent yesterday; I sent an errata sheet to DEP earlier today. I am not attaching the Exhibits, but would be happy to provide them to anyone who wants them. Elena Saxonhouse Sierra Club Environmental Law Program 85 Second St., 2nd Floor San Francisco, CA 94105 (415) 977-5765 (415) 977-5793 (fax)

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[WVaPATH] FW: Path-vA PUE-2009-00043
by James Kotcon 21 Dec '09

21 Dec '09

PATH, LLC filed these motions in Virginia to withdraw their application. They now want to re-file a new set of applications in all three states (early in 2010) to "coordinate the schedule among all three states". I don't think anyone thinks this is over, so we need to take advantage of this time to lobby the Legislature. JBK >>> Patience Wait <pwaitster(a)gmail.com> 12/21/2009 12:31 PM >>> BIG NEWS out of Virginia today! And the PATH application supposedly was filed in MD today, but I haven't found it yet. ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Bri West <bwest(a)pecva.org> Date: Mon, Dec 21, 2009 at 12:01 PM Subject: FW: Path-vA PUE-2009-00043 To: Patience Wait <pwaitster(a)gmail.com> Two motions filed today. __._,_.___ Reply to sender | Reply to group Recent Activity: Visit Your Group Start a New Topic MARKETPLACE Going Green: Your Yahoo! Groups resource for green living Parenting Zone: Your community resource for family and home Switch to: Text-Only, Daily Digest • Unsubscribe • Terms of Use. __,_._,___

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FW: [wvec-board] Fwd: Rare Earth PBS report
by Grubb, Karen 15 Dec '09

15 Dec '09

Other problems with green industry. From: wvec-board(a)yahoogroups.com [mailto:wvec-board@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of larryvthomas(a)aol.com Sent: Tuesday, December 15, 2009 8:19 PM To: wvhcboard(a)yahoogroups.com; wvec-board(a)yahoogroups.com Subject: [wvec-board] Fwd: Rare Earth PBS report Last evening, PBS Newshour did a report on rare earth production in China and its relationship to the environment. The report can be viewed at http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/asia/july-dec09/china_12-14.html and the transcript is included below. Eye opener. PBS NEWSHOUR REPORT AIR DATE Dec. 14, 2009 Are Rare Earth Minerals Too Costly for the Environment? LINDSEY HILSUM: It doesn't look very green. Rare earth processing in China is a messy, dangerous, polluting business. It uses toxic chemicals, acids, sulfates, ammonia. The workers have little or no protection. But, without rare earth, Copenhagen means nothing. You buy a Prius hybrid car and think you're saving the planet. But each motor contains a kilo of neodymium and each battery more than 10 kilos of lanthanum, rare earth elements from China. Green campaigners love wind turbines, but the permanent magnets used to manufacture a 3-megawatt turbine contain some two tons of rare earth. The head of China's Rare Earth Research Institute shows me one of those permanent magnets. He's well aware of the issues. ZHAO ZENGQI, Baotou Rare Earth Research Institute: The environmental problems include air emissions with harmful elements, such as fluorine and sulfur, wastewater that contains excessive acid, and radioactive materials, too. China meets 95 percent of the world's demand for rare earth, and most of the separation and extraction is done here. So, the pollution stays in China, too. LINDSEY HILSUM: The authorities gave us a DVD of Baiyunebo in Inner Mongolia, where most of the world's rare earth is mined, along with iron ore. They wouldn't let us film it ourselves. But at Baotou, 100 miles away, we found the frozen tailing lake where rare earth mixes with mud, waiting for processing at nearby factories. Technologies we all use, like computers, mobile phones and energy-saving light bulbs use rare earths processed here. And local villagers whose farmland has been ruined by seepage from the lake pay the price. WANG CUN GUANG, farmer: The Baotou Environmental Protection Bureau tested our water, and they concluded that it wasn't fit for people or animals to drink or for irrigation. LINDSEY HILSUM: For those who remember the old life, it's hard to understand. The authorities pay compensation, acknowledging that the land has been ruined, but they haven't yet relocated the villagers. JIA BAO CHENG, farmer: Rare earth is the country's resource, but small people like us need to eat, too. We live on farming, but the crops no longer grow, and we will go hungry. LINDSEY HILSUM: At a rare earth conference in Hong Kong, the talk is of how to reduce dependence on China, which achieved 95 percent dominance by undercutting other producers. MARK SMITH, CEO, Molycorp Minerals: If the purpose is to lower our dependence on foreign oil, and all We're doing is asking that we put hybrid cars on the road that need Chinese rare earth materials, aren't we changing, you know, inter-trading one dependence for another? LINDSEY HILSUM: High on the frozen steppe of Inner Mongolia, a huge wind farm. China is aiming to be the world leader in wind energy. Chinese negotiators at Copenhagen may resist political commitments, but the government is already subsidizing new technologies to boost the economy and be sustainable. Deal or no deal at Copenhagen, there's going to be an increased demand for wind turbines, both inside China and outside. But what the Chinese want to ensure is that they're not just providing the essential raw materials, the rare earths, and doing the manufacturing, but that they also have access to the most advanced low-carbon technologies. We were shown plans for what they're calling the Silicon Valley of rare earth, a high-tech industrial park in Baotou to attract international investors. This year, there was an outcry when the Chinese said they would restrict the export of rare earth to conserve their supply, and to make foreign companies produce their high-end technologies here in China. ZHAO ZENGQI: Although China has the largest reserves, we only have 50 percent of global deposits. We are supplying too much rare earth, and it's not sustainable, so we must restrict export. LINDSEY HILSUM: The writing on the wall says: Become the leader of the world in rare earth industry. But China can't produce enough for everyone anymore, and if governments are serious about low-carbon technologies, other countries will have to start producing. MARK SMITH: I think that, if we don't get a couple of projects up and running very, very quickly, there's going to be very severe shortage of rare earths in the world, and all of these clean-energy technologies that we're legislating and trying to implement through policy changes are not going to be possible. LINDSEY HILSUM: Champions of a low-carbon future have yet to wake up to the environmental price Chinese workers and villagers are paying. At Copenhagen, politicians talk of cutting carbon emissions, but they can't meet any targets without rare earth, and that means a sustainable supply, and not all from China. __._,_.___ Reply to sender <mailto:larryvthomas@aol.com?subject=Fwd:%20Rare%20Earth%20PBS%20report> | Reply to group <mailto:wvec-board@yahoogroups.com?subject=Fwd:%20Rare%20Earth%20PBS%20r eport> Messages in this topic <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wvec-board/message/1241;_ylc=X3oDMTM1dm45 dWJjBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BGdycElkAzIxNTg0MDQxBGdycHNwSWQDMTcwNTM2NTM5MgRtc2dJ ZAMxMjQxBHNlYwNmdHIEc2xrA3Z0cGMEc3RpbWUDMTI2MDkyNjQwMgR0cGNJZAMxMjQx> (1) Recent Activity: Visit Your Group <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wvec-board;_ylc=X3oDMTJmYzhuN3NuBF9TAzk3M zU5NzE0BGdycElkAzIxNTg0MDQxBGdycHNwSWQDMTcwNTM2NTM5MgRzZWMDdnRsBHNsawN2Z 2hwBHN0aW1lAzEyNjA5MjY0MDI-> Start a New Topic <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wvec-board/post;_ylc=X3oDMTJmMWt2cTQwBF9T Azk3MzU5NzE0BGdycElkAzIxNTg0MDQxBGdycHNwSWQDMTcwNTM2NTM5MgRzZWMDZnRyBHNs awNudHBjBHN0aW1lAzEyNjA5MjY0MDI-> . Web Bug from http://geo.yahoo.com/serv?s=97359714/grpId=21584041/grpspId=1705365392/m sgId=1241/stime=1260926402/nc1=3848614/nc2=5170420/nc3=5807836<http://ww w.mailscanner.tv/1x1spacer.gif> __,_._,___

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gas
by Jim Sconyers 14 Dec '09

14 Dec '09

Exxon buys XTO - all over NPR - because of XTO's place in gas market - fracking mentioned in passing, mostly as how it makes more gas available Jim Sconyers jim_scon(a)yahoo.com 304.698.9628 Remember: Mother Nature bats last.

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Fwd: OSM Announces Opportunity to Comment on Options for Revisions to Stream Buffer Zone and Relate
by James Kotcon 11 Dec '09

11 Dec '09

Does anyone know if someone from the Club is fling comments on this? We are nearly a third of the way through tthe comment period, and it would be good to know someone is on top of this. JBK ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Buckley, Richard W. "Rick" <rbuckley(a)osmre.gov> Date: Wed, Dec 9, 2009 at 5:49 PM Subject: OSM Announces Opportunity to Comment on Options for Revisions to Stream Buffer Zone and Related Rules To: "danny(a)seac.org" <danny(a)seac.org> Subject: OSM Announces Opportunity to Comment on Options for Revisions to Stream Buffer Zone and Related Rules On November 30, 2009, OSM announced the publication in the Federal Register of an advance notice of proposed rulemaking requesting comment on alternatives for revising the stream buffer zone rule and other rules related to protection of streams. The stream buffer zone rule determines under what circumstances coal mining may be conducted in or within 100 feet of a perennial or intermittent stream. This proposed rulemaking reflects commitments contained in a June 11, 2009, memorandum of understanding (MOU) among the Department of the Interior, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Army Corps of Engineers to reduce the harmful environmental consequences of Appalachian surface coal mining. The MOU identifies the stream buffer zone rule and our regulations concerning approximate original contour as two rules that we will consider revising. In the notice, we describe options that we are considering for revision of the stream buffer zone rule and other related rules. We invite you to comment on those options, to suggest other options, and to identify other provisions of our regulations that should be revised to better protect the environment and the public from the impacts of surface coal mining nationwide. Until rulemaking is completed, OSM has institutedImmediate Stream Protection Measures ( http://www.osmre.gov/guidance/docs/StreamProtectionMeasures.pdf )to protect streams. OSM is seeking comments on the proposed rulemaking. Interested persons may submit comments through the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: www.regulations.gov ( http://www.regulations.gov/ )under the Docket ID: OSM-2009-0009. The public may also submit comments by mail or courier addressed to: Administrative Record (MS 252), Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, 1951 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20240. Please include the Docket ID with all comments sent my mail or courier. The comment period closes on December 30, 2009.

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Developing wind power not easy task
by Frank Young 11 Dec '09

11 Dec '09

Friday December 11, 2009 Developing wind power not easy task by George Hohmann Daily Mail Business Editor http://www.dailymail.com/Business/200912100805 CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- West Virginia is the third-largest producer of wind power in the eastern United States, but as a judicial decision in Maryland this week shows, developing the resource isn't easy. New York is the leading wind energy producer in the East. As of April 30 New York had 1,274 megawatts of installed capacity, followed by Pennsylvania with 366 megawatts and West Virginia with 330 megawatts, according to the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Two wind projects are currently operating in West Virginia - the 66-megawatt Mountaineer Project in Tucker and Preston counties, which went online in December 2002, and the 264-megawatt Mount Storm Project in Grant County, which was completed in August 2008. Construction of a third project, the 100.5-megawatt Beech Ridge Wind Farm in Greenbrier County, began earlier this year. But the $300 million project was dealt a setback on Tuesday when U.S. District Judge Roger Titus halted it, citing potential harm to the federally endangered Indiana bat. Titus ordered the project halted until Beech Ridge and Invenergy, its corporate parent, obtain a permit from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Titus also said the company cannot operate any of the project's 40 existing turbines between April 1 and Nov. 15, when the bats are migrating. The project is designed to have a total of 122 turbines stretching over 23 miles. John Stroud, co-chairman of Mountain Communities for Responsible Energy, one of the environmental groups that filed the lawsuit, told The Associated Press that group members were "really delighted with the ruling." Invenergy attorney Joe Condo said the company "continues to be committed to the Beech Ridge project." He said the company will seek the permit and is "very optimistic that the permit will be granted and the project can reach its full potential." Matt Turner, Gov. Joe Manchin's communications director, was asked on Wednesday if the governor had a comment on Judge Titus' ruling. "Considering everything we've been hearing lately, the Governor said it does not surprise him, and it seems we're seeing more obstacles toward things that seem to make sense," Turner said. "Obviously, this could have tremendous impact on wind power generation and highlights the difficulty in meeting our energy needs and balancing environmental repercussions, a complexity that's often not understood." Manchin, speaking Tuesday at his annual Energy Summit at Stonewall Resort, said, "We're looking at everything we can to enhance the development of wind power and siting on mountaintop removal sites." He urged summit attendees interested in such projects to contact him. The law firm Jackson Kelly has been a part of almost every wind power case that has come before the West Virginia Public Service Commission, which regulates wind farms. Rob Alsop, a member of the firm's Charleston office, was a featured speaker at the Energy Summit. In his presentation, Alsop said the Public Service Commission must engage in a balancing test of many issues that takes into account the public, state and local economy and interests and the interests of the applicant before determining whether a wind power project can proceed. The regulatory environment is not hostile but "I will say it is a thorough process," he said. To gain approval Alsop said a project must submit a five-mile map and aerial photography; a view shed study; avian and bat studies; a noise study; traffic studies; an architectural study; an archaeological study; a hydrological study; wetlands delineation; an economic impact study; and a rare, threatened and endangered species study. The avian and bat studies are about a yearlong process that involves the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, he said. For a view shed study "you've got to go out about 20 miles and there are a lot of view sites." In addition to the Mountaineer, Mount Storm and Beech Ridge projects, Alsop said the following projects are in various stages of approval: * AES Laurel Mountain, a proposed 65-turbine, 1.5-megawatt wind farm on Laurel Mountain in Barbour and Randolph counties. In June the state Supreme Court refused to interfere with the state Public Service Commission's decision to authorize the project. * AES New Creek, a proposed 66-turbine, $308 million project on New Creek Mountain in Grant County. The state Public Service Commission approved the project in October but said AES must complete an endangered-species study, among other actions, before proceeding. * Pinnacle Wind Farm at Newpage, Mineral County. The proposed project would have 23 wind turbines. It is awaiting a decision of the state Public Service Commission. Alsop said, "There's every reason to think that West Virginia will continue to be a wind power player." He noted that: * The West Virginia Wind Working Group continues to meet. The group's objective is to promote the development of wind energy for the benefit of West Virginia. * There are entities that continue to research potential wind farm sites in the state. * The Eastern West Virginia Community and Technical College is developing courses to train wind-energy technicians. Contact writer George Hohmann at busin...(a)dailymail.com or 304-348-4836.

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Fwd: [WVUSSC] Still More Media Coverage!!!
by James Kotcon 10 Dec '09

10 Dec '09

>>> "Joseph A. Gorman" <joe.madpj7(a)gmail.com> 12/10/2009 1:53 AM >>> Google shows THREE HUNDRED AND NINETY FIVE newspapers, TV stations and other news sources carried the stories by Ken Ward (Coal Tattoo blog), Jeff Biggers (Grist), Tim Huber (AP Charleston) and Vikki Smith (AP Morgantown) online! And they're still comin' in. Here's an annotated list of who picked up the wire: West Virginia: Charleston Gazette, Charleston Daily Mail, Beckley Register-Herald, Huntington Herald-Dispatch, Morgantown High School Maryland: WJZ 13 Baltimore Virginia: NBC 12 Richmond, Hampton Roads Virginian-Pilot, Hampton Roads Daily Press, Strasburg Northern Virginia Daily, Lynchburg News Advance Kentucky: Lexington Herald-Leader Ohio: WTOL 11 Toledo, Akron News Now, NBC 4 Columbus, Cambridge Daily Jeffersonian, Ravenna Record-Courier, Defiance Crescent-News, Wooster Daily Record, Akron Beacon Journal, Alliance Review (All we're missing is Pennsylvania and we'll have all our neighboring states!) National/Regional: Grist, OVEC, Mountain Justice, SSC International (from Copenhagen!), PowerShift09/Energy Action Coalition, The Examiner, Rank Exploits, Green Planet Search Other: Vivelo Hoy (Chicago/LA Spanish-language news), Cache Valley Daily (Utah), Earth Island Institute (California), Enquirer-Herald (South Carolina), Fort Mill Times (South Carolina), Rockford Register-Star (Illinois) The next time the media gives us a hint on a campaign to do, I say we take it! -Joe -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "SSCWVU" group. To post to this group, send email to sscwvu(a)googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to sscwvu+unsubscribe(a)googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/sscwvu?hl=en.

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Fwd: [WVUSSC] Out-of-state Media Covers WVU SSC Petition!
by James Kotcon 10 Dec '09

10 Dec '09

>>> "Joseph A. Gorman" <joe.madpj7(a)gmail.com> 12/9/2009 10:08 PM >>> The story by Morgantown-based AP writer Vicki Smith was picked up in Kentucky: http://www.kentucky.com/471/story/1053549.html Virginia: http://www.dailypress.com/news/virginia/dp-wv--coalexecdonations1209dec09,0… Maryland: http://wjz.com/wireapnewsva/1.000.sign.2.1360082.html and 11 other places. In other news, Massey and Murray energy stocks fell today...more media hits tomorrow :) -Joe -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "SSCWVU" group. To post to this group, send email to sscwvu(a)googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to sscwvu+unsubscribe(a)googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/sscwvu?hl=en.

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Fw: POSTPONED: Martinsburg, West Virginia public forum on Chesapeake Bay (tonight, Dec 8 at 7:00 pm)
by Jim Sconyers 08 Dec '09

08 Dec '09

I got this late and was asked to pass it on. Jim Sconyers jim_scon(a)yahoo.com 304.698.9628 Remember: Mother Nature bats last. --- On Tue, 12/8/09, Piper.Bonnie(a)epamail.epa.gov <Piper.Bonnie(a)epamail.epa.gov> wrote: From: Piper.Bonnie(a)epamail.epa.gov <Piper.Bonnie(a)epamail.epa.gov> Subject: POSTPONED: Martinsburg, West Virginia public forum on Chesapeake Bay (tonight, Dec 8 at 7:00 pm) To: jim_scon(a)yahoo.com, kgrubb(a)fairmontstate.edu, fooce(a)hotmail.com, mariposa_wv1(a)verizon.net, sallywilts(a)yahoo.com, freesource(a)cheat.org, william.depaulo(a)gmail.com, mikeprice54(a)suddenlink.net, reginahendrix999(a)gmail.com, pjgrunt(a)gmail.com, celliot2(a)comcast.netgregg, bhaddaka(a)yahoo.com, edon1985(a)comcast.net, jkotcon(a)wvu.edu, sallywilts(a)yahoo.com, mdavis(a)wvu.edu, ATDK(a)aol.com, sandra.cress(a)gmail.com, kmfrederico(a)atlanticbb.net, regina1936(a)verizon.net, jkotcon(a)wvu.edu, blittle(a)citynet.net, mikeprice54(a)suddenlink.net, bill.price(a)sierraclub.org Date: Tuesday, December 8, 2009, 3:48 PM Dear West Virginia Sierra Club members: Due to the forecast for winter weather (snow, sleet and ice) in West Virginia, western Maryland and northwestern Virginia, and resulting concern for public safety, the public forum on the Chesapeake Bay Executive Order in Martinsburg, WV tonight at 7pm has been postponed. We regret any inconvenience this may cause. Please pass the word on to your members or local citizens who might be planning to attend tonight (or instead on Jan. 5, 2010). The public forum has been rescheduled for Tuesday, January 5 at 7pm at the Holiday Inn Martinsburg at 301 Foxcroft Avenue. On January 5, the public forum will feature officials from multiple federal agencies including the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Department of the Interior and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Public feedback on the draft strategy for the Chesapeake Bay is important and valuable to the federal agencies. Comments may be submitted online at http://executiveorder.chesapeakebay.net by clicking on “provide comments.” The public comment period runs through January 8, 2010. The draft strategy, also available on the website, will evolve through public comments, state consultations and agency revisions before the final strategy is published in May 2010. Please let me know if you have any questions, or feedback about this notice. I appreciate your notifying as many people as you can in your areas. best, Bonnie Bonnie Piper Liaison to Environmental Organizations U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. Washington, DC 20460 Office: 202 564-7836 Email: piper.bonnie(a)epa.gov

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Re: [EC] Your letter to editor
by Regina Hendrix 06 Dec '09

06 Dec '09

Wendy, sorry to be so long getting back to you. I have been out of town for a while. I do believe the WV Chapter Sierra Club and Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition would be interested in knowing about this. You mention you've been in touch with OVEC and so I will forward this to Chapter Sierra Club members on the Energy Committee. Maybe we could arrange for you to make a presentation to them at an ExCom meeting. Regina Hendrix 304-724-0223 Irongate12(a)aol.com wrote: > Hi Regina, > > Read your letter recently in The Journal. Way to go! Agreed whole > heartedly with you. > > Here in the Eastern Panhandle we have been fighting something similar. > Although our project is not as monumentally devastating as mountaintop > removal, it will ultimately be just as bad, and will impact a much > larger population right off the bat. > > I am talking about the expansive strip mining operation currently > being proposed for North Mountain in Gerrardstown- 12 miles from > Charles Town. Please take a minute to visit our website > www.northmountain.org <http://www.northmountain.org> . > > We could really use some help from knowledgeable environmentalists > like yourself. We have put the company off for almost 2 years, but now > it appears to us, the WV DEP has tinkered around with the permit and > it will be brought for public comment. I have heard of the Ohio > Valley Environmental Coalition. Would your group be willing to lend us > a hand? I think we could have a precedent setting victory here and > break down the door for others to follow on mining in West VA. > > On Monday Nov. 9, 2009 a helicopter with 3 DEP reps landed at the > Continental Brick/North Mountain Shale LLC property. This location is > scenic & historic and highly visible to one of the fastest > growing residential areas in the county. It has been untouched by > mining due to its environmentally sensitive location. My husband > Steve accompanied the officials as they viewed the terrain and he > showed them healthy springs on the mountain, plus damage occurring to > one of our ponds from massive erosion, silt & sediment & unknown > contaminants from their land disturbance activities. They had excuses > for everything or were silent on what they could not possibly defend. > It seems that the reps surmised that “damage” would most likely occur > to the water from the mining operation. Their suggestion was that we > could sue the company – after damage has occurred- and if we could > prove it, we would get new wells (although we would be dealing with a > LLC). > > The above is what the community has been dealing with. There have been > no studies or tests performed that reasonably prove to local residents > here that mining at this sensitive location, on the side of a mountain > will not effect our water. All rational people know full well that the > safety and quantity of our water will be adversely effected. Our > local county commissioners unanimously signed a resolution in > opposition to the location. We have a petition signed by over 3000 > citizens. > > We are in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed and still WV thinks it is okay > to allow this project with the resultant stormwater drainage & runoff. > There is so much wild life on the mountain that will be displaced. An > expansive quarry on the side of a mountain does not make sense. Since > we are located 1 hour from Washington DC, I was hoping we could get > someone who could see that this location is inappropriate and intervene. > > It is a sad commentary that WV residents must endure damages to their > property and then try to sue an out-of-state LLC. One cannot put a > monetary value on a destroyed water system. The entire community is > concerned. At least a dozen families, in the immediate vicinity have > put their homes up for sale hoping to get buyers before the permit is > issued. I have included a link to a recent Letter to the Editor of > our local paper that eloquently relates what many citizens are > thinking in Berkeley County in regard to this matter. > > http://www.journal-news.net/page/content.detail/id/527169.html?nav=5061 > <http://www.journal-news.net/page/content.detail/id/527169.html?nav=5061> > > Thanks for listening and hope to hear back from you. > > Sincerely, > > Wendy Hudock > <http://www.berkeleywater.org/emergencyInfo.php> >

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Byrd on future of coal
by Jim Sconyers 03 Dec '09

03 Dec '09

>From Senator Byrd "Coal Must Embrace the Future" this is a must-read - in fact, it almost reads as a game-changer sounds again like the Bob Byrd we used to know and love http://www.wvablue.com/diary/5340/sen-byrd-coal-must-embrace-the-future Jim Sconyers jim_scon(a)yahoo.com 304.698.9628 Remember: Mother Nature bats last.

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This Modern World - The Stupidity Crisis
by Jim Sconyers 02 Dec '09

02 Dec '09

Tom Tomorrow http://www.salon.com/comics/tomo/2009/11/30/tomo# Jim Sconyers jim_scon(a)yahoo.com 304.698.9628 Remember: Mother Nature bats last.

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Fwd: Anyone got ideas for stories?
by Paul Wilson 02 Dec '09

02 Dec '09

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: West Virginia News Service WVNS <wvnsnews(a)gmail.com> Date: Wed, Dec 2, 2009 at 11:41 AM Subject: Anyone got ideas for stories? To: Hi Folks, I'm open to suggestions for topics. Let me know if you have any ideas. Two of the debates now before Congress - health care and climate change - are sure to continue to draw a lot of attention. I'd love to hear any pitches related to those. Also, I think the stations who pick our stuff up seem to like what I've heard called News You Can Use - in other words anything the editors might think relates to their audience members' daily lives. For example, we recently did a piece about how to avoid getting the flu until the vaccine is available. Then we did another story on how health care reform could cut premiums for people who buy their own insurance. Both of those did very well. In a sense this matches what I've said on occasion about wanting to tell personal stories - stories of real people. In both cases it's about connecting with the listeners. But even if you have something totally unrelated, don't be afraid to pitch it to me. Even if it's not a story itself, it might lead to something that is. best, Dan H. -- West Virginia News Service (WVNS) Toll Free: 1-800-317-6705 Fax: 540-301-0801 E-mail: wvns(a)publicnewsservice.org -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha

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makeup of Oil and Gas Inspectors' Examining Board
by Frank Young 30 Nov '09

30 Nov '09

BlankAt SierraFest in October, and at last week's WVEC board meeting, Beth Little brought up the matter of oil and gas inspectors, and the state "examining board" that employs them. I have highlighted below sections (a) (1) and (2) which outline the makeup of that board. Note that the Chiefs of the Oil and Gas and of the Water Resources Division of DEP are two ex officio members of the five person Oil & Gas examining board, and are appointed by the Director of DEP, and that the only qualifications for their appointments are that they be "competent and qualified persons"- but with no further explanation of what "competent and qualified" means. §22-1-8. Supervisory officers. (a) The secretary shall appoint a competent and qualified person to be the chief executive officer of each office (which includes the offices of Oil & Gas and of Water Resources- F.Y.) specified in section seven of this article. The three bolded paragraphs below summarize the makeup of the O&G examining board. (underlined emphasis mine- F.Y.) §22C-7-3. Oil and gas inspectors' examining board created; composition; appointment, term and compensation of members; meetings; powers and duties generally. (a)(1) There is hereby continued an oil and gas inspectors' examining board consisting of five members, two of whom shall be ex officio members and three of whom shall be appointed by the governor, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. Appointed members may be removed only for the same causes and like manner as elective state officers. One member of the board shall be the representative of the public at large and shall be a person who is knowledgeable about the subject matter of this article and has no direct financial interest in oil and gas production other than the receipt of royalty payments which do not exceed ten percent of his or her annual income and who by reason of previous training or experience may reasonably be said to represent the viewpoint of surface owners or environmental organizations: Provided, That the public member serving on the board on the first day of January, two thousand one, shall remain on the board until the expiration of his or her term and is also eligible for reappointment. One member shall be a person who by reason of previous training and experience may reasonably be said to represent the viewpoint of independent oil and gas operators. One member shall be a person who by reason of previous training and experience may reasonably be said to represent the viewpoint of major oil and gas producers. (2) The chief of the office of oil and gas of the division of environmental protection and the chief of the office of water resources of the division of environmental protection or their designees shall be ex officio members. (3) The appointed members of the board shall be appointed for overlapping terms of six years, except that the original appointments shall be for terms of two, four and six years, respectively. Any member whose term expires may be reappointed by the governor. (4) The board shall pay each member the same compensation and expense reimbursement as is paid to members of the Legislature for their interim duties as recommended by the citizens legislative compensation commission and authorized by law for each day or portion thereof engaged in the discharge of official duties. (5) The chief of the office of oil and gas or the chief's designee serving pursuant to subdivision two of this subsection shall serve as chair of the board: Provided, That for any level three grievance proceeding the chief or the chief's designee may not serve as a chair or vote. The board shall elect a secretary from its members. (6) Members of the board, before performing any duty, shall take and subscribe to the oath required by section five, article IV of the constitution of West Virginia. (7) The board shall meet at such times and places as shall be designated by the chair. It is the duty of the chair to call a meeting of the board on the written request of two members. Notice of each meeting shall be given in writing to each member by the secretary at least five days in advance of the meeting. A majority of members is a quorum for the transaction of business. (b) In addition to other powers and duties expressly set forth elsewhere in this article, the board shall: (1) Establish, and from time to time revise, forms of application for employment as an oil and gas inspector and supervising inspector, which shall include the applicant's social security number, and forms for written examinations to test the qualifications of candidates, with such distinctions, if any, in the forms for oil and gas inspector and supervising inspector as the board may from time to time deem necessary or advisable; (2) Adopt and promulgate reasonable rules relating to the examination, qualification and certification of candidates for appointment, and relating to hearings for removal of inspectors or the supervising inspector, required to be held by this article. All of such rules shall be printed and a copy thereof furnished by the secretary of the board to any person upon request; (3) Conduct, after public notice of the time and place thereof, examinations of candidates for appointment. By unanimous agreement of all members of the board, one or more members of the board or an employee of the division of environmental protection may be designated to give to a candidate the written portion of the examination; (4) Prepare and certify to the director of the division of environmental protection a register of qualified eligible candidates for appointment as oil and gas inspectors or as supervising inspectors, with such differentiation, if any, between the certification of candidates for oil and gas inspectors and for supervising inspectors as the board may from time to time consider necessary or advisable. The register shall list all qualified eligible candidates in the order of their grades, the candidate with the highest grade appearing at the top of the list. After each meeting of the board held to examine such candidates and at least annually, the board shall prepare and submit to the director of the division of environmental protection a revised and corrected register of qualified eligible candidates for appointment, deleting from such revised register all persons: (a) Who are no longer residents of West Virginia; (b) who have allowed a calendar year to expire without, in writing, indicating their continued availability for such appointment; (c) who have been passed over for appointment for three years; (d) who have become ineligible for appointment since the board originally certified that such persons were qualified and eligible for appointment; or (e) who, in the judgment of at least three members of the board, should be removed from the register for good cause; (5) Cause the secretary of the board to keep and preserve the written examination papers, manuscripts, grading sheets and other papers of all applicants for appointment for such period of time as may be established by the board. Specimens of the examinations given, together with the correct solution of each question, shall be preserved permanently by the secretary of the board; (6) Issue a letter or written notice of qualification to each successful eligible candidate; (7) Hear and determine proceedings for the suspension, dismissal or other discipline of inspectors or the supervising inspector in accordance with the provisions of this article; (8) Make an annual report to the governor concerning the administration of oil and gas inspection personnel in the state service; making such recommendations as the board considers to be in the public interest; and (9) Render such advice and assistance to the director of the division of environmental protection as the director shall from time to time determine necessary or desirable in the performance of such duties. If not for love, then what? There is no wealth but life. (John Ruskin 1819-1900)

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Re: [EC] makeup of Oil and Gas Inspectors' Examining Board
by James Kotcon 29 Nov '09

29 Nov '09

I am in the process of putting together a listing of the legislative changes needed for a comprehensive reform. The fact that the industry has a majority of the Board that appoints their own inspectors does seem like the purest example of a conflict of interest I have seen in a while. How about adding two citizen representatives, one having expertise in water quality issues, and one having expertise in landowner rights issues. We could probably get support from the Farm Bureau for that last one. I would also add that phrase about no direct financial interest in oil and gas production to the qualifications for representatives of the oil and gas industry. Surely the industry can find someone who is retired or otherwise independent of financial conflicts of interest as their representative. Alternatively, I can just imagine the kinds of editorials we could get if we force the industry to try to publicly justify why they are entitled to representatives with a financial conflict of interest on a State Board! Even legislators are required to recuse themselves if they have a personal financial involvement in a vote. :-) But to do this, we will need a laundry list of horror stories for the Legislature. These could include landowner complaints of the non-responsiveness of inspectors specifically, and DEP generally, to problems with gas drillers. But we need to demonstrate that the system is broken, or it will never get fixed. Any horror stories out there? How about other suggestions for reform? JBK >>> "Frank Young" 11/29/09 1:26 PM >>> At SierraFest in October, and at last week's WVEC board meeting, Beth Little brought up the matter of oil and gas inspectors, and the state "examining board" that employs them. I have highlighted below sections (a) (1) and (2) which outline the makeup of that board. Note that the Chiefs of the Oil and Gas and of the Water Resources Division of DEP are two ex officio members of the five person Oil & Gas examining board, and are appointed by the Director of DEP, and that the only qualifications for their appointments are that they be "competent and qualified persons"- but with no further explanation of what "competent and qualified" means. §22-1-8. Supervisory officers. (a) The secretary shall appoint a competent and qualified person to be the chief executive officer of each office (which includes the offices of Oil & Gas and of Water Resources- F.Y.) specified in section seven of this article. The three bolded paragraphs below summarize the makeup of the O&G examining board. (underlined emphasis mine- F.Y.) §22C-7-3. Oil and gas inspectors' examining board created; composition; appointment, term and compensation of members; meetings; powers and duties generally. (a)(1) There is hereby continued an oil and gas inspectors' examining board consisting of five members, two of whom shall be ex officio members and three of whom shall be appointed by the governor, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. Appointed members may be removed only for the same causes and like manner as elective state officers. One member of the board shall be the representative of the public at large and shall be a person who is knowledgeable about the subject matter of this article and has no direct financial interest in oil and gas production other than the receipt of royalty payments which do not exceed ten percent of his or her annual income and who by reason of previous training or experience may reasonably be said to represent the viewpoint of surface owners or environmental organizations: Provided, That the public member serving on the board on the first day of January, two thousand one, shall remain on the board until the expiration of his or her term and is also eligible for reappointment. One member shall be a person who by reason of previous training and experience may reasonably be said to represent the viewpoint of independent oil and gas operators. One member shall be a person who by reason of previous training and experience may reasonably be said to represent the viewpoint of major oil and gas producers. (2) The chief of the office of oil and gas of the division of environmental protection and the chief of the office of water resources of the division of environmental protection or their designees shall be ex officio members. (3) The appointed members of the board shall be appointed for overlapping terms of six years, except that the original appointments shall be for terms of two, four and six years, respectively. Any member whose term expires may be reappointed by the governor. (4) The board shall pay each member the same compensation and expense reimbursement as is paid to members of the Legislature for their interim duties as recommended by the citizens legislative compensation commission and authorized by law for each day or portion thereof engaged in the discharge of official duties. (5) The chief of the office of oil and gas or the chief's designee serving pursuant to subdivision two of this subsection shall serve as chair of the board: Provided, That for any level three grievance proceeding the chief or the chief's designee may not serve as a chair or vote. The board shall elect a secretary from its members. (6) Members of the board, before performing any duty, shall take and subscribe to the oath required by section five, article IV of the constitution of West Virginia. (7) The board shall meet at such times and places as shall be designated by the chair. It is the duty of the chair to call a meeting of the board on the written request of two members. Notice of each meeting shall be given in writing to each member by the secretary at least five days in advance of the meeting. A majority of members is a quorum for the transaction of business. (b) In addition to other powers and duties expressly set forth elsewhere in this article, the board shall: (1) Establish, and from time to time revise, forms of application for employment as an oil and gas inspector and supervising inspector, which shall include the applicant's social security number, and forms for written examinations to test the qualifications of candidates, with such distinctions, if any, in the forms for oil and gas inspector and supervising inspector as the board may from time to time deem necessary or advisable; (2) Adopt and promulgate reasonable rules relating to the examination, qualification and certification of candidates for appointment, and relating to hearings for removal of inspectors or the supervising inspector, required to be held by this article. All of such rules shall be printed and a copy thereof furnished by the secretary of the board to any person upon request; (3) Conduct, after public notice of the time and place thereof, examinations of candidates for appointment. By unanimous agreement of all members of the board, one or more members of the board or an employee of the division of environmental protection may be designated to give to a candidate the written portion of the examination; (4) Prepare and certify to the director of the division of environmental protection a register of qualified eligible candidates for appointment as oil and gas inspectors or as supervising inspectors, with such differentiation, if any, between the certification of candidates for oil and gas inspectors and for supervising inspectors as the board may from time to time consider necessary or advisable. The register shall list all qualified eligible candidates in the order of their grades, the candidate with the highest grade appearing at the top of the list. After each meeting of the board held to examine such candidates and at least annually, the board shall prepare and submit to the director of the division of environmental protection a revised and corrected register of qualified eligible candidates for appointment, deleting from such revised register all persons: (a) Who are no longer residents of West Virginia; (b) who have allowed a calendar year to expire without, in writing, indicating their continued availability for such appointment; (c) who have been passed over for appointment for three years; (d) who have become ineligible for appointment since the board originally certified that such persons were qualified and eligible for appointment; or (e) who, in the judgment of at least three members of the board, should be removed from the register for good cause; (5) Cause the secretary of the board to keep and preserve the written examination papers, manuscripts, grading sheets and other papers of all applicants for appointment for such period of time as may be established by the board. Specimens of the examinations given, together with the correct solution of each question, shall be preserved permanently by the secretary of the board; (6) Issue a letter or written notice of qualification to each successful eligible candidate; (7) Hear and determine proceedings for the suspension, dismissal or other discipline of inspectors or the supervising inspector in accordance with the provisions of this article; (8) Make an annual report to the governor concerning the administration of oil and gas inspection personnel in the state service; making such recommendations as the board considers to be in the public interest; and (9) Render such advice and assistance to the director of the division of environmental protection as the director shall from time to time determine necessary or desirable in the performance of such duties. If not for love, then what? There is no wealth but life. (John Ruskin 1819-1900)

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Fwd: Fw: 2010 Chapter Leader Training
by James Kotcon 28 Nov '09

28 Nov '09

To Energy Committee: This on-line/conference call training sounds like a good idea, and several Chapter leaders have already reserved. If you would like to participate, let Jim Sconyers know ASAP. The first 2 people in get to do this. JBK >>> Jim Sconyers <jim_scon(a)yahoo.com> 11/20/2009 10:48 AM >>> Interested? I am. This is the campaign that is getting national money - and besides it's the most critical issue of our time. Not to mention all the potential for strengthening the Chapter. Please let me know if you'd like to do the training. Jim Sconyers jim_scon(a)yahoo.com 304.698.9628 Remember: Mother Nature bats last. --- On Thu, 11/19/09, Greg Casini <alert(a)sierraclub.org> wrote: From: Greg Casini <alert(a)sierraclub.org> Subject: 2010 Chapter Leader Training To: "Sierra Club Activists" <alert(a)sierraclub.org> Date: Thursday, November 19, 2009, 8:00 PM November 18, 2009 To: Chapter Chairs From: The Leadership & Organizing Training Team Re: 2010 Chapter Leader Training NOTE: APPLICATIONS ARE DUE DECEMBER 18 Dear Chapter Chairs, The Sierra Club will be offering Chapter Leader Training beginning in January, 2010. In the past, the training has been a four-day in-person retreat following a standard classroom format. We are now taking a new approach in order to reach more chapter leaders in the most cost effective way possible. Many of you indicated you would be interested in learning more about the Sierra Club's effort to focus on the single most important fight of our lifetime - climate recovery. This learning opportunity is targeted at helping you build the most effective chapter possible to do that work. To increase your power, rather than take up your time, the training will be offered remotely as a conference call and online training, and we are inviting you to recruit a team of 3-5 additional Chapter leaders to participate along with you, so they can support you in your role and help you apply the skills learned in the training to the real work of your ExCom. Training Structure There are two main components to the training: a series of five conference call training sessions that will link all participants by phone, and a coaching call just for your team following each training session. The training sessions will be 90 minutes in length, starting in January, and will be spaced three weeks apart. The roster of sessions is as follows: Session 1: Connecting your Chapter to Climate Recovery Campaign Objectives: Understand how your state and local goals can fit with Climate Recovery Campaign objectives, reflect on the core functions of Chapter ExComs, learn how to inventory and report your Chapter's performance in these areas, review and improve your priority setting process. Session 2: Creating a High-Performing ExCom Team: Examine trust building, team norms, operating procedures, decision-making practices and accountability strategies; learn how to build a high-performing ExCom team that achieves significant results. Session 3: Structuring Effective ExCom Meetings: Explore new ideas on crafting meeting agendas, running productive meetings and following up on action items; learn how to transform your agendas and get important work done. Session 4: Chapter Communications in the 21st Century: Learn how your Chapter can develop an online organizing strategy to expand your outreach and effectiveness; explore the use of Convio, HELEN and other communications technologies. Session 5: Expanding your Leadership Structure to Build a Broader Movement for Climate Recovery: Assess your local resources; learn how to expand your leadership structure in order to build a movement around climate recovery work that engages a broad diversity of people in your communities. Training Benefits Here are some of the benefits you can expect as a result of this training: After this training, you will: --Have more clarity on the role and expectations of the Chapter ExCom --Understand the Club's climate recovery campaigns and how to be a part of them --Improve the functioning of your Chapter ExCom to engage more effectively in climate recovery work --Transform your meetings to get more done in less time --Develop a 21st century communications strategy --Expand your leadership infrastructure in order to build a broader movement around climate recovery work Training Dates (Pacific & Mountain Time Zones) Session 1 Tuesday, January 12 at 6pm PT, 7pm MT Session 2 Tuesday, February 2 at 6pm PT, 7pm MT Session 3 Tuesday, February 23 at 6pm PT, 7pm MT Session 4 Tuesday, March 16 at 6pm PT, 7pm MT Session 5 Tuesday, April 6 at 6pm PT, 7pm MT Training Dates (Eastern & Central Time Zones) Session 1 Thursday, January 14 at 6pm CT, 7pm ET Session 2 Thursday, February 4 at 6pm CT, 7pm ET Session 3 Thursday, February 25 at 6pm CT, 7pm ET Session 4 Thursday, March 18 at 6pm CT, 7pm ET Session 5 Thursday, April 8 at 6pm CT, 7pm ET To Apply for the Training 1. Read the Mutual Agreement below. 2. Recruit 3-5 other Chapter leaders who will commit to participate with you through the entire training program (you must recruit a minimum of three leaders). Some of your best candidates might be your Vice-Chair, Conservation Chair and most senior staff person. 3. Complete the Mutual Agreement form and return it to Greg Casini by December18. Chapters will be chosen based on their level of commitment, and notified no later than December 21. There is no fee to participate. Much of this training will be conducted on the phone and over the internet. You will need to have access to a computer for the duration of these sessions. Questions If you have questions about this training, contact greg.casini(a)sierraclub.org ( about:/mc/compose?to=greg.casini@sierraclub.org ) or 415-977-5651. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Virtual Training for Chapter Leadership Teams - Mutual Agreement RETURN BY DECEMBER 18, 2009 The Training: This training is intended not just for the ExCom Chair, but also for a core leadership team of 3-5 additional leaders who can support the Chair in his/her role. The expectation is that there will be four to six people from each Chapter working together with the Chair to ensure a highly effective ExCom. You may be seasoned leaders or new volunteers, but the common thread should be your commitment to learning and applying new skills to the real work of your ExCom. There are two main components to the training: a series of five conference call-based training sessions, and individual coaching between sessions. Training sessions will be 90 minutes each, starting in January and spaced three weeks apart. Coaching calls will be conducted between the trainings and through June. Each Chapter leadership team will have an assigned coach. The coach will serve as a sounding board and help to facilitate the implementation of training lessons into chapter practices. The coach will also be on point for the teams to give feedback to the trainers. The Trainers' Commitment: --We will be prepared to offer quality training for all participants --We will offer training that is relevant and useful to the chapter teams --We will solicit and accept constructive feedback on the progress of the training sessions and coaching. Your Commitment: --Come to the sessions prepared, and actively participate in all five training sessions. --Complete any pre- or post-session work assignments --Listen to the recording of any missed calls and work with your coach to "make up" a missed session. --Apply the skills and practices learned in the sessions to your Chapter ExCom work --Build a working relationship with your coach. --Provide honest feedback to the coach and trainers to help shape this and future trainings. During this process, we will be using some technologies that are new to the Club and to this group of trainers. There will be a concerted effort to test new technologies in order to mitigate the fact that we are not meeting face-to-face. The trainers will do their best to ensure that the technology is appropriate and functional, but there is an element of experimentation here. All parties need to have some patience and be willing to change plans in the event of technology glitches. APPLICATION FOR 2010 CHAPTER LEADERSHIP TRAINING WE HAVE REVIEWED THIS MUTUAL AGREEMENT AND WE AGREE TO ABIDE BY THE EXPECTATIONS OUTLINED. YES ____ NO ___ DATE: CHAPTER: CHAPTER CHAIR: EMAIL ADDRESS: PHONE NUMBER: OTHER TRAINING PARTICIPANTS (MINIMUM OF 3): NAME POSITION EMAIL ADDRESS HAVE ALL PARTICIPANTS AGREED TO ATTEND ALL SESSIONS? YES ____ NO ___ Return to greg.casini(a)sierraclub.org ( about:/mc/compose?to=greg.casini@sierraclub.org ) by December 1

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Upstate New Yorkers Split by Leasing of Land for Natural Gas Wells - NYTimes.com
by william.depaulo＠gmail.com 28 Nov '09

28 Nov '09

*Please note, the sender's email address has not been verified. You have received the following link from william.depaulo(a)gmail.com ******************** If you are having trouble with any of the links in this message, or if the URL's are not appearing as links, please follow the instructions at the bottom of this email. Title: Upstate New Yorkers Split by Leasing of Land for Natural Gas Wells - NYTimes.com Copy and paste the following into your Web browser to access the sent link: http://www.emailthis.clickability.com/et/emailThis?clickMap=viewThis&etMail… Copy and paste the following into your Web browser to SAVE THIS link: http://www.savethis.clickability.com/st/saveThisPopupApp?clickMap=saveFromE… Copy and paste the following into your Web browser to forward this link: http://www.emailthis.clickability.com/et/emailThis?clickMap=forward&etMailT… ******************** Email pages from any Web site you visit - add the EMAIL THIS button to your browser, copy and paste the following into your Web browser: http://www.emailthis.clickability.com/et/emailThis?clickMap=browserButtons&…" ********************* Instructions: ----------------------------------------- If your e-mail program doesn't recognize Web addresses: 1. With your mouse, highlight the Web Address above. Be sure to highlight the entire Web address, even if it spans more than one line in your email. 2. Select Copy from the Edit menu at the top of your screen. 3. Launch your Web browser. 4. Paste the address into your Web browser by selecting Paste from the Edit menu. 5. Click Go or press Enter or Return on your keyboard. ********************

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Fwd: FW: OSM Changes to Improve Oversight of Surface Coal Mining
by James Kotcon 27 Nov '09

27 Nov '09

Does anyone on the Energy Committee want to take a crack at developing comments on these? We have been hollering for years, now here is our chance. OSM is listening, and I hope the coal industry is not the only voice they hear. JBK >>> "Calhoun, Roger W." <rcalhoun(a)osmre.gov> 11/19/2009 10:38 AM >>> The Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM) announced a series of actions and proposals intended to improve its oversight of state regulatory agencies’surface coal mining programs. OSM is providing information on these actions as well as seeking public input and comment on these and other changes. These actions reflect commitments contained in a June 11, 2009, memorandum of understanding among the Department of the Interior, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Army Corps of Engineers to reduce the harmful environmental consequences of Appalachian surface coal mining. OSM is seeking review and comment on our oversight improvement actions, which can be accessed at http://www.osmre.gov/topic/oversight/scm/scm.shtm. We are requesting that comments be submitted by December 18, 2009. The preferred method for submitting comments is via e-mail (send comments to Oversight(a)osmre.gov). Comments may also be mailed to: Administrative Record (MS-252) Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement 1951 Constitution Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20240 If you have any questions, please contact me or send an email to Oversight(a)osmre.gov. Roger Calhoun Charleston Field Office Director 1027 Virginia St. E. Charleston, WV 25301 rcalhoun(a)osmre.gov (304)347-7158

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Fw: Coal: the missing numbers
by Jim Sconyers 25 Nov '09

25 Nov '09

good one Jim Sconyers jim_scon(a)yahoo.com 304.698.9628 Remember: Mother Nature bats last. --- On Tue, 11/24/09, Mark Redden <markaredden(a)hotmail.com> wrote: From: Mark Redden <markaredden(a)hotmail.com> Subject: Coal: the missing numbers To: information(a)sierraclub.org Date: Tuesday, November 24, 2009, 10:00 PM http://www.shift2020.com/coalnumbers.html Windows Live Hotmail: Your friends can get your Facebook updates, right from Hotmail®.

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Fw: Power Demand Dims Outlook
by Frank Young 21 Nov '09

21 Nov '09

Subject: Electric Power Demand Power Demand Dims Outlook a.. Article b.. Comments (1) more in Business » By REBECCA SMITH Electricity sales remained weak in the third quarter, prompting speculation that the sluggishness could persist even after the U.S. economy rebounds. Some utilities don't expect power sales to recover to pre-recession levels until 2012 -- if at all -- because so many factories have closed. Getting a read on future demand is crucial for utilities because they require long lead times to build power plants and make other upgrades. Declining sales put pressure on utilities to raise prices, cut costs or make other adjustments to bolster profits. The sector began to feel the recession, which started in late 2007, later than many others. Sales held up well in the first half of 2008 but then declined and have continued falling this year, though some regions are reporting an uptick. The federal Energy Information Administration expects overall electricity sales to decline 3.3% this year and grow modestly next year, but many utilities anticipate far larger declines for the year. Duke Energy Corp. said its energy sales to the textile industry based in the Carolinas fell 20% in the third quarter, versus a drop of 13.7% for sales to all industrial users. For the first nine months of 2009, electricity sales to the textile industry were down 23.5%, from the prior year, and overall industrial sales were down 15.8%. American Electric Power Co. of Columbus, Ohio, which owns utilities in 11 states, saw industrial electricity sales plunge 17% for the third quarter versus the year-ago period. Chief Executive Mike Morris said his company is counting on industrial demand recovering about a third of the lost ground in 2010. Beyond that, he is wary of making predictions. "I don't know if we'll ever get all of it back," he said, acknowledging that factory closings in the auto sector will have a lasting effect. Larry Makovich of consultancy Cambridge Energy Research Associates is among the few who believe electricity sales will experience a "strong rebound" next year. "It is dangerous to misinterpret a short-run phenomenon as a structural change," he said. Atlanta's Southern Co., which owns utilities in four Southeastern states, has seen year-to-date industrial demand drop 15%, including a 9.6% drop in the past quarter. Chief Executive David Ratcliffe said he sees signs of recovery, but added that it feels "fragile." Bill Johnson, chief executive of Progress Energy, which has utilities in Florida and the Carolinas, said he thinks homes mostly have cut use voluntarily, unlike businesses. Total sales fell 10.9% in the first nine months of the year across all customer categories, led by industrial sales that dropped 11.4% in the Carolinas and 12.9% in Florida. "I think there's still a high level of concern and a great deal of unease" about the economy, Mr. Johnson said, adding that he doesn't expect a sharp recovery. Bob Shepard, chief executive of Oncor in Dallas, said he thinks the drop in energy use in 2008 "was so quick that it wasn't structural but was probably cyclical." Nevertheless, he said he doesn't expect a full recovery in total sales volumes until 2012. Portland General Electric in Oregon saw residential sales rise 4.6% for the quarter, but the gain was offset by a 5.3% drop in industrial sales. Utility analyst Chris Ellinghaus at Shields & Company in New York said he isn't hopeful the sector will recover next year but thinks "2011 will look more normal." Write to Rebecca Smith at rebecca.smith(a)wsj.com ********************* Joy Towles Ezell hopeforcleanwater(a)yahoo.com "We are the ones we've been waiting for." http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HopeForCleanWater/ http://grooups.yahoo.com/group/EANoF/ http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FloridiansAgainstIncineratorsInDisguise/ http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SaveTaylorCountyFloridaResidents/ 850 584 7087 office & fax 850 843 1574 cell _______________________________________________ No New Coal Plants! (nonewcoalplants(a)energyjustice.net) Energy Justice Network http://www.energyjustice.net Un/Subscribe, change your settings or access the archives at: http://mail.energyjustice.net/mailman/listinfo/nonewcoalplants_energyjustic…

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Gas Drilling vs. Drinking Water: New York City Consultant’s Report Sets Stage for Fight With Albany | FLYP
by william.depaulo＠gmail.com 20 Nov '09

20 Nov '09

*Please note, the sender's email address has not been verified. You have received the following link from william.depaulo(a)gmail.com ******************** If you are having trouble with any of the links in this message, or if the URL's are not appearing as links, please follow the instructions at the bottom of this email. Title: Gas Drilling vs. Drinking Water: New York City Consultant’s Report Sets Stage for Fight With Albany | FLYP Copy and paste the following into your Web browser to access the sent link: http://www.emailthis.clickability.com/et/emailThis?clickMap=viewThis&etMail… Copy and paste the following into your Web browser to SAVE THIS link: http://www.savethis.clickability.com/st/saveThisPopupApp?clickMap=saveFromE… Copy and paste the following into your Web browser to forward this link: http://www.emailthis.clickability.com/et/emailThis?clickMap=forward&etMailT… ******************** Email pages from any Web site you visit - add the EMAIL THIS button to your browser, copy and paste the following into your Web browser: http://www.emailthis.clickability.com/et/emailThis?clickMap=browserButtons&…" ********************* Instructions: ----------------------------------------- If your e-mail program doesn't recognize Web addresses: 1. With your mouse, highlight the Web Address above. Be sure to highlight the entire Web address, even if it spans more than one line in your email. 2. Select Copy from the Edit menu at the top of your screen. 3. Launch your Web browser. 4. Paste the address into your Web browser by selecting Paste from the Edit menu. 5. Click Go or press Enter or Return on your keyboard. ********************

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Fwd: Question on WV Tourism Assoc. letter
by Paul Wilson 19 Nov '09

19 Nov '09

see the comment below on the WV Tourism Assoc. Has anyone heard of this? Jenny has outlined some national response, but maybe we want to do something like LTEs, op-eds? just a thought, best, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Jenny Coyle <Jenny.Coyle(a)sierraclub.org> Date: Wed, Nov 18, 2009 at 6:33 PM Subject: Greetings Paul! I have a question... To: pjgrunt(a)gmail.com Hey Paul -- Hope all is well for you there in the mountains. I'm doing well, though I had a little accident on my (non-motorized) kick scooter and broke my shoulder about a month ago. It's healing, but man, what a crazy thing to do! I hit some wet pavement and that was all she wrote. The morphine was nice, though. So I'm not sure if you're in the loop on this, but apparently the WV Tourism Association sent out a letter to its members asking them to join a group that supports coal mining. We're doing something in our Climate Crossroads online community, about ten things that really do help tourism in WV, 'cause MTR certainly doesn't. One of those ten things will be great hiking trails. And we'll link to our Sierra Club Trails website, to the page that gives you search results for trails in WV. That URL is here: http://tiny.cc/WVtrails If you click on that link, you'll see that there are seven trails, and four of them are pretty good. Three of them, however - the three with the boring green Trails avatars instead of photos, need to be upgraded with a photo and an actual trail description. Is there any chance you know these trails well enough to do that? Or even provide me with a few paragraphs and photos to do that? Or even do it over the phone and email me the photos? I'm also looking to get some more trails added. I know you're god-awful busy and dedicated to the work of your chapter and all -- but any chance you'd have time to do this? I'm trying to make it happen by week's end... Best, Jenny __________ Jenny Coyle Website Producer Sierra Club (415) 977-5533 --> Check out Sierra Club Trails: http://sierraclubtrails.org -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha

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Nov 1, 2009 MIT STUDY ON FUTURE OF COAL
by William V. DePaulo, Esq. 19 Nov '09

19 Nov '09

Attached is a copy of the 190-page MIT Study on the Future of Coal, released Nov 1. It clearly endorses the principle of carbon capture and sequestration as a necessity, but points out in the bluntest possible terms the overwhelming scale of the undertaking and the pathetically inadequate efforts undertaken so far to achieve it. The statistics below, from a table at the beginning, offer compelling reasons to believe that it just aint gonna happen, at least not in a time frame that offers any prospect of meaningful mitigation of the effects of global warming. Table in Exec. Summary at p. ix Today fossil sources account for 80% of energy demand: Coal (25%), natural gas (21%), petroleum (34%), nuclear (6.5%), hydro (2.2%), and biomass and waste (11%). Only 0.4% of global energy demand is met by geothermal, solar and wind.1 50% of the electricity generated in the U.S. is from coal.2 There are the equivalent of more than five hundred, 500 megawatt, coal-fi red power plants in the United States with an average age of 35 years.2 China is currently constructing the equivalent of two, 500 megawatt, coal-fi red power plants per week and a capacity comparable to the entire UK power grid each year.3 One 500 megawatt coal-fired power plant produces approximately 3 million tons/year of carbon dioxide (CO2).3 The United States produces about 1.5 billion tons per year of CO2 from coal-burning power plants. * If all of this CO2 is transported for sequestration, the quantity is equivalent to three times the weight and, under typical operating conditions, one-third of the annual volume of natural gas transported by the U.S. gas pipeline system.* *If 60% of the CO2 produced from U.S. coal-based power generation were to be captured and compressed to a liquid for geologic sequestration, its volume would about equal the total U.S. oil consumption of 20 million barrels per day.* *At present the largest sequestration project is injecting one million tons/year of carbon dioxide (CO2) from the Sleipner gas field into a saline aquifer under the North Sea.*3 Notes 1. IEA Key World Energy Statistics (2006) 2. EIA 2005 annual statistics (www.eia.doe.gov) 3. Derived from the MIT Coal Study -- William V. DePaulo, Esq. 179 Summers Street, Suite 232 Charleston, WV 25301-2163 Tel: 304-342-5588 Fax: 304-342-5505 william.depaulo(a)gmail.com www.passeggiata.com This electronic mail is intended to be received and read only by certain individuals. It may contain information that is privileged or protected from disclosure by law. If it has been misdirected, or if you suspect you received this in error, please notify me by replying and then delete this message and your reply. These restrictions apply to any attachment to this email.

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FW: [wvec-board] WV Environmental Council Fall Fundraising Concert >>> Tues. 11/24 in Charleston
by Grubb, Karen 18 Nov '09

18 Nov '09

Please come to this event if you can. From: wvec-board(a)yahoogroups.com [mailto:wvec-board@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Daniel Chiotos Sent: Tuesday, November 17, 2009 5:42 PM To: hotcayen; wvec-board(a)yahoogroups.com; selliott; mshafiei; lmundy; FOM; Vickie Wolfe; Mary Ellen O'Farrell; Mary Wildfire; Philip Bailey; joseph mathis; Jenny Hudson; Walton C. Shepherd; Michael T. Tierney; michael lipton; Dana Kuhnline; Bill DePaulo Subject: [wvec-board] WV Environmental Council Fall Fundraising Concert >>> Tues. 11/24 in Charleston ***********PLEASE FORWARD************ WV Environmental Council's Fall Fundraiser Tuesday, Nov. 24th from 6 to 9 PM at the Empty Glass in Charleston, WV Only $5 at the Door! MUSIC, FOOD & FUN - Come By After Work! NEW T-shirts available by Charlie Hamilton - Long & Short Sleeve Please come, have a great time, and chip in to support environmental lobbying in West Virginia! Cheers, Daniel Chiotos 2206 Washington St E. Charleston, WV, 25311 (304)886-3389 {www.seac.org} __._,_.___ Reply to sender <mailto:danny@seac.org?subject=WV%20Environmental%20Council%20Fall%20Fundraising%20Concert%20%3e%3e%3e%20Tues.%2011/24%20in%20 %20Charleston> | Reply to group <mailto:wvec-board@yahoogroups.com?subject=WV%20Environmental%20Council%20Fall%20Fundraising%20Concert%20%3e%3e%3e%20Tues.%2011/24%20in%20 %20Charleston> Messages in this topic <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wvec-board/message/1168;_ylc=X3oDMTM1YmltMXBu…> (1) Recent Activity: Visit Your Group <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wvec-board;_ylc=X3oDMTJmZnJkcHJhBF9TAzk3MzU5N…> Start a New Topic <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wvec-board/post;_ylc=X3oDMTJmM3R0Y3NpBF9TAzk3…> . Web Bug from http://geo.yahoo.com/serv?s=97359714/grpId=21584041/grpspId=1705365392/msgI…<http://www.mailscanner.tv/1x1spacer.gif> __,_._,___

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from Center for Media and Democracy's email list: Drilling Through the Appalachian Shale Gas Hype
by Paul Wilson 16 Nov '09

16 Nov '09

Be A Citizen JournalistDrilling Through the Appalachian Shale Gas Hype<http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=hqzZc2Byp1yq6a%2BXNL…> While the U.S. economy continues to reel from the fallout from the global financial crisis, there's a boom on in the gas industry wanting access to Appalachian areas underlain by the Marcellus Shale<http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=ut0v%2Bltf6raf2Bul0Y…>deposits. The gas-industry boom has environmentalists and many residents worried about the environmental impacts. To make gas production profitable, the industry employs a practice referred to as fracking<http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=m8mEO36WVYBC8HefykGl…>, pumping large volumes of water, sand and a mix of chemicals down drill holes to fracture the rock formations and increase the volume of accessible gas. While the Safe Drinking Water Act notionally protects water supplies, the gas industry is the only industry excluded from the scope of the legislation. Nor do many state government's regulate fracking practices. (A useful collection of articles<http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=%2BFhlgqORzNLTkdY2JY…>on the issue has been published by the non-profit journalism group, ProPublica<http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=zUpJPnDsjjmpZouy0DpF…> ). Right now, the issue is politically hot<http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=4pPKe17qxrYmnKoebCYd…>. Last week the U.S. House of Representatives adopted a resolution requesting the Environmental Protection Agency<http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=Xo0PpQMSAxBfYOy%2F6b…>re-examine the potential impact of fracking on water quality. While companies are busy hyping their involvement in Marcellus Shale projects, citizens groups are mobilizing to express their concerns about both fracking practices and gas production more generally. You can help document the environmental and other issues involved with the exploitation of the Marcellus Shale by helping building the SourceWatch article on the issue. See SourceWatch:Project:Documenting environmental and other issues with the exploitation of Marcellus Shale<http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=GXtLQzK%2Bo%2BthsuqB…>on our collaborative SourceWatch encyclopedia for more details. If you have never added material to SourceWatch before, don't worry! Our regular editors are at hand to help get you started. If this is your first time editing on SourceWatch, you can register here<http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=LWxLd413qaxS6a96wL3f…>, and learn more about adding information to the site here<http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=vnseSfF57oiQN%2BvmBx…>, here<http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=E6RqLYVIIqPlcji25%2B…>and here<http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=U90C14AOoEJ9dR6G1Voo…> . -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha

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Fwd: RSVP NOW: Coal Ash Mega Strategy Call Nov. 18 at 2pm
by Paul Wilson 13 Nov '09

13 Nov '09

fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Verena Owen <baumling(a)aol.com> Date: Thu, Nov 12, 2009 at 3:08 PM Subject: Fwd: RSVP NOW: Coal Ash Mega Strategy Call Nov. 18 at 2pm To: COAL-CAMPAIGN-FORUM(a)lists.sierraclub.org If you want to join us on the coal ash call, pls RSVP per instructions below. Verena -----Original Message----- From: Lyndsay Moseley <Lyndsay.Moseley(a)sierraclub.org> To: baumling(a)aol.com Sent: Thu, Nov 12, 2009 12:31 pm Subject: Fw: RSVP NOW: Coal Ash Mega Strategy Call Nov. 18 at 2pm Verena, Will you forward this to the appropriate activist lists? Lyndsay Moseley Washington Representative Sierra Club 408 C St. NE Washington, DC 20002 tel: 202-548-4581 fax: 202-547-6009 ----- Forwarded by Lyndsay Moseley/Sierraclub on 11/12/2009 01:32 PM ----- *Lyndsay Moseley/Sierraclub* 11/12/2009 01:16 PM To #Coal cc Subject RSVP NOW: Coal Ash Mega Strategy Call Nov. 18 at 2pm Coal Campaigners, Sierra Club is co-hosting a call (with Earthjustice and Environmental Integrity Project) next Wednesay Nov. 18th at 2pm ET to discuss our national strategy on coal ash with grassroots organizers and leaders. This will be a great opportunity to get the current state of play on coal ash, ask questions, find out about resources available to support advocacy around EPA's coming coal ash rule, and participate in shaping our grassroots campaign around coal ash. If you are interested: 1) Please check your schedule and RSVP (see below) asap! 2) Please invite volunteer leaders and coalition partners to join the call as well. Please let me know if you have any questions -- Lyndsay Lyndsay Moseley Washington Representative Sierra Club 408 C St. NE Washington, DC 20002 tel: 202-548-4581 fax: 202-547-6009 ----- Forwarded by Lyndsay Moseley/Sierraclub on 11/12/2009 12:22 PM ----- *"Lisa N. Widawsky" <lwidawsky(a)environmentalintegrity.org>* 11/09/2009 09:50 PM To "Lisa N. Widawsky" <lwidawsky(a)environmentalintegrity.org> cc Subject RSVP NOW: Prevent Another TVA Disaster - Join Our Coal Ash Mega Strategy Call Nov. 18 at 2pm Greetings grassroots organizer, There are *just a few weeks* until U.S. EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson will announce new proposed regulations governing coal ash disposal. Please join us *November 18* at *2 pm EST* for a brief telephone discussion with coal ash and media experts to learn how you can organize to build support for EPA rules that finally treat coal ash as the hazardous waste we all know it is. We will provide information about EPA’s upcoming coal combustion waste disposal rule, state-specific fact sheets on coal ash ponds and landfills in 35 states, and media tools to help get the word out to your members and communities about the critical need for EPA to designate coal ash as hazardous. You’ll be able to ask questions, get information, and prepare for public hearings on the coal ash rules. On October 8, well over a hundred organizations from across the country signed onto an important letter to Congress asking members to join Congressman John Lewis’s letter on the dangers of coal ash disposal. We’re asking you now to continue this fight by joining an effort to push EPA and Congress to protect public health and the environment from this hazardous waste. EPA has said repeatedly it plans to propose the first ever regulation for coal combustion waste disposal before the end of this year. The agency has already sent a draft of its proposed regulation to the Office of Management and Budget, which means the proposal could come out very soon. We invite you to join Earthjustice, the Environmental Integrity Project, Sierra Club, and hundreds of other groups in a discussion about the upcoming proposal and ways you can help. Polluters are pushing hard on EPA to avoid designating coal ash as hazardous. However, a hazardous waste designation means much stronger safeguards for communities surrounding hundreds of coal ash ponds and landfills. We’re relying on grassroots groups from across the country to get the word out to your members and engage your local media on the importance of regulating coal ash as hazardous waste. We must push back against industry claims and send a strong, unified message to EPA and our elected officials that the time to clean up toxic coal ash dumps is now! *RSVP* to *Jeremy Graham at Earthjustice (**jgraham(a)earthjustice.org*<jgraham(a)earthjustice.org> * or 202-667-4500, x217*). We’ll send out more information about the call including a telephone number and speaker lineup as the date approaches. If you have any questions, please contact Jared Saylor at Earthjustice (* jsaylor(a)earthjustice.org* <jsaylor(a)earthjustice.org>), Lisa Widawsky at the Environmental Integrity Project (*lwidawsky(a)environmentalintegrity.org*<lwidawsky(a)environmentalintegrity.org>), or Lyndsay Moseley at the Sierra Club (*Lyndsay.Moseley(a)sierraclub.org*<Lyndsay.Moseley(a)sierraclub.org> ). For more information about coal ash and the danger it poses to our water and to the health of communities across the United States, please see the information and reports available at *www.earthjustice.org/coalash*<http://www.earthjustice.org/coalash>. Also, the Sierra Club is in the process of creating a Federal Coal Ash Regulation listserv – stay tuned for details on how you can opt-in to the listserv. Please join us in the fight to protect all communities from the dangers of hazardous coal ash. Sincerely, Lisa Widawsky Attorney Environmental Integrity Project 1920 L Street NW, Suite 800 Washington, DC 20036 202.263.4452 (direct) 202.294.3282 (cell) 202.296.8822 (fax) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To unsubscribe from the COAL-CAMPAIGN-FORUM list, send any message to: COAL-CAMPAIGN-FORUM-signoff-request(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Check out our Listserv Lists support site for more information: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha

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Re: [EC] Fw: Large-Scale Renewable Energy Guidelines, Open House with Allison Chin, and More
by James Kotcon 13 Nov '09

13 Nov '09

I had gotten a couple e-mails about this proposed "Large-scale Renewables" guidelines for the Club from the State Gov't Programs folks, as several of these folks have issues in their states too, e.g., Arizona Chapter. The "Off-Shore Wind" issue apparently has a separate task force, so this is mostly focused on commercial solar and wind facilities and transmission lines (like the ones in our back yard). Please look into it, as we should probably prepare comments on behalf of the Chapter. JBK >>> Jim Sconyers <jim_scon(a)yahoo.com> 11/13/2009 12:45 PM >>> Hey Jim- Have you seen this? I didn't know it was in the works - but just because we're the national epicenter, why am I not surprised...? Jim Sconyers jim_scon(a)yahoo.com 304.698.9628 Remember: Mother Nature bats last. --- On Wed, 11/11/09, Clubhouse Updates <clubhouse(a)sierraclub.org> wrote: From: Clubhouse Updates <clubhouse(a)sierraclub.org> Subject: Large-Scale Renewable Energy Guidelines, Open House with Allison Chin, and More To: jim_scon(a)yahoo.com Date: Wednesday, November 11, 2009, 9:07 PM Having trouble viewing our email. Click here to view a web version. Jim, The Board of Directors approved a comprehensive Club energy policy in 2006, but there are still plenty of questions that we have to address, like when to support large-scale renewable energy projects that have potential impacts on public land and the environment. Like big solar collectors in the desert, new wind farms, geothermal energy projects. That's where the Club's board task forces come in. See below for more. We also want to remind you of upcoming open house with Allison Chin on November 16 and a guided tour of the Activist Network on November 23. Seeking Comments on Large-Scale Renewable Energy Guidelines As you know, the Club supports renewable energy, both small-scale project like solar panels on home roofs and large-scale projects like wind farms. But some projects and some sites are better than others, and that's where the Transmission Line and Renewable Energy Siting Task Force comes in, to develop proposed guidelines to enable chapters and groups to assess large scale renewable energy and transmission proposals and their potential impacts on public land and the environment, and determine what the appropriate Club approach to such projects should be. Because of the grave impacts of climate change Sierra Club supports developing some large scale renewables and transmission needed to bring renewable energy to cities. Thus, the guidelines indicate conditions under which projects can be supported, where we may be neutral, and where projects may be opposed; the guidelines also focus on encouraging development in the most appropriate (lower resource value) sites as well as working to ensure necessary mitigation in sites where impacts exist but can be mitigated. You can read the guidelines here, post comments here. Comment period ends January 10. Special thanks to task force members Jim Dodson and Barbara Boyle (co-chairs), and Sandy Bahr, Clayton Daughenbaugh, John Hiatt, Connie Wilbert, Carl Zichella, and Gloria Smith. Join Allison Chin for Open House on November 16 Club President Allison Chin will be hosting an open house at 5 pm Pacific/8 pm Eastern on Monday, November 16. She talk briefly about chapter funding and the November Board meeting, where directors will be addressing the 2010 Budget as well as reports from task forces (Constituent Engagement, Fundraising). She also take questions. RSVP here. Call 1-866-501-6174 [1892-005] Take the Activist Network Guided Tour on November 23 A week after Allison's open house, at the same time and call-in number, we'll be giving another guided tour of the Activist Network — sierraclubactivistnetwork.org — where we are seeking to create a vibrant community where Club activists and supporters work together to get things done. There are plenty of opportunities to discuss and debate things and we encourage that — there are blogs and comment walls and discussion forums — but we designed the Activist Network first and foremost as a place to collaborate and accomplish things. It's a place to do work. RSVP here. Call 1-866-501-6174 [1892-005] We're still in our beta period, but about 30 teams have started creating their online community, and we welcome all national issue teams, groups, chapters, any Club entities to join as well. Team members can communicate and collaborate in a more multi-dimensional way than email, work on projects together, edit documents, brainstorm, solicit feedback, and most important of all, reach out and engage new people in their work. We welcome you to join the Monday evening call, but better yet, we encourage you to schedule a conference call with at least four members of your team. That way, we can focus not just on how to use the online community tools but on making your team site compelling and full of opportunities for interested visitors to get involved. If you have questions about the Activist Network, we've created a Help Team, where you can ask for help, and then later, once you learn the ropes, give help. Enjoy the fall. John Byrne Barry Managing Editor, Clubhouse / Activist Network Update My Profile | Manage My Email Preferences | Update My Interests Sierra Club 85 Second St. San Francisco, CA 94105

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Putting 'Green' Technology Into Bricks
by william.depaulo＠gmail.com 10 Nov '09

10 Nov '09

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Fw: The fate of Coal River Mountain is up to us
by Jim Sconyers 06 Nov '09

06 Nov '09

Jim Sconyers jim_scon(a)yahoo.com 304.698.9628 Remember: Mother Nature bats last. --- On Fri, 11/6/09, Mary Ann Hitt, Sierra Club <membership.services(a)sierraclub.org> wrote: From: Mary Ann Hitt, Sierra Club <membership.services(a)sierraclub.org> Subject: The fate of Coal River Mountain is up to us To: jim_scon(a)yahoo.com Date: Friday, November 6, 2009, 8:21 PM Sierra Club #yiv1354240319 #yiv1354240319 .normal, #yiv1354240319 , #yiv1354240319 p, #yiv1354240319 td, #yiv1354240319 tr, #yiv1354240319 h1, #yiv1354240319 h2, #yiv1354240319 h3, #yiv1354240319 h4, #yiv1354240319 h5, #yiv1354240319 h6, #yiv1354240319 ul, #yiv1354240319 li, #yiv1354240319 div, #yiv1354240319 input, #yiv1354240319 textarea, #yiv1354240319 option, #yiv1354240319 select { font-family:verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-style:normal;} #yiv1354240319 .normal, #yiv1354240319 , #yiv1354240319 p, #yiv1354240319 td, #yiv1354240319 tr, #yiv1354240319 li, #yiv1354240319 div, #yiv1354240319 input, #yiv1354240319 textarea, #yiv1354240319 option, #yiv1354240319 select {font-size:12px;} #yiv1354240319 .normal {color:#000000;} #yiv1354240319 {background-color:#ffffff;} #yiv1354240319 #yiv1354240319 a {color:#333366;} #yiv1354240319 a:visited {color:#666666;} #yiv1354240319 a:hover {color:#3333ff;} #yiv1354240319 #yiv1354240319 .blackborder {border-color:#000000;} #yiv1354240319 #yiv1354240319 .smalltext {font-size:10px;} #yiv1354240319 .verysmalltext {font-size:9px;} #yiv1354240319 #yiv1354240319 H1, #yiv1354240319 .header { font-size:14px;color:#000000;font-weight:700;} #yiv1354240319 .issueheader { margin-bottom:5px;color:#669900;} #yiv1354240319 #yiv1354240319 H2, #yiv1354240319 .subtitle { font-size:12px;color:#669900;font-weight:700; } View a web version of this email. Dear Jim, Ask the Obama Administration to stop the blasting on Coal River Mountain and preserve our nation's clean energy resources. Photo Credit:Photo by Vivian Stockman / www.ohvec.org; flyover courtesy SouthWings.org The fate of Coal River Mountain is up to us. Last week, Massey Energy began setting off explosives on Coal River Mountain in West Virginia -- the site of a proposed 328-megawatt wind farm -- to prepare for a massive mountaintop removal coal mining operation. Coal River Mountain could be a wind farm that provides 85,000 households with electricity, 700 long-term green jobs, gives back $1.7 million in annual county taxes and stands as a model for clean energy across the region. Or it can be a 6,000-acre dirty coal mining wasteland. Contact the Obama Administration today. Ask them to immediately stop the blasting on Coal River Mountain and preserve our nation’s clean energy resources. The blasting of Coal River Mountain is also endangering lives. Blasting on Coal River Mountain could destabilize the nearby coal slurry pond, unleashing eight billion gallons of toxic sludge on homes and schools. Were the dam to fail, local residents would have mere minutes to evacuate before being overtaken by a 50-foot high wall of coal sludge. Coal River Mountain represents a crossroads -- it can be one of the most dangerous examples of mountaintop removal mining destruction for dirty coal or one of the most profound examples of hope for a clean energy future that exists in our country. We need your help to call on the Obama Administration to step in and intervene today. Ask them to stop the blasting today. Coal River Mountain must become our line in the sand. We can no longer allow fossil fuel interests to build more pipelines, belch out more pollution, and destroy more mountains that could become clean energy wind farms. The Obama Administration must save Coal River Mountain in order to show they are serious about our clean energy future. Thanks for all that you do, Mary Anne Hitt, Sierra Club Beyond Coal Campaign If you do not wish to receive future emails like this, click here to be removed from this type of email contact. Update My Profile | Manage My Email Preferences | Update My Interests Sierra Club 85 Second St. San Francisco, CA 94105

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PATH Agrees to Extend Procedural Schedule in West Virginia
by Frank Young 04 Nov '09

04 Nov '09

PATH Agrees to Extend Procedural Schedule for Power Line in West Virginia Allegheny, AEP Remain Committed to Project and 2014 In-Service Date November 4, 2009 -- Allegheny Energy (NYSE: AYE ) and American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP ) announced today that their affiliates have filed a response to a motion by the Staff of the West Virginia Public Service Commission ( PSC ) to dismiss an application to build the Potomac-Appalachian Transmission Highline ( PATH ). In today's filing, the PATH applicants agree to postpone a decision in West Virginia if a satisfactory extension of the current procedural schedule is established. The applicants also indicated that a similar request would be filed with the Virginia State Corporation Commission. Requests for revised procedural schedules in West Virginia and Virginia - combined with a decision in the near future to seek approval for the Maryland segments of PATH - would effectively align the proceedings in the three states. It also would enable the project to meet its required in-service deadline in 2014. In September, the Maryland commission ruled that procedurally, The Potomac Edison Company, an Allegheny Energy subsidiary, may not seek authorization to construct PATH on behalf of its affiliate, PATH Allegheny Transmission Company, LLC. Citing the project's uncertainty in Maryland , commission staffs in Virginia and West Virginia last month requested dismissal, without prejudice, of the PATH application. In response to the staff motions, PATH reiterated that the overall project route and eastern terminus at the proposed Kemptown substation near New Market, Md. , remain unchanged. Allegheny Energy and American Electric Power, partners in the joint venture to build the 280-mile multi-state transmission line, remain committed to the PATH project. According to the most recent analysis by regional grid operator PJM Interconnection, PATH is needed by June 2014 to resolve reliability concerns on the existing system. For more information on the project, including maps and full state applications, please visit the project Web site at www.pathtransmission.com. This message was sent from PATH News to fyoung(a)mountain.net. It was sent from: PATH, 800 Cabin Hill Drive , Greensburg, PA 15601 . You can modify/update your subscription via the link below. Email Marketing by Manage your subscription

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MD Sierra Club newsletter all about transmission lines
by Frank Young 03 Nov '09

03 Nov '09

The latest newsletter of the Maryland Sierra Club is all about transmission lines. http://maryland.sierraclub.org/newsletter/

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Fwd: A new month, and a new chance to tell your story
by Paul Wilson 02 Nov '09

02 Nov '09

fyi, paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: West Virginia News Service WVNS <wvnsnews(a)gmail.com> Date: Mon, Nov 2, 2009 at 1:54 PM Subject: A new month, and a new chance to tell your story To: Hi Folks, November is here, bringing with it more chances for WVNS to tell your stories. If you have anything you think is newsworthy, let me know. Even if you think it might be a little too small for statewide attention, go head and pitch it. Together we might be able to find a way to get something good out of it. After all, it couldn't be any less newsworthy the balloon-boy hoax, and look at all the attention that got. But on a more serious note, health care, global warming and the economy are all important national issues that we have covered by looking for local angles. And all of those will continue to be worth attention. So, if you have something related to one of them (or even something unrelated) definitely let me know. drh -- West Virginia News Service (WVNS) Toll Free: 1-800-317-6705 Fax: 540-301-0801 E-mail: wvns(a)publicnewsservice.org -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha

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Fwd: Click on your state below to find out what the Beyond Coal campaign is doing near you.
by Paul Wilson 30 Oct '09

30 Oct '09

click on the link below. pretty cool. paul ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Verena Owen <baumling(a)aol.com> Date: Thu, Oct 29, 2009 at 5:25 PM Subject: Click on your state below to find out what the Beyond Coal campaign is doing near you. To: COAL-CAMPAIGN-FORUM(a)lists.sierraclub.org Please check out and circulate this really cool new feature on our homepage: state based beyond coal information. http://sierraclub.org/coal/ Verena - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To unsubscribe from the COAL-CAMPAIGN-FORUM list, send any message to: COAL-CAMPAIGN-FORUM-signoff-request(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Check out our Listserv Lists support site for more information: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp To view the Sierra Club List Terms & Conditions, see: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/terms.asp -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha

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Re: [EC] new film on gas drilling
by Paul Wilson 29 Oct '09

29 Oct '09

BullFrog Films just announced the release of the film "Split Estate" which maps a tragedy in the making as citizens in the path of a new drilling boom in the West struggle against the erosion of their civil liberties. You can find more info at their website: www.bullfrogfilms.com cheers, paul -- Paul Wilson Sierra Club 504 Jefferson Ave Charles Town, WV 25414-1130 Phone: 304-725-4360 Cell: 304-279-1361 "There is no forward until you have gone back" ~Buddha

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Staff files to ask PSC to reject PATH
by James Kotcon 29 Oct '09

29 Oct '09

Earlier today, I got a call from a reporter asking for response to the above filing. The PSC Staff has filed a motion asking the PSC to dismiss the PATH application because the Maryland terminus is now in doubt, and we would be asked to evaluate an incomplete proposal. I told the reporter that I think the PSC got it right and I would be consulting our attorneys about supporting the Staff Motion to Dismiss. Whaddya Tink? JBK

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Re: [EC] Fw: NEWS: Experts Raise Concerns About New Transmission Line from Coal Country to Eastern Grid
by Jim Sconyers 27 Oct '09

27 Oct '09

Jim Sconyers jim_scon(a)yahoo.com 304.698.9628 Remember: Mother Nature bats last. --- On Tue, 10/27/09, Elena Saxonhouse <Elena.Saxonhouse(a)sierraclub.org> wrote: From: Elena Saxonhouse <Elena.Saxonhouse(a)sierraclub.org> Subject: Fw: NEWS: Experts Raise Concerns About New Transmission Line from Coal Country to Eastern Grid To: CONS-ELP-TRANS-LINES-FORUM(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Date: Tuesday, October 27, 2009, 1:39 PM Elena Saxonhouse Sierra Club Environmental Law Program 85 Second St., 2nd Floor San Francisco, CA 94105 (415) 977-5765 (415) 977-5793 (fax) ----- Forwarded by Elena Saxonhouse/Sierraclub on 10/27/2009 10:39 AM ----- Brian Smith <bsmith(a)earthjustice.org> 10/27/2009 10:27 AM To "'Elena.Saxonhouse(a)sierraclub.org'" <Elena.Saxonhouse(a)sierraclub.org>, Abigail Dillen <adillen(a)earthjustice.org>, Virginia Cramer <virginia.cramer(a)sierraclub.org> cc Subject NEWS: Experts Raise Concerns About New Transmission Line from Coal Country to Eastern Grid FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 27, 2009 Contact: Virginia Cramer, Sierra Club 804-225-9113 x 102 Abigail Dillen, Earthjustice 212-791-1881 x221 Experts Raise Concerns About New Transmission Line from Coal Country to Eastern Grid PATH would make grid less reliable, increase air pollution RICHMOND, VA -- In the latest of a series of setbacks for the proposed Potomac-Appalachian Transmission Highline (PATH), engineering, air and electric experts submitted testimony finding that (contrary to developer claims) the line would actually make the eastern grid less reliable and lead to increased air pollution. Proposed by American Electric Power (AEP) and Allegheny Power, PATH is a high-voltage transmission line which would be constructed through West Virginia, Virginia and Maryland, at a cost of more than $1.8 billion to ratepayers. The experts, testifying on behalf of the Sierra Club, include George Loehr and Hyde Merrill, nationally renowned electric experts, Chris James of Synapse Energy Economics, Inc. (a former EPA employee and Director of Air Planning for Connecticut), and Robert Fagan, also of Synapse, a mechanical engineer and energy economics expert. Their testimony concludes that the line is not needed; that cheaper, simpler alternatives are available; and that “[r]ather than increase reliability, PATH would actually make it worse.” “It’s like running an extension cord down the block to plug your toaster into a neighbor’s outlet rather than plugging it into an outlet in your own kitchen,” said George Loehr. If PATH is constructed, he testified, “major East Coast cities like Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington and Richmond would become more vulnerable to interruptions and blackouts, either from natural phenomena or from terrorist attacks” on transmission lines. The expert testimony also validated concerns raised by environmental and community groups about increased pollution from coal-fired power plants. Chris James, an expert with over 20 years of experience in state and federal air programs, determined that air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions would increase as a result of PATH, making it more difficult for Virginia, Washington D.C., and Baltimore to meet air quality standards, and contributing to eastern smog and haze. He explained that because electricity garners a higher price on the east coast, PATH would provide an incentive-- and an opportunity-- for coal-fired power plants in West Virginia and the Midwest to increase their output and sell more electricity to east coast cities. Increased pollution would follow. “PATH is a boondoggle for ratepayers and a gift to coal companies,” said Abigail Dillen of Earthjustice. “We urgently need a smart electric grid that supports wind power and other clean energy projects, but AEP and Allegheny Energy are trying to sell us on lines that will only help dirty old coal plants to ramp up profits – and pollution.” “We keep hearing from AEP and Allegheny the mantra that this line will shore up our electrical grid and is desperately needed to keep the lights on. Now we have a clear, documented explanation of why that’s not true,” said Elena Saxonhouse, with the Sierra Club. The expert testimony was submitted by the Sierra Club as part of formal proceedings before the Virginia State Corporation Commission. The Commission has the authority to approve or deny PATH in the state. The Commission is accepting public comment until January 12, 2010, hearings begin January 19, and a decision is expected sometime before May 2010. Sierra Club is represented in the Virginia PATH proceedings by the non-profit law firm, Earthjustice. The Club is also a party in the Maryland and West Virginia PATH proceedings and expects to submit similar expert testimony in those states. Additional Materials: Proposed PATH route http://www.pathtransmission.com/maps/pdf/WV_Publication_Map_3-30.pdf Full testimony George Loehr http://www.earthjustice.org/library/references/loehr-testimony.pdf Hyde Merrill http://www.earthjustice.org/library/references/merrill-testimony.pdf Chris James http://www.earthjustice.org/library/references/james-testimony.pdf Robert Fagan http://www.earthjustice.org/library/references/fagan-testimony.pdf

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POWERSHIFT 2009, MARSHALL'S GREEN FEE AND PROGRAMS...and an idea for future Ex Comm meetings
by William V. DePaulo, Esq. 27 Oct '09

27 Oct '09

This is a spin off of Sierrafest, which I still consider the most successful event the SC has held since I've been on the Ex Comm, admittedly not very long. Kevin Fooce and I met Erin Chalmers and Danny Chiotos at Sierra Fest. Erin is the person presently in charge of the Sierra Student U at Marshall. She led the effort to adopt a "green" fee -- $5 tacked on to each student's tuition and the initial effort to get the greening process going. Danny Chiotos is located in Charleston and works with the Student Energy Action Coalition. At Sierra Fest, both Erin and Danny invited Kevin and me to come to "Powershift 2009" <http://appalachia.powershift09.org/> which is/was (good faith effort to intuit here) a three-day set of workshops covering a whole range of stuff, but energy efficiency and the environment pervaded them all. It was located in Huntington but was the Appalachian regional event of what has in the past apparently been a national event focused on Washington, DC. As an Appalachian event it attracted presenters and attendees from WV, KY, TN and environs. Kevin brought a pile of Sierra Club material, and I paid an artist on site 20 bucks to make a "Sierra Club" sign to put on a table, forwhich we paid a hundred bucks. At that table or later we met students active in environmental groups at Marshall, Wheeling Jesuit, WV State Univ, and Shepherdstown. One idea that emerged from the day was to use the Marshall "greening" exercise as a model for other schools, and as a bridge to merging the efforts at those schools with our efforts generally. THE "MARSHALL TEMPLATE" Lauren Kemp is the current leader of the SSU at Marshall. She related that the $5 green fee has generated a green budget that funds 12+/- jobs on campus, 9 of which are student jobs. In addition to the $5 green fee, Marshall's SSU apparently applied for and got a $60,000 grant from WV's much (and deservedly) maligned DEP...to buy recycling units that are just now being distributed all over the campus, and for a series of "hydration stations" -- free filtered water that is also distributed over the campus. The 9 students with green jobs collect the contents of the recycling bins daily at a central compactor where it is picked up once a month. Trash collection for the school has dropped from 2 X per week to once every two weeks. The hydration stations aren't up and running yet but they are coming shortly. While Lauren was explaining this to Kevin at the Sierra table, Sarah Elliott from WV State was telling me about the difficulty she and others experienced at State getting the campus people to even listen to them about recycling. When I brought up the idea of creating a web page to "capture" the Marshall experience for other schools she made the point that they need to do it simply to pass on to next year's and the year after's students the institutional memory of what had already happened at Marshall, so they could go forward. At lunch Bri Clark of Wheeling Jesuit also explained that they had had great difficulty getting recycling listened to by the administration there. She was more than receptive to the idea of a "model" to follow, like at Marshall. Calvin Smith of WVU -- to date our model of a great student group led by some guy named Coatsun, or something weird, -- said WVU needed to learn how to get a green fee adopted also. Anis Elkharroupi of Sheperdstown was interested in pursuing it also, with a slightly optimitic view of passing a $75 green fee, exactly equal to the athletic fee there. I've asked about have a dozen or so of these students to come to the Nov 7 ex comm meeting in Lewisburg. I don't know if any or all will, but it strikes me that there is more than a kernel of an idea here, and it follows: 1. Capture the Marshall "green" fee and program experience on line. Make it available to schools throughout the state for sure, but also make it a WIKI-like page that can be edited by users to capture and share the greening experiences at schools elsewhere. 2. Continue to make connections with the student leaders/participants in SSU 3. Help finance the efforts of SSU's to start a greening program at their campus, possibly with funds from the Longview settlement) 4. Start holding our Ex Comm meetings on campuses in order to engage students. This would require that we: A. Greatly reduce the amount of time we spend on administrative matters and reading reports we've already distributed B. Move the locations of Ex Comm meetings from homes of members to campuses across the state, hopefully greatly diversifying our reach C. Maybe increase meetings to every other month to make it possible to get to more schools, like Marshall, WV State, Sheperdstown, West Virginia Wesleyan, Wheeling Jesuit, Concord SEE LIST OF <http://www.wvicu.org/member.cfm>SCHOOLS AND LINKS TO THEIR WEB PAGES HERE<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_colleges_and_universities_in_West_Virg…> D. Accepting the real prospect of change in the way we go about our business and where we spend out time and effort -- to accommodate the interests of students which are not always going to be in sync with our own --- altho there is just as much opportunity to influence their interests. 5. The ultimate objective would be to greatly expand our numbers and effect state-wide. In essence, we will be erasing the line between "us" (old farts with whiter hair who've gone square in the head and round in the belly) and "them" (young whipper snappers who think they know it all and have had life handed to them on a silver platter only because the ever brilliant "we" did all the heavy lifting decades ago - PLEASE NOTE POSITION OF TONGUE -- YEAH -- IN MOUTH) 6. We've talked about increasing membership exponentially...I see no better opportunity to do that than the low hanging fruit right in front of our eyes. 7. I'd like this item - *RESTRUCTURING AND RELOCATING EX COMM MEETINGS* -- to be added to the Agenda for our Nov 7 meeting. Bill -- William V. DePaulo, Esq. 179 Summers Street, Suite 232 Charleston, WV 25301-2163 Tel: 304-342-5588 Fax: 304-342-5505 william.depaulo(a)gmail.com www.passeggiata.com This electronic mail is intended to be received and read only by certain individuals. It may contain information that is privileged or protected from disclosure by law. If it has been misdirected, or if you suspect you received this in error, please notify me by replying and then delete this message and your reply. These restrictions apply to any attachment to this email.

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WSJ.com - Obama to Name 'Smart Grid' Projects
by william.depaulo＠gmail.com 27 Oct '09

27 Oct '09

*Please note, the sender's email address has not been verified. You have received the following link from william.depaulo(a)gmail.com ******************** If you are having trouble with any of the links in this message, or if the URL's are not appearing as links, please follow the instructions at the bottom of this email. Title: WSJ.com - Obama to Name 'Smart Grid' Projects This article will be available to non-subscribers of the Online Journal for up to seven days after it is e-mailed. Copy and paste the following into your Web browser to access the sent link: http://www.emailthis.clickability.com/et/emailThis?clickMap=viewThis&etMail… Copy and paste the following into your Web browser to SAVE THIS link: http://www.savethis.clickability.com/st/saveThisPopupApp?clickMap=saveFromE… Copy and paste the following into your Web browser to forward this link: http://www.emailthis.clickability.com/et/emailThis?clickMap=forward&etMailT… ******************** Email pages from any Web site you visit - add the EMAIL THIS button to your browser, copy and paste the following into your Web browser: http://www.emailthis.clickability.com/et/emailThis?clickMap=browserButtons&…" ********************* Instructions: ----------------------------------------- If your e-mail program doesn't recognize Web addresses: 1. With your mouse, highlight the Web Address above. Be sure to highlight the entire Web address, even if it spans more than one line in your email. 2. Select Copy from the Edit menu at the top of your screen. 3. Launch your Web browser. 4. Paste the address into your Web browser by selecting Paste from the Edit menu. 5. Click Go or press Enter or Return on your keyboard. ********************

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SIERRA TESTIMONY IN VA PATH CASE
by William V. DePaulo, Esq. 24 Oct '09

24 Oct '09

Attached is the testimony from the Sierra Club electric experts filed in VA SCC (PSC equivalent) Friday. The Loehr document is 52 pages, Fagan's is 259. More will follow. The testimony is, frankly, brilliant and any fair reader would conclude that PATH is totally unnecessary for any legitimate electric need. Bill -- William V. DePaulo, Esq. 179 Summers Street, Suite 232 Charleston, WV 25301-2163 Tel: 304-342-5588 Fax: 304-342-5505 william.depaulo(a)gmail.com www.passeggiata.com This electronic mail is intended to be received and read only by certain individuals. It may contain information that is privileged or protected from disclosure by law. If it has been misdirected, or if you suspect you received this in error, please notify me by replying and then delete this message and your reply. These restrictions apply to any attachment to this email. -- William V. DePaulo, Esq. 179 Summers Street, Suite 232 Charleston, WV 25301-2163 Tel: 304-342-5588 Fax: 304-342-5505 william.depaulo(a)gmail.com www.passeggiata.com This electronic mail is intended to be received and read only by certain individuals. It may contain information that is privileged or protected from disclosure by law. If it has been misdirected, or if you suspect you received this in error, please notify me by replying and then delete this message and your reply. These restrictions apply to any attachment to this email.

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Re: [EC] TransGas Public Notice
by James Kotcon 23 Oct '09

23 Oct '09

A draft permit for the Mingo County Coal-To-Liquids facility was issued by WV-DEP. Public comments on the draft are due Nov. 30. JBK >>> <Andrea.Issod(a)sierraclub.org> 10/22/2009 2:39 PM >>> Mingo draft permit has issued, comments are due Nov. 30th. We're working on it. "Kessler, Joseph R" <Joseph.R.Kessler(a)wv.gov> 10/22/2009 11:29 AM To <andrea.issod(a)sierraclub.org> cc Subject TransGas Public Notice Andrea, please see attached letter (hardcopy will follow). The information can be found here ( http://www.wvdep.org/item.cfm?ssid=8&ss1id=980 ). Thanks Joe Kessler, PE Engineer West Virginia Division of Air Quality 601-57th St., SE Charleston, WV 25304 Phone: (304) 926-0499 x1219 Fax: (304) 926-0478 Joseph.r.kessler(a)wv.gov

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Fw: TAKE ACTION: Suspend Illegal Rubber Stamping of Mountaintop Removal Permits
by Jim Sconyers 23 Oct '09

23 Oct '09

This is the "nationwide" permit that gives the coal companies new permits with little or no evaluation/analysis. Jim Sconyers jim_scon(a)yahoo.com 304.698.9628 Remember: Mother Nature bats last. --- On Thu, 10/22/09, Earthjustice Alerts <action(a)earthjustice.org> wrote: From: Earthjustice Alerts <action(a)earthjustice.org> Subject: TAKE ACTION: Suspend Illegal Rubber Stamping of Mountaintop Removal Permits To: "Jim Sconyers" <jim_scon(a)yahoo.com> Date: Thursday, October 22, 2009, 6:32 PM Tell Army Corps of Engineers: Suspend Illegal Rubber Stamping of Mountaintop Removal Permits Tell Army Corps of Engineers: Suspend Illegal Rubber Stamping of Mountaintop Removal Permits The Army Corps of Engineers needs to hear from you by Monday, Oct. 26 to close a loophole that is devastating Appalachia. Submit your comment at Regulations.gov! Dear Jim, For decades, mountaintop removal mining has devastated local communities, the economy, and the streams and headwaters of Appalachia. Entire mountain ranges have been razed as coal companies found loopholes in the law to streamline their destructive mountaintop removal mining permits. Now, the Army Corps of Engineers is finally considering that "Nationwide Permits"—a streamlined approval process—are not intended to authorize the devastation happening at mountaintop removal sites. The Corps' plan to suspend and modify "Nationwide Permit 21" will stop the rubber stamping of mountaintop removal permits and lead to better scrutiny of the environmental impacts of this mining practice. Strong public support—your support—is needed now to eliminate the NWP 21 loophole. Just last week, coal companies and their cronies shut out coalfield residents in West Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee and Virginia from public hearings on the Army Corps' plan. Violence and threats kept many people from even having a chance to speak. You only have until Monday, Oct. 26 to tell the Army Corps that its plan to repeal the one-size-fits-all approach of NWP 21 is good news for the people, streams, and mountains of Appalachia. Please act today. Tell the Army Corps that its plan to stop using NWP 21 is the right move. Let them know you support stronger environmental protections for the mountains, rivers, streams and people of Appalachia: How to Take Action You must submit your comment on the Army Corps of Engineers' plan at Regulations.gov, the official source for U.S. government regulations and related documents. Click on the button below to access the Army Corps of Engineers' comment form. Or, copy and paste this link into your browser: http://www.regulations.gov/search/Regs/home.html#submitComment?R=0900006480… Fill in the comment form. If you don't see the form, search for the Army Corps of Engineers' notice using document ID "COE-2009-0032-0346". Here is a sample letter you can use: Your proposal to modify and suspend Nationwide Permit 21 is a good step towards protecting the waters, mountains, and communities of Appalachia. I agree with your assessment that NWP 21 "has been used to authorize surface coal mining activities that involve discharges of dredged or fill material into waters of the United States that have resulted in adverse environmental impacts that may be more than minimal on a cumulative basis." The proposed modification would enhance environmental protection by requiring surface coal mining projects to apply for individual permits under the Clean Water Act. This will allow for increased public and agency involvement, including public comment periods. I also support the proposed suspension to NWP 21 to allow comments to be reviewed and evaluated. Ultimately, the use of NWP 21 to permit valley fills and stream destruction must end completely. The impacts of mountaintop removal coal mining are significant and permanent. The Army Corps should not issue any additional authorizations under NWP 21, and past authorizations should be reviewed under the Clean Water Act. Please modify and suspend NWP 21 to protect Appalachia's environment and community. Click on the "Submit" button at the bottom of the form, and your comment will be delivered. Thank you for taking the time to make sure that your voice is heard! Drop us a note to let us know that you took action! To get started, click on the button below: — Earthjustice Because the earth needs a good lawyer ©2009 Earthjustice | 426 17th Street, 6th Floor, Oakland, CA 94612 | 510-550-6700 | action(a)earthjustice.org Alert Tools Photo Credit: Top left: Mountaintop removal mining in Appalachia. (Credit: Vivian Stockman/OVEC) Bottom: Mountaintop removal operations at Kayford Mountain, West Virgina. (Credit: Mark Schmerling) View online: Having trouble viewing this email? View it in a browser. Links: If you cannot click on the links in this email, copy this link to your browser to access the comment form: http://www.regulations.gov/search/Regs/home.html#submitComment?R=0900006480… This email was delivered to you by Earthjustice. Update your personal information or remove your email address from Earthjustice's email list through your Subscription Management Page or by emailing Earthjustice. Powered by:

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Fwd: Re: Mingo Co. Waste Wood Power Plant
by Jonathan Rosenbaum 23 Oct '09

23 Oct '09

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Fw: VA SCC staff moves to dismiss application
by James Kotcon 21 Oct '09

21 Oct '09

To summarize, on Sept. 9, the Maryland PSC dismissed the PATH application in Maryland, ruling that PATH was not an electric company under Maryland state law. They gave Allegheny's subsidiary in Maryland, Potomac Edison, 30 days to re-file with an appropriate application. On Oct. 9, Potomac Edison responded by saying they were still reviewing their options with regard to a new plan for an eastern terminus to PATH, essentially declining to respond to the Maryland PSC. On Oct. 19, the Staff from the Virginia State Corporations Commission filed the attached motion asking the Virginia SCCC to dismiss the application, because there was no eastern terminus and no clear way to analyze a route without knowing where it would end. The WV PSC Staff attorney has said that the WV proceedings are "still right on track". Would it make sense to file a motion asking the WV-PSC to "toll" the proceedings until an eastern terminus is identified? We are entering a very expensive portion of the proceedings, and it seems unfair to ask intervenors to hire experts to analyze a route, then have PATH switch routes at the last second. Alternatively, would this be an argument for PATH to pay the expert witness fees for intervenors? PATH will have unlimited resources from ratepayers, plus 14 % on everything they spend, while intervenors are now being bled dry before we even know where the line will go. Whaddya Tink? Jim Kotcon ----- Original Message ----- From: "Frank Young" <fyoung(a)mountain.net> Maybe the PATH companies figure that the way to break up the opposition is to have them spend their resources on a case that might be withdrawn, or thrown out by the WV PSC, then re-file later after the spirit (and the bank accounts) of the opposition are broken. And either way PATH still gets that 14 percent profit on their costs- win or lose. “Heads we win; tails you lose.” ----- Original Message ----- From: Nancy S. Williams ( mailto:nancyswms@suddenlink.net ) To: s channell ( mailto:rchannell@verizon.net ) Cc: WVaPATH ( mailto:WVaPATH@yahoogroups.com ) Sent: Tuesday, October 20, 2009 5:31 PM Subject: Re: [WVaPATH] message to intervenors It is big news, but as Joe Watkins with the WV-PSC said today,"We are still right on track." --- On Mon, 10/19/09, Elena Saxonhouse <Elena.Saxonhouse(a)sierraclub.org> wrote: From: Elena Saxonhouse <Elena.Saxonhouse(a)sierraclub.org> Subject: VA SCC staff moves to dismiss application To: CONS-ELP-TRANS-LINES-FORUM(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Date: Monday, October 19, 2009, 3:35 PM Big news in Virginia (see below). The staff attorney filing the motion also stated: Please note that the filing of our motion does not alter the procedural schedule. All events remain scheduled until the hearing examiner or the Commission alter the schedule by entry of an order or ruling. While we have requested expedited consideration, I cannot predict when the motion will be addressed. ----- Forwarded by Elena Saxonhouse/Sierraclub on 10/19/2009 12:32 PM ----- A major development -- the Staff has just moved to dismiss the pATH application in VA on grounds that it is unclear where the line will end given the status of the Maryland proceedings. Abigail Dillen Staff Attorney* Earthjustice 156 William Street, Suite 800 New York, NY 10038 (212) 791-1881 ext. 221 Fax: (212) 918-1556 *Admitted in California and Montana. Not admitted in New York - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To unsubscribe from the CONS-ELP-TRANS-LINES-FORUM list, send any message to: CONS-ELP-TRANS-LINES-FORUM-signoff-request(a)LISTS.SIERRACLUB.ORG Check out our Listserv Lists support site for more information: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/faq.asp

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Re: [EC] Dunkard Creek, Mon Water quality
by Beth Little 20 Oct '09

20 Oct '09

Jim, At the Water Resources Committee meeting in Charleston last Thursday listening to Mandirola and Frank Jernejcic (sp?) and seeing their presentation about Dunkard Creek with maps of the mine pools underlying the region of southwestern PA and northwestern WV, I was struck with a thought that no one has mentioned. Actually it occurred to me on the way home. They did not seem inclined to pursue where the algae came from or how it got in Dunkard Creek; they said we may never know. And that may be true. But this is where my thoughts ran. The mine pools underlying this entire area are connected - not only by seeps, but they are actually being pumped from one to another. They also have seeps into the creeks and rivers in the area. Instead of the original suspicion that the algae got into Dunkard with wastewater from well drilling by Texas companies that contaminated the water with their drilling equipment from Texas, suppose the algae was introduced into the mine pools from wells drilled through them. In this case, every body of water in the area is at extreme risk, and control may be virtually impossible. Mandirola and/or Frank also talked about the conditions that the algae need to survive. Besides TDS, Ph is a big one, but I don't remember the specifics. I have emailed Frank for the details. My suggestion for how to proceed would be that all streams that are remotely threatened be brought to conditions that would prevent survival of the golden algae. Frank talked about how the normal green algae would out compete the golden algae in "normal" conditions for our area. So he would be a good resource. Of course, with drainage from the mine pools, controlling conditions in the threatened streams may not be possible. I wish I could be there. Keep me posted. You know this is starting to bump up against the group that is working on gas drilling, and you might want to be in on our calls. We have one coming up on Tues, and Dunkard Creek is one of our leading topics right now. Let me know if you want to be added to the call list. Jim S, Cindy Rank, Frank Jernejcic and about 30 others are on it, but 8 to 10 is about how many actually call in. _____ From: ec-bounces(a)osenergy.org [mailto:ec-bounces@osenergy.org] On Behalf Of James Kotcon Sent: Sunday, October 18, 2009 3:27 PM To: ec(a)osenergy.org Cc: aaron.isherwood(a)sierraclub.org; dteaney(a)appalachian-center.org; Joe Lovett; Cindy RANK; Sandy Cress Subject: Re: [EC] Dunkard Creek, Mon Water quality Attached and below are some recent articles about the fish kill in Dunkard Creek. This is emerging as a major issue, and any suggestions for how to proceed would be welcome. Some local activists are meeting Monday at 11:45 at Zen Clay in Morgantown (join us if you can), but any ideas from anywhere would be appreciated. My initial perception is that the fish kill is simply a symptom of the long-running lack of enforcement by DEP, and the Club's current legal action is already addressing those issues. But those will take years, and we really need to be coming up with solutions before this stuff spreads. Jim Kotcon 304-293-8822 (office) 304-594-3322 (home) >>> "Donald C. Strimbeck" <dcsoinks(a)comcast.net> 10/18/2009 9:03 AM >>> Later this week we will put out email re next MRR&CC meeting, and, next Water Quality Forum. Pasted below is today's Dominion Post article, which is also attached. Also attached is info from Duane Nichols re other news stories. Attachments are in MICROSOFT compatibility 97-2003 format. DUNKARD CREEK-DP-18OctY2K9 Front page Morgantown Dominion Post Sunday 18 October 2009: <http://olive.dominionpost.com/Repository/ml.asp?Ref=RFBvc3QvMjAwOS8xMC8xOCN BcjAwMTAx&Mode=Gif&Locale=english-skin-custom> http://olive.dominionpost.com/Repository/ml.asp?Ref=RFBvc3QvMjAwOS8xMC8xOCNB cjAwMTAx&Mode=Gif&Locale=english-skin-custom 21 streams at risk for fish kill algae 7 Mon creeks on watch list BY DAVID BEARD The Dominion Post The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) fears 21 other state streams have conditions conducive for growth of the same Dunkard Creek fishkill algae. During an interim meeting last week, the Joint Legislative Oversight Commission on State Water Resources also learned: The golden algae toxins killed the fish and mussels, but no one yet knows how the algae got there. Legislative action may be needed to control the conditions that could lead to future outbreaks. The puzzle has to be solved before fish can be returned to Dunkard Creek. As investigators learned what makes the algae thrive, particularly the total dissolved solids (organic and inorganic minerals, salts, metals and other matter), Scott Mandirola of the West Virginia DEP said, they began asking, "What other streams are potentially affected by this?" They compiled a list of 21 waterways of about 10 miles or more in length that had the right "conductivity," a measure of the flow of electric current that reflects TDS levels. "Those streams are now identified as being potentially at risk if these algae were allowed to spread," he said. Frank Jernejcic, District 1 fisheries biologist for the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources (DNR) identified seven of them, besides Dunkard, as being in this area - the Monongahela River drainage basin: Buffalo Creek, Elk Creek, Bingamon Creek, Paw Paw Creek, Pyles Fork, Indian Creek and Dents Run. Jernejcic told the commission that the algae outbreak has eliminated about 99 percent of the fish along the 30-mile stretch of Dunkard Creek in West Virginia. The kill destroyed 18 species of fish and 14 species of mussels - all the mussels in the creek - he said. He didn't have information on the extent of the fish kill in the Pennsylvania portion of the creek. The Pennsylvania DEP referred questions to Eric Levis, spokesman for the Pennsylvania Fish & Boat Commission, who did not return calls placed over the course of two days. Investigators search for algae source Mandirola told the legislators that the golden algae, known as Prymnesium parvum, first appeared in Texas in 1985. It mainly kills fish and, unlike red tide, isn't harmful to humans. Experts analyzed some of the dead fish, he said, and confirmed algae toxins killed them - affecting the livers and gills most severely. Investigators know the algae likes brackish water, and that Dunkard has the conditions - the right acid levels and high total dissolved solids (TDS), including sulfates and chlorides (salt) - that favor golden algae growth. But, Jernejcic said, "why it's there, how it got there and what caused it to reach the levels ... that would have caused the fish kill" is still a mystery. The golden algae is a symptom - they haven't gotten to the cause. "We believe with confidence that it's golden algae toxins that are killing the fish," Mandirola said. "They like the environment that's there. We need to see what we can do about the environment. "They've not come up with a clean, easy way to get rid of it," he said. "The best approach is to learn how to live with it and learn how to control what it doesn't like. If you can make the environment unfavorable ... they won't be able to produce the toxin, they won't be able to bloom and they won't cause the problems." Helen Humphreys, spokeswoman for the Pennsylvania DEP, said her agency is continuing to collect information so it can come to its own conclusion about the cause. "The algae needs a brackish, salty environment to thrive," she said. "Dunkard Creek is a freshwater stream, but high TDS levels have made it salty. So, where is it coming from?" Investigators said they think it may possibly be linked to mine drainage, which is associated with high TDS levels, especially during low flow times, when rainwater isn't diluting the discharge. Tests show high TDS levels in the Dunkard as far upstream as St. Leo, near the mouth of the South Fork tributary, southwest of Wadestown near the Marion County border. There is a mine drainage pool in this area, and at a point above a beaver dam, above the drainage pond, the algae cell count drops dramatically. And other mine pools drain into the Dunkard in both states. Legislation may be needed to get solids under control Getting TDS levels under control is part of the answer, and legislation may be needed, several people said. "How long are we going to keep going before we say, 'Let's draw a line in the sand?' " Jernejcic said after the meeting. Asked if it would require legislative action, he said, "I suspect." Dr. Duane Nichols, a water expert, retired WVU professor and member of the Upper Monongahela River Association, gave his opinion to the commission: "We have called for water quality standards. ... We need a statewide standard for total dissolved solids." Delegate Tim Manchin, D-Marion and co-chairman of the commission, said legislation may involve "a couple avenues." One could be adopting overall stream quality regulations regarding factors related to chlorides (salt) and TDS. Pennsylvania already has some TDS standards, he said. Another could involve implementing some treatment measures for mine drainage. "How much discharge do you allow?" he asked. Beyond that, he said, "At what point does this start having an impact on our economic community?" Right now, he said, commissioners are trying to bring themselves up to speed so they'll be ready if and when the DEP brings forth proposed legislation. Pennsylvania and West Virginia DEP officials have credited CONSOL Energy with being cooperative during the investigation. Consol has ceased discharges from mine pools along the creek while investigators study the cause. Humphreys said the Pennsylvania DEP believes discharge from the Blacksville No. 1 and Blacksville No. 2 mines could have contributed to the high TDS and chloride levels, according to a letter the department sent to CONSOL dated Oct. 7. In the letter, the Pennsylvania DEP requested information about the various mine pools in the Dunkard Creek watershed and how they are connected. The Pennsylvania DEP also requested copies of all of CONSOL's discharge monitoring reports for the Blacksville No. 2 mine and copies of the company's permits and permit applications, among other things. Humphreys said the Pennsylvania DEP would review the information from CONSOL, once the company sent it. The Pennsylvania DEP also sent a letter to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency this month, asking the agency to revoke an Underground Injection Control permit that allows CNX Gas Co. - a subsidiary of CONSOL - to inject wastewater into the Morris Run Borehole at the inactive Blacksville No. 1 mine. The permit allows CONSOL to dispose of up to 150,000 barrels per month of coal-bed methane wastewater, which contains up to? 25,000 milligrams per liter of TDS, according to the letter. EPA spokesman David Sternberg said the agency is evaluating the letter and is preparing a response to it. Sternberg said he did not know when the response would be mailed. CONSOL voluntarily stopped injecting the wastewater into the borehole Oct. 2. Donald C. Strimbeck, Sec/Treas Upper Mon River Assoc UpperMon.org Vice Chair, Mon River Rec & Comm Com MonRiverSummit.org 109 Broad Street, P. O. Box 519 Granville WV 26534-0519 304-599-7585 (fax 4131) dcsoinks(a)comcast.net No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG - www.avg.com Version: 8.5.422 / Virus Database: 270.14.20/2444 - Release Date: 10/18/09 09:04:00

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