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June 30: 700 protest against carbon dioxide plan
Project includes pushing CO2 from a nearby ethanol plant deep underground in Greenville
(Chris Stewart/Dayton Daily News)
GREENVILLE -- "At least 700 people turned out Monday, June 29, for a meeting organized by opponents of a $92.8 million plan to inject carbon dioxide from a nearby ethanol plant more than 3,000 feet underground. 'Are we making a statement?' Anne Vehre of Citizens Against CO2 Sequestration asked the standing-room-only crowd at Lighthouse Christian Center, Sebring-Warner Road and U.S. 36. 'Yes,' many shouted. 'Do we want it?' Vehre said. 'No,' they replied. 'We don’t want to become the dumping ground for carbon dioxide,' Vehre, former Darke County Solid Waste District director, said prior to the meeting," Ben Sutherly, Dayton Daily News.
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June 30: Kids' drawings against mountaintop removal
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June 30: East Toledo-Oregon coke plant project hangs on
Payment deadline is met; environmental OK is next
Toledo Harbor and Maumee Bay
TOLEDO -- "All systems are go for the construction of a coking facility and co-generation power plant on the East Toledo-Oregon border, pending the required environmental approval. Monday, a private entity based in northwest Ohio, which officials would not name, lent FDS Coke Plant LLC $191,000 so the company could make a payment to Midwest Independent System Operator Inc. that was required to keep the project active. 'This loan will allow us to go into the final planning phase,' said Lance Traves, FDS project manager and environmental consultant," Florence Dethy, Toledo Blade.
TOLEDO -- Lucas County officials to announce deal to keep plans for coking facility, Toledo Blade. Published June 29.
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June 29:
Activists with Rising Tide draped a 25-foot banner reading, "Mountain Top Removal Kills Communities: EPA No New Permits." on 1 North Congress St. in Boston, at the downtown offices of the Environmental Protection Agency this morning. The group is urging the agency to block over 150 pending permits for mountaintop removal coal mining in West Virginia, Kentucky, and Virginia.
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June 29: 3,767 Ohioans and Kentuckians write their Congressional representatives: Co-sponsor mountaintop removal ban
COLUMBUS -- "Since June 17, 3,767 Ohio Citizen Action members and friends have written their representatives urging them to co-sponsor a bill to ban mountaintop removal coal mining. Letters and children’s illustrations are asking U.S. House members from Ohio to co-sponsor H.R. 1310, the Clean Water Protection Act. U.S. Senators from both Ohio and Kentucky are being asked to co-sponsor S. 696, The Appalachian Restoration Act. Mountaintop removal coal mining is a radical form of surface mining which contaminates drinking water and irreparably damages the surrounding communities and environment of Central Appalachia,” Kate Russell, Organizer, Ohio Citizen Action.
COLUMBUS -- Resource: Breakdown of key Senate and House committees, "H.R. 1310, The Clean Water Protection Act, is being reviewed by the House Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment. S. 696, The Appalachian Restoration Act, is being reviewed by the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works. These bills are almost identical in language. The linked resources below indicate which members of each committee are currently co-sponsors of the respective bill. These members are highlighted in green. Members highlighted in yellow are Ohio representatives on these committees who are not cosponsors,” Kate Russell, Organizer, Ohio Citizen Action.
- Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, U.S. House, 43 KB doc.
- Committee on Environment and Public Works, U.S. Senate, 28 KB doc.
June 29: Cuyahoga County commissioners go behind closed doors during 33 of 38 meetings, review finds
CLEVELAND -- "What makes the secrecy of Cuyahoga's commissioners especially troubling for advocates of good government is that it continues during the biggest corruption probe in county history, which focuses on one of the men behind the closed doors -- Jimmy Dimora... Catherine Turcer of Ohio Citizen Action said commissioners should have handled more business in public after the investigation became public 11 months ago with agents raiding Dimora's home and office and the home and office of Auditor Frank Russo. 'I'm surprised they didn't attempt to create as open a process as possible at that point,' Turcer said. 'It shows a lack of shame,'" Joe Guillen, Cleveland Plain Dealer. Published June 28.
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June 26: Lawmakers, activists battle over mountaintop removal coal mining
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- "Coal industry advocates and environmentalists converged on Capitol Hill on Thursday at a congressional hearing on the impact of mountaintop removal mining on Appalachian streams and rivers.... [Sen. Benjamin] Cardin and Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., are sponsoring legislation that would outlaw mountaintop mining. 'The administration's decision will bring tighter scrutiny, but it is still important to pass the Cardin-Alexander legislation that would prohibit blowing off the tops of mountains and putting the waste in our streams,' said Alexander, a committee member. 'Coal is an essential part of our energy future, but it is not necessary to destroy our environment in order to have enough of it,'" Halimah Abdullah, Kansas City Star.
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Mountaintop removal damage 'irreversible,' U.S. Senate hears, DEP official only witness to defend practice, Ken Ward Jr., Charleston Gazette.
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June 26: AEP backs out of FutureGen project
Pullout puts "clean" power plant plans in jeopardy
COLUMBUS -- "Columbus-based American Electric Power has backed out of a plan to help build the world's first 'clean' coal-fired power plant. It joins Atlanta-based Southern Co. in dropping out of an alliance to build the FutureGen plan in Illinois. Both companies citied the bad economy and growing cost of the project. AEP was a founding member of the FutureGen Alliance, a coalition of coal and power companies that formed in 2006 to build the plant. There are now nine members. The proposed FutureGen power plant is supposed to test new technologies to filter out and capture carbon dioxide, a gas linked to global warming. The project, whose price tag has grown from $1 billion to $2.4 billion, has teetered since its inception," Spencer Hunt, Columbus Dispatch.
MORE ON A PROPOSED OHIO COAL PLANT
June 25: Most-toxic air in southern Ohio
Ohio River stretch near Portsmouth suffers highest cancer risk, EPA says
WASHINGTON, DC -- "Federal officials who measure toxic air pollution paint Ohio's would-be "cancer alley" as coursing along the Ohio River from Portsmouth to beyond New Boston. The risk of some Scioto County residents contracting cancer is nearly 20 times higher than the national average, according to a new study by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Those breathing the air largely tainted with emissions from foundry coke ovens have an additional cancer risk of 612 in 1 million -- the seventh-highest rate in the United States -- based on 2002 figures. That means that if 1 million people breathed that air for a lifetime, 612 additional cancer cases would be expected from cancer-causing toxins," Randy Ludlow, Columbus Dispatch. June 25: Massey protest first-hand
SUNDIAL, WV -- "On June 23, the small unincorporated hamlet of Sundial, West Virginia saw one of the largest anti-mountaintop removal protests to date. Several hundred peaceful protesters gathered at Marsh Fork Elementary - that infamous school within hundreds of yard of a coal processing plant, a 2.8 billion gallon coal slurry pond, and a several thousand acre mountaintop removal site. Protesters came from all over the country - as evidenced by license plates from as far as New Mexico and Vermont,” Nathan Rutz, Ohio Citizen Action.
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June 25: Lightly through the minefield
Proposed mine ignites 11-month zoning dispute
ANDERSON TWP -- "Terrace Park resident Cathy Burger launched Citizens Against Blasting On Our Miami, or CABOOM, after learning about Martin Marietta’s application.'When you look at a map and look at the close proximity to all these different areas, you have all these wonderful communities,' she says. 'It’s such an urban area here. That it doesn’t belong here.' Burger mobilized, connecting with groups including residents from Terrace Park and Indian Hill, and local members of the Sierra Club and Ohio Citizen Action," Matthew Cunningham, Cincinnati City Beat.
June 24: Columbus Congresswoman Mary Jo Kilroy co-sponsors bill to ban mountaintop removal coal mining
COLUMBUS -- "Today, Columbus Congresswoman Mary Jo Kilroy became the 153 co-sponsor of H.R. 1310 The Clean Water Protection Act, a ban on mountaintop removal coal mining. In the past year, 1,138 Ohio Citizen Action members and friends in Ohio Congressional District 15 sent hand-written letters and other message to Kilroy urging her to co-sponsor this bill. Mountaintop removal coal mining is a radical form of surface mining in Central Appalachia which removes 800 feet off the summit of a mountain. This form of mining is highly mechanized, using machinery rather than workers, and causes irreparable damage to drinking water and surrounding communities,” Kate Russell, Organizer, Ohio Citizen Action.
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June 24: Updated: Nonviolent Goldman Prize Winner attacked by Massey supporter, 94-year-old Hechler, Hannah, Hansen arrested at Coal River
COAL RIVER VALLEY, WV -- "During the rally in front of the Massey Energy coal property today, Coal River Mountain Watch co-director (and 2003 Goldman Prize Award winner) Judy Bonds was reportedly assaulted by a Massey supporter. While Bonds was engaged in a nonviolent protest, the Massey supporter lunged from the line without any provocation and roughly slapped Bonds on the head, ear and jaw. The Massey supporter also attempted an attack on another protestor, Lorelei Scarbro, a coal miner's widow and local community organizer. The Massey supporter was immedidately apprehended by the police and charged with battery, according to news reports," Jeff Biggers, Huffington Post.
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June 24: Air has elevated cancer risk in 600 neighborhoods
WASHINGTON, DC -- "Millions of people living in nearly 600 neighborhoods across the country are breathing concentrations of toxic air pollutants that put them at a much greater risk of contracting cancer, according to new data from the Environmental Protection Agency. The levels of 80 cancer-causing substances released by automobiles, factories and other sources in these areas exceed a 100 in 1 million cancer risk. That means that if 1 million people breathed air with similar concentrations over their lifetime, about 100 additional people would be expected to develop cancer because of their exposure to the pollution," Dina Capiello, Associated Press.
June 24: AMP receives final ‘critical’ permit
LETART FALLS -- "Yesterday the United States Army Corps of Engineers approved a 404 permit for the American Municipal Power-Ohio Generating Station proposed for Letart Falls — the last major permit for the 1,000 megawatt coal-fired power plant. AMPGS’ air and national pollutant discharge elimination system permits remain under appeal by various opponents... Section 404 of the Federal Clean Water Act regulates the discharge of dredged, excavated, or fill material in wetlands, streams, rivers, and other U.S. waters. The US Army Corps of Engineers is the federal agency authorized to issue Section 404 Permits for certain activities conducted in wetlands or other US waters,'" Beth Sergent, Pomeroy Daily Sentinel.
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June 23: A plea to President Obama: End mountaintop coal mining
Dr. James Hansen is director of NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies and adjunct professor in the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences at Columbia University.
NEW HAVEN, CT -- "The Obama administration is being forced into a political compromise. It has sacrificed a strong position on mountaintop removal in order to ensure the support of coal-state legislators for a climate bill. The political pressures are very real... The issue of mountaintop removal is so important that I and others concerned about this problem will engage in an act of civil disobedience on June 23rd at a mountaintop removal site in Coal River Valley, West Virginia," editorial, James Hansen, Yale Environment 360.
CHARLESTON, WV -- Big names expected to take on big coal, Jessica Lilly, West Virginia Public Broadcasting.
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June 22: Cuyahoga River fire 40 years ago ignited an ongoing cleanup campaign
Mayor Carl Stokes and Ben Stefanski, city utilities director, meet with reporters on the banks of the Cuyahoga, the day after the fire.
CLEVELAND -- "Even after 40 years, maybe the most surprising thing about the June 22, 1969, Cuyahoga River fire is that it is remembered at all. The story barely made the newspapers the next day. But the effect of that two-hour flare-up has lasted four decades. Today, the river fire stands as an enduring image of progress gone wrong. But after so many years, it becomes difficult to really understand and feel the rampant water (and air) pollution of the industrial era that led to the Cuyahoga fire," Michael Scott, Cleveland Plain Dealer.
June 22: Music for the Mountains Benefit at Northside Tavern, Sunday August 2
CINCINNATI -- "Six local bands and songwriters join forces Sunday, August 2 to help stop mountaintop removal coal mining. The show starts at 5pm and features brother/sister act the Majo, folk-rock songwriter Peter Adams, Americana 'orchestra' Magnolia Mountain, bluegrass-folk trio the Tillers, rising indie-folk phenom Daniel Martin Moore and killbilly rockers Cletus Romp. Thanks are due to the Northside Tavern, Shake It Records and WNKU FM – 89.7 for sponsoring the event and to the bands for donating their time and talents. For more information or to listen to the bands involved, click here," Melissa English, Southern Ohio Campaign Director, Ohio Citizen Action.
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June 22: Coal's costs outweigh benefits, WVU study finds
Among the costs of coal mining are the 724 miles of Appalachian streams buried by mountaintop removal operations like this one in Southern West Virginia. (Chris Dorst)
CHARLESTON, WV -- "Coal mining costs Appalachians five times more in early deaths as the industry provides to the region in jobs, taxes and other economic benefits, according to a groundbreaking new study co-authored by a West Virginia University researcher. In the latest in a series of papers, WVU researcher Michael Hendryx questions the idea that coal is good for West Virginia and other Appalachian communities, and recommends that political leaders consider other alternatives for improving the region's economy and quality of life," Ken Ward Jr., West Virginia Gazette. Published June 20.
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June 22: This is green energy?
State redefines environmental terms to clean up what some critics call dirty power sources
COLUMBUS -- "When it comes to new sources of electricity, the terms advanced and renewable are generally used to describe pollution-free energy, including solar, wind and water. But the state has expanded its green vocabulary to include a proposed Meigs County coal-fired power plant and a proposed Piketon nuclear power plant on its list of 'advanced' energy sources... Environmentalists say state officials have reneged on a deal struck last year to create more clean power. 'These aren't green sources of energy,' quipped Jack Shaner, of the Ohio Environmental Council. 'They're much more brown,'" Spencer Hunt, Columbus Dispatch. Published June 21.
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June 22: More than stopgaps for Appalachia
NEW YORK, NY -- "The Obama administration has pledged to restore the old buffer zone restriction. But it has said nothing at all about redefining mining waste as an illegal pollutant, which it was before the Bush people came along. A bill before the House would do exactly that. The administration should do it first," editorial, New York Times. Published June 19.
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June 22: Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson unveils 'new and improved' ethics policy
CLEVELAND -- "Councilman Mike Polensek said Friday that he thinks the mayor's push for city employees to understand the ethics policy is a good start. But he wondered if some employees -- particularly inspectors -- should be required to disclose financial transactions the way elected officials are. Among other things, elected officials must disclose who gave them gifts, to whom they owe money and who lives in their homes. Catherine Turcer of Ohio Citizen Action echoed that, but added, 'What the city needs, what Cuyahoga County needs, is ethics reform.' When asked what officials could do, she ticked off three things: Limit employee gifts and post employee gift disclosures online. Enact a clear policy about hiring friends and family to end patronage. Review each hire to make sure that policy is followed," Amanda Garrett, Cleveland Plain Dealer. Published June 19.
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June 22: County by county, officials decide whether to take or turn down stimulus money
COLUMBUS -- "Governors have made headlines for refusing at least some of President Barack Obama's economic stimulus package, but at the local level, cash-strapped cities and counties have been less vocal about turning down money. But not always. One of Ohio's fastest-growing counties rejected part of the money, joining a scattered group of U.S. communities that say certain funds aren't needed... Decisions to reject funding can be as important as how to spend it, said Catherine Turcer of the government watchdog group Ohio Citizen Action. 'Despite the fact that the stimulus seems enormous, not everyone can get a piece of the pie,' she said. 'All government officials need to think about what they really need,'" Matt Leingang, Associated Press. Published June 20.
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Jun 18: Ohio Redistricting Competition partners announce competition winners
COLUMBUS -- "Today the Ohio Redistricting Competition partners announced the results of the successful Ohio Redistricting Competition, a project years in the making. According to the partners, the competition provides concrete proof that Ohio can rely on an open process based on objective criteria to produce fair legislative districts in Ohio... The competition was launched in March 2009 by a partnership of organizations and individuals, including Former Republican State Representative Joan Lawrence, The League of Women Voters of Ohio, State Representative Dan Stewart, Professor Richard Gunther - Department of Political Science at The Ohio State University, Ohio Citizen Action, and Common Cause Ohio... 'A picture’s worth a thousand words. The Ohio Redistricting Competition provides an opportunity for Ohioans to see reform goals, like compactness and competition, put into action' said Catherine Turcer, Ohio Citizen Action," press release, Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner.
Ohio sunshine laws: An open government resource manual
Redistricting competition overview
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June 18: Daring dragline protest launches seven days that will shake mountaintop removal operations
COAL RIVER VALLEY, WV -- "Four daring protestors accomplished something today that no high ranking member in the Obama administration involved in the recent mountaintop removal mining policy decisions has ever bothered to do: These four American patriots made an actual visit to a mountaintop removal site. They also went beyond the call of duty. Scaling a towering 20-story dragline (those behemoth stripmining machines that could rip up a Manhattan block in a New York minute) and then unfolding a 15 x 150 foot banner at the Twilight mountaintop removal strip mine in Boone County, West Virginia, they also unveiled a simple message on how the EPA, the Department of Interior and the Council on Environmental Quality can best enforce the Clean Water Act and other environmental laws: JUST STOP MOUNTAINTOP REMOVAL," Jeff Biggers, Common Dreams.
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June 18: SunCoke says it can get emission credits for project
Middletown Coke says it wants to have new permit from Ohio EPA by Sept. 1
MIDDLETOWN -- "SunCoke Energy said it is prepared to secure emission-reduction credits to meet the requirements of the New Source Review air permit it has submitted to the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency. The permit, submitted to the state agency in April, requires Middletown Coke, a subsidiary of SunCoke, to show its emissions will not hinder the improvement of air quality in Butler County, which does not meet federal standards. It is more stringent than the current permit SunCoke holds, which is the subject of a Clean Air Act lawsuit," Jessica Heffner, Middletown Journal.
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June 18: Long road to power
Energy companies and politicians hope to put a nuclear plant in Piketon, but approval processes likely will move at a snail's pace
COLUMBUS -- "An impressive lineup of energy-company executives and politicians will converge on the southern Ohio village of Piketon today to announce plans for a multibillion-dollar nuclear power plant there. But don't expect those same forces to reassemble soon for a groundbreaking... Critics say other forms of alternative energy, such as wind and solar, are better, cheaper and faster ways than nuclear to cut down on the emissions from coal-fired plants that contribute to global warming. 'It's a ridiculously expensive way to boil water,' said Sandy Buchanan, director of Ohio Citizen Action, an environmental advocacy group," Jonathan Riskind and Alan Johnson, Columbus Dispatch.
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June 18: Judges should step aside if there's a hint of bias
NEWARK -- "Ohio Chief Justice Thomas Moyer reacted to the ruling by calling for his court to impose a state policy on judges to allow parties to request a judge be removed from a case if there's an appearance of bias based on campaign donations. Ohio Citizen Action reports the top industries donating to the Ohio Supreme Court races came from insurance, the legal profession, health and manufacturing. A 2006 New York Times report showed that, in a 12-year period, justices on the Ohio Supreme Court rarely removed themselves from cases involving their campaign contributors and, on average, decided in their favor 70 percent of the time. So we strongly support Moyer's proposal and think it's critical to maintaining the rights of voters to elect Ohio's Supreme Court justices," editorial, Newark Advocate.
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June 17: Ohio watchdog: Utility upgrade costs need controls
COLUMBUS -- "Ohio's utility watchdog says she'll fight for more accountability from giant utility companies as they make the expensive conversions to green energy and extended cell phone, wireless and broadband coverage. Ohio Consumer's Counsel Janine Migden-Ostrander said many of America's utility networks are poised for upgrades over the next five years as infrastructure wears out, new energy sources are found, technology improves and national environmental priorities shift... Sandy Buchanan, executive director of Ohio Citizen Action, said coal interests — including power companies that own coal-fired plants — are still a powerful political force in the state. 'She has very much kept with the goals she went in with, in terms of protecting consumers up against very difficult odds,' she said of Migden-Ostrander," Julie Carr Smyth, Associated Press.
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June 16: Byrd aides studying mountaintop removal mining
CHARLESTON, WV -- "Aides to Sen. Robert C. Byrd are in southern West Virginia for what they call a three-day fact-finding tour about mountaintop removal mining. Byrd is still recovering from an illness and staph infection and is not with his staff members from the Charleston and Washington, D.C. offices. But the West Virginia Democrat issued a statement Tuesday saying his aides will see mountaintop mining operations firsthand. They will meet with coal industry officials, environmentalists and citizens. They'll also inspect flood recovery efforts and talk to people about fears that mining may have made the damage from the spring floods worse," Associated Press.
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June 16: Location of air quality monitors for SunCoke plant up for discussion
MIDDLETOWN -- "A hearing will be held to discuss the possible location of air monitors required by an air pollution permit for the new $340 million SunCoke Energy coke plant to be built in Middletown. The Hamilton County Department of Environmental Services and Ohio Environmental Protection Agency will hold the meeting at 6:30 p.m. June 25 in the Middletown City Council Chambers of the Middletown City Building, One Donham Plaza. As part of the permit’s conditions, SunCoke must pay for monitors to determine ambient air quality in the area of the facility," Jessica Heffner, Oxford Press.
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June 16: Kids' drawings against mountaintop removal
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June 15: First major Cuyahoga County corruption charges filed against J. Kevin Kelley, Kevin Payne, Daniel Gallagher and Brian Schuman
FBI agents enter the Cuyahoga County Adminstration Building on July 28. (Gus Chan/The Plain Dealer)
CLEVELAND -- "The first major charges in a three-year county corruption investigation -- filed in U.S. District Court Friday -- paint a portrait of government leaders who saw the public till as a bankroll for personal fun. The behavior of political leaders laid out in the charges is staggering both in its scope and its audacity... 'We deserve better,' said Catherine Turcer of Ohio Citizen Action, a public watchdog group. 'It's not enough to be disgusted. Voters need to ask for better or else they'll continue to be taken advantage of,'" John Caniglia, Peter Krouse and Rachel Dissell, Cleveland Plain Dealer. Published June 12.
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June 15: State foots bill for some fancy travel
COLUMBUS -- "Bracing for a budget crisis back in January 2008 that now engulfs state government, Gov. Ted Strickland issued an executive order prohibiting all non-essential travel overseas and in the United States for state workers. But a Dispatch investigation shows that, although total state travel costs have declined, state employees continued to travel for an array of conferences, association meetings and other purposes, both out of state and overseas... 'During this economic crisis, our public officials and government officials need to really, really look at what is essential,' said Catherine Turcer of Ohio Citizen Action, a nonpartisan government watchdog," Mark Niquette, Columbus Dispatch. Published June 14.
COLUMBUS -- Report: Ohio workers took pricey trips, Associated Press. Published June 14.
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June 15: Method for picking justices must go
COLUMBUS -- "Yes, all seven justices on this state's highest court are Republican, and they got there either by raising piles of cash themselves or with assistance from their party, or in recent years with more than a little help from their third-party independent-expenditure friends... Ohio Citizen Action asked [Chief Justice] Moyer on Friday to put together a study committee to examine third-party campaign funds, their influence on judicial campaigns and recusal standards. In her letter, Catherine Turcer, with Citizen Action, quoted some staggering figures from the Brennan Center for Justice and Justice at Stake in New York," Dennis Willard, Akron Beacon Journal. Published June 13.
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June 15: Critics: Ohio Treasurer shouldn’t be spending on self-promotion
COLUMBUS -- "As Ohio’s budget swells with red ink, state Treasurer Kevin Boyce spent $32,469 in taxpayer money on promotional items such as water bottles, grocery bags and pencils and plans to buy another $47,457 in swag plastered with his name. Boyce defended the purchases as routine and said his marketing budget is about 30 percent less than what fellow Democrat Richard Cordray spent when he was state treasurer... And Catherine Turcer of Ohio Citizen Action, a good government watchdog, said just because other statewide officers spend budget money on promotion doesn’t make it right. 'So many office holders see this as a perk of incumbency without thinking through the cost to the taxpayers,' Turcer said," Laura Bischoff, Dayton Daily News. Published June 13.
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June 12: Obama mining plan draws criticism from both sides
CHARLESTON, WV -- "Obama administration officials on Thursday outlined their plans to try to reduce environmental damage from mountaintop removal, but stopped short of actions coal industry critics say are needed to curb destruction of Appalachian hills, forests and streams... But the Obama proposals did not please critics from either side. Coal industry officials said the initiative creates more uncertainty about the hoops companies must jump through to open new mines, while environmental groups objected that more concrete steps were not taken to immediately slow the destructive mining practice. 'Mountains are being blown up today. Streams are being buried today. And the administration needs to move beyond rhetoric to real action,' said Appalachian Center for the Economy and the Environment director Joe Lovett, one of a handful of lawyers who have been fighting mountaintop removal in court for a decade," Ken Ward Jr., Charleston Gazette.
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June 12: Opponents disagree with AMP bridge loan
COLUMBUS -- "Not surprisingly, opponents of the $3.25 billion American Municipal Power-Ohio Generation Station are not supportive of the $30 million bridge loan the state of Ohio recently approved to assist in developing the project. The bridge loan is funded from the $150 million advanced energy portion of the Ohio Bipartisan Job Stimulus Plan. The official announcement was made this week by Gov. Ted Strickland and Ohio Air Quality Development Authority Executive Director Mark Shanahan. The OAQDA is the state agency responsible for administering the program’s funds," Beth Sergent, Pomeroy Daily Sentinel. MORE ON THE PROPOSED AMP-OHIO COAL PLANT
June 12: Brunner requests blessing of deal
Senate campaign's use of equipment bought by state campaign is at issue
COLUMBUS -- "Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner is asking the Federal Election Commission to determine the legality of a secret agreement designed to allow her U.S. Senate campaign to use equipment bought by her now-defunct state campaign... Catherine Turcer of Ohio Citizen Action, a nonpartisan government watchdog, said the arrangement between Brunner's state and Senate campaigns may turn out to be legal but doesn't pass what she called 'the giggle test.' In fact, Turcer laughed out loud when told of the arrangement, and she said the fact that Brunner is the state's top elections officer makes the situation particularly troubling. 'It is so disheartening to have the chief elections official attempt to find a way to avoid election law,' she said," Joe Hallett and Mark Niquette, Columbus Dispatch.
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June 11: Letters decry planned coal power plant
Niles would help pay for construction of facility
NILES -- "Dozens of letters were sent to city officials from residents protesting last year's decision to back a plan by the city to support the building of a coal-powered electricity plant along the Ohio River. 'AMP Ohio has hydro and wind power projects going, and that's great,' said Liz Ilg of Ohio Citizen Action, an environmental organization that's opposing the project. 'But this coal plant takes away from that focus...' She said the group is opposing the project not only because it is a coal plant, but because the project has potential negative consequences for tax payers. The costs of the project aren't known, Ilg said. 'Many rate payers have no idea their city councils have gotten them into this,' she said," Amanda Smith-Teutsch, Warren Tribune Chronicle.
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June 11: Mountaintop Letdown
President Obama's decision will enrage environmentalists, but it's the right one
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- "While Mr. Obama may have wanted voters to believe otherwise, he never flat-out said he would end this brand of mining. His decision reflects energy and political realities. Coal will remain an essential energy source for some time, while ending mountaintop removal mining would require action in Congress. There it would be opposed by coal-state members whose help Mr. Obama needs to get the more ambitious climate-change bill passed. Would we rather see a better way to extract coal? Certainly. But vigorous enforcement of the laws can help protect the environment until viable energy alternatives render the practice unnecessary," editorial, Washington Post.
Obviously, the Washington Post wrote this editorial at the prompting of the White House. This means the Obama Administration is concerned about the political heat they are taking on this issue. That's also the reason for the big reform announcement coming later today that they are really, really, really going to scrutinize mountaintop removal coal mining applications before they rubber-stamp them.
This is becoming a pattern. On March 24, the U.S. EPA said it would insist on reviewing such applications, and then a few weeks later, approved the overwhelming majority of them. On April 26, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar held a press conference to announce a major mountaintop removal reform. Before the press conference was over, he had admitted that it would have no effect on mountaintop removal operations. These maneuvers by the Obama Administration are fooling no one. -- Paul Ryder, Organizing Director
WASHINGTON, D. C. -- Breaking: Obama Says Mountain Crimes Can Be Regulated--Will Gore, Carter or Congress Intervene Now?, Jeff Biggers, Huffington Post.
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June 11: Ohio chief justice wants new ethics policy
COLUMBUS -- "Ohio's chief justice will call for new policy at the state's highest court after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that elected judges must not participate in cases that involve large contributors to their election campaigns... Catherine Turcer, who directs Ohio Citizen Action's Money in Politics Project, called on Moyer Wednesday to create a study committee to examine the influence of issue advertising on judicial elections in Ohio. For example, the Partnership for Ohio's Future, an affiliate of the Ohio Chamber of Commerce, spent nearly $1.3 million on ads supporting two Supreme Court justices in 2006, Turcer said. In 2008, a Chamber affiliate spent just less than $1 million. She said Ohio has aired more ads in state Supreme Court races since 2000 than any other state. 'It really highlights all the money that swirls around these judicial campaigns,' she said," JoAnne Viviano, Akron Beacon Journal.
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June 10: Mayors of Toledo, Oregon reaffirm support for coking plant on border
TOLEDO -- "Toledo Mayor Carty Finkbeiner and Oregon Mayor Marge Brown yesterday reaffirmed their support for the proposed FDS coking facility and co-generation power plant on the East Toledo-Oregon border. Mr. Finkbeiner opened a news conference on the proposed site by referencing a Blade article about the project yesterday. The story quoted a spokesman for FDS Coke Plant LLC that the project will be dead unless investors see movement by June 26 on an appeal before an independent state board called the Ohio Environmental Review Appeals Commission. The appeal was filed in 2004 by the village of Harbor View and the Sierra Club. Both have raised concerns about the project's environmental impact," Tom Henry, Toledo Blade.
TOLEDO -- Delays could scrap plans for Ohio plant, new jobs, Associated Press.
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June 10: AMP-Ohio power plant to get loan
Interest-free aid set for coal-fired facility
AKRON -- "The new coal-fired power plant planned in southern Ohio is getting a $30 million bridge loan from the state of Ohio. The five-year, no-interest loan for American Municipal Power-Ohio's $3.1 billion plant near Racine in Meigs County was announced today by Gov. Ted Strickland and Mark Shanahan of the Ohio Air Quality Development Authority... The project has come under fire from several environmental groups. Critics say the plant will contribute to global warming, and they call its anti-pollution system unproven and less effective," Bob Downing, Akron Beacon Journal.
COLUMBUS -- AMP-Ohio’s Meigs County project gets state stimulus loan, Columbus Business First.
COLUMBUS -- AMP receives $30 million bridge loan, Beth Sergent, Pomeroy Daily Sentinel.
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June 10: Ruling on 'probable bias' spotlights political reality NEW YORK, NY -- "The U.S. Supreme Court's decision this week calling for judges to stay out of cases involving big political donors confronts the growing role of money in the U.S. judicial system... Last year in Ohio, where two supreme court seats were up for grabs, insurance companies and corporate-defense law firms were among the largest contributors to the victorious Republican candidates, while labor unions gave heavily to the Democratic candidates, according to a study by Ohio Citizen Action, a government watchdog group. Recently, Ohio business groups have donated more than their pro-consumer counterparts, one reason the state's supreme court is all Republican, said Catherine Turcer, the director of Ohio Citizen's Money In Politics project," Nathan Koppel, Wall Street Journal.
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June 9: Animals in the news: Ohio Citizen Action holding a mutt wash
 Emily Felker, Jessica Metcalf and Timber at the mutt wash in 2007. |
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June 9: Group threatens to scrap coke plant
After five years, leaders tired of delays
TOLEDO -- "FDS Coke Plant LLC could be on the verge of scrapping its plans for a coking facility and co-generation power plant on the East Toledo-Oregon border. The project, one of Ohio's largest, carries an estimated price tag of $800 million to $1 billion. The consortium that put it together has promised 150 blue-collar jobs with average salaries of $45,000, along with 1,500 to 2,000 temporary construction jobs. But five years after the original permit for the coking portion was issued by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency, no construction has begun... The holdup centers around a joint appeal filed by the village of Harbor View and the Sierra Club," Tom Henry, Toledo Blade.
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June 9: Ohio justices may rethink recusals in light of U.S. Supreme Court decision
Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Thomas Moyer and Justice Paul Pfeifer. (Will Schilling/Associated Press)
COLUMBUS -- "In a landmark decision released Monday, a divided U.S. Supreme Court said an elected West Virginia high court judge should have recused himself from a case in which he repeatedly favored a major campaign donor... Catherine Turcer, of Ohio Citizen Action, a government watchdog group, said the ruling will finally force Ohio to deal with the worsening perception that opinions too often are influenced by cash donations. 'It brings into light that a good three out of four Americans believe campaign spending impacts what happens in the courtroom,' Turcer said. 'It allows, really for the first time, that at the state level we do something about this by establishing recusal standards,'" Reginald Fields, Cleveland Plain Dealer.
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June 9: Judges can't rule on big donors' cases, Supreme Court says
Precedent-setting decision could affect Ohio judicial elections
WASHINGTON, DC -- "The U.S. Supreme Court ruled today that elected judges should disqualify themselves from ruling in cases involving people who have contributed huge sums of money to the judges' campaigns. In a 5-4 decision, the justices concluded that a West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals justice should not have taken part in a dispute between two coal companies because the owner of one of the firms had spent $3 million to help elect the justice... 'I believe judges should be elected,' said Catherine Turcer, a lobbyist for Ohio Citizen Action, which is critical of the way Ohio finances its judicial campaigns. 'If we continue to have problems, then it's worth thinking about alternatives,' such as merit selection or public financing of judicial campaigns," Jack Torr and James Nash, Columbus Dispatch.
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June 9: Ohio EPA: Landfill reaction, fire contained
BOLIVAR -- "An Ohio Environmental Protection Agency official told the local waste district board Friday that the agency is confident that it has 'completely contained' an aluminum dross reaction and fire at the Countywide landfill. Addressing the board of the Stark-Tuscarawas-Wayne Joint Solid Waste Management District, EPA Environmental Manager Kurt Princic said that the mass excavation of waste at the northwest end of the Countywide Recycling & Disposal Facility’s original 88 acres had been completed," Robert Wang, Canton Repository. Published June 5.
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June 8: U.S. high court: Judges must avoid appearance of bias
WASHINGTON, DC -- "The Supreme Court ruled Monday that elected judges must step aside from cases when large campaign contributions from interested parties create the appearance of bias. By a 5-4 vote in a case from West Virginia, the court said that a judge who remained involved in a lawsuit filed against the company of the most generous supporter of his election deprived the other side of the constitutional right to a fair trial... The West Virginia case involved more than $3 million spent by the chief executive of Massey Energy Co. to help elect state Supreme Court Justice Brent Benjamin. At the same time, Massey was appealing a verdict, which now totals $82.7 million with interest, in a dispute with a local coal company. Benjamin refused to step aside from the case, despite repeated requests, and was part of a 3-2 decision to overturn the verdict," Associated Press.
"Just as no man is allowed to be a judge in his own cause, similar fears of bias can arise when—without the other parties’ consent—a man chooses the judge in his own cause. Applying this principle to the judicial election process, there was here a serious, objective risk of actual bias that required Justice Benjamin’s recusal."Justice Anthony Kennedy, Page 11-16, Decision Caperton v Massey.
In favor of the petitioner Caperton: Justice Anthony Kennedy, Justices Stephen Breyer, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, David Souter and John Paul Stevens.
Chief Justice John Roberts wrote the dissent. Justices Samuel Alito, Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas also dissented.
Brief of amicus curiae Good Government Groups including Ohio Citizen Action in support of Caperton.
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June 8: Representative Helcher to President Obama: Time for Harry S. Truman moment in the coalfields
 Ken Hechler with President Truman |
Visit YouTube to see the video of Rep. Helcher speaking against mountaintop removal coal mining. His address to the demonstrators starts at 6:50.
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June 8: AMP reacts to latest public hearing
POMEROY -- "A public informational session and hearing held by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency regarding a permit modification for American Municipal Power-Ohio’s air permit-to-install on June 2 provided the public a chance to speak, and now AMP-Ohio is reacting. 'From our perspective we thought it went well,' Kent Carson, AMP-Ohio communications director said. 'We’re happy with the people who came out in support of the project and appreciated that.' Carson also said he felt not all of the comments made by those who were questioning the modification were 'germane to the administration modification which was the purpose of the hearing,'" Beth Sergent, Pomeroy Daily Sentinel. Published June 6.
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June 8: Cleveland Clerk of Courts Earle Turner worked in his office just 84 days last year, records show
CLEVELAND -- "Most public employees in Cleveland work about 240 days each year, but Cleveland Clerk of Courts Earle Turner worked in his office just 84 days in 2008, a Plain Dealer investigation shows... Catherine Turcer of the watchdog group Ohio Citizen Action was troubled by the findings. She said taxpayers are entitled to know what work public officials perform in or away from the office. Turner, she said, probably does not keep an appointment book or calendar for a reason. 'He doesn't want the public to know what he's up to,' she said. 'He doesn't keep a calendar because it avoids a public-record request,'" Mark Puente, Cleveland Plain Dealer. Published June 7.
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June 5: Cleveland's Community Partnership for Arts and Culture grants fellowships
Angela Oster, one of the artists selected to receive a fellowship, is Ohio Citizen Action's website editor and payroll administrator.
CLEVELAND -- "Today, the Cleveland nonprofit Community Partnership for Arts and Culture released the names of 20 area artists selected to receive its new $20,000 Creative Workforce Fellowships. The yearlong grants represent the first distribution of the $19.5 million Cuyahoga Arts and Culture collected last year from taxes on tobacco products. A second wave goes out next month to 20 local writers and performers. 'Hopefully, this money will let them take a sabbatical and focus on their art on a daily basis,' said Tom Schorgl, president of CPAC. 'It might allow them to start a project, or finish one.' Of the 250 visual artists who applied for the initial fellowships, 20 were selected by a seven-member panel of artists and instructors from outside Northeast Ohio," Zachary Lewis, Cleveland Plain Dealer.
June 5: Mutt wash for the mountains
CLEVELAND -- "Ohio Citizen Action is holding a mutt-wash fundraiser at The Mutt Hutt in Tremont (2603 Scranton Rd.) to benefit their campaign to get mountaintop removal coal mining banned. The dog wash will be held on Saturday, June 20th, from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. The donation is $10 for a mutt wash and $5 for a nail trim.
Mountaintop removal is the most radical form of coal mining where mountains are literally blown up – devastating communities throughout Appalachia, polluting drinking water and destroying rivers. Proceeds from the June 20th mutt wash will benefit Ohio Citizen Action and their campaign to get President Obama to ban this form of coal mining," press release, Ohio Citizen Action, The Mutt Hutt. MORE ON MOUNTAINTOP REMOVAL COAL MINING
June 5: Alumni news:
Chris McNulty and Katie Michalko
Andrew Michalko, Chris McNulty and Katie Michalko began the project "Being And Doing."
LAKEWOOD -- "We at Being And Doing, Inc. feel that our energy is better spent promoting the work of nonprofit and community-based organizations that measure success by their ability to help and serve rather than their profitability. We believe that it is time to pay attention to the people who have been doing it right all along. Being And Doing, Inc. is a mobile nonprofit group out of Lakewood, OH that promotes the ideals and goals of the extensive nonprofit sector (tax-exempt organizations, community groups, and individuals who work for a purpose rather than a paycheck). Our means of doing so is simple: hop in a van, volunteer with different nonprofit groups across the country, and tell their stories online. While everyone’s top priority right now is to make a change, we need to acknowledge what can, and should, remain the same," Being And Doing, Incorporated.
Chris and Katie worked as field canvassers in our Cleveland office in the first half of 2009.
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June 4: U.S. EPA Administrator Jackson hides behind police
MONFORT HEIGHTS, OH -- "After dodging questions about mountaintop removal from Ohio Citizen Action activists at an event in Columbus Wednesday morning, U.S. EPA administrator Lisa Jackson proceeded to an afternoon event at a Cincinnati area school. Upon learning that the group’s local activists were also in attendance at the second event, Ms. Jackson’s staff and school officials attempted to prevent them from addressing what they termed the 'controversial' issue at the second press conference. When the activists unfurled a banner exhibiting the handprints, names and ages of 161 Cincinnati schoolchildren and the message, 'Helping hands say – stop blowing up our mountains”, they were asked to leave school premises. The request was backed up by armed Colerain Township police," Melissa English, Southern Ohio Campaign Director, Ohio Citizen Action.
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June 4: Analysis finds elevated risk from soot particles in the air
NEW YORK, NY -- "A new appraisal of existing studies documenting the links between tiny soot particles and premature death from cardiovascular ailments shows that mortality rates among people exposed to the particles are twice as high as previously thought. Dan Greenbaum, the president of the nonprofit Health Effects Institute, which is releasing the analysis on Wednesday, said that the areas covered in the study included 116 American cities, with the highest levels of soot particles found in areas including the eastern suburbs of Los Angeles and the Central Valley of California; Birmingham, Ala.; Atlanta; the Ohio River Valley; and Pittsburgh... A variety of sources produce fine particles, and they include diesel engines, automobile tires, coal-fired power plants and oil refineries," Felicity Barringer, New York Times. Published June 2.
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June 4: Call for nominations for the Ohio Citizen Action Howard M. Metzenbaum Award
CLEVELAND -- "The Ohio Citizen Action Howard M. Metzenbaum Award is the highest honor the organization can give. Since 1995, it has been presented to an Ohioan who best reflects Senator Metzenbaum’s example of principled tenacity. Ohio Citizen Action is inviting nominations for this year’s award by July 1, 2009. When Howard M. Metzenbaum retired from the U.S. Senate in 1994, Ohio Citizen Action wanted to honor him by presenting an award in his name each year. Throughout his years of service in the Senate, Senator Metzenbaum’s name was synonymous with fighting for what’s right. The nominee must be a resident of or have a strong connection to Ohio and must have demonstrated achievements exhibiting 'principled tenacity,'" Ohio Citizen Action.
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June 4: Kids' drawings against mountaintop removal
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June 3: Coal's controversy dogs EPA leader
COLUMBUS -- "Environmental groups have cheered many of the Obama-led U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's recent decisions, most of which reversed Bush-era policies and rules. In a Columbus appearance today, U.S. EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson faced a protest from members of the environmental group Ohio Citizen Action over her agency's inaction on proposed coal mines, particularly those that would remove mountaintops and fill adjacent valleys and streams with toxic mine debris," Spencer Hunt, Columbus Dispatch.
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June 3: E. Gordon Gee retires from controversial company
ATHENS -- "Environmental activist groups, after months of pressuring Gee to resign, seem to have gotten what they wanted. The Ohio State University President E. Gordon Gee stepped down from the Massey Energy Board last Friday, May 29 - 10 days after he was re-elected. Gee had served on the Board for nine years. 'Dr. Gee's public relations nightmare is over,' Ohio Citizen Action Executive Director Sandy Buchanan released in a statement. Yet despite the headlines that he resigned, Gee, 65, said he instead retired. 'I wanted to be able to do it outside of the notion of people calling for my resignation,' Gee said in response to his timing. 'I wanted to make the decision myself,'" Kate Liebers, UWeekly.
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June 3: Thunder rolls at AMP meeting
RACINE -- "The purpose of last night’s meeting was to have an informational session on and public hearing about what the Ohio EPA calls a draft modification to the AMP-Ohio air permit-to-install which was approved in 2008... Though AMP-Ohio and the Ohio EPA called the modification 'administrative,' people like Nancy Kanfer with the Sierra Club said by using that 'administrative' terminology, this was a missed opportunity to fix problems in the draft permit modification. At the meeting, Kanfer said Meigs as well as surrounding counties were 'overburdened by hazardous air pollutants,' adding he was particularly concerned about the affect and inclusion of manganese as one of those pollutants permitted, citing this as a public health issue. Kanfer asked that every measure be taken to protect the public health, adding he felt not everything had been done to reduce pollutants in the draft. Rachael Belz from Ohio Citizen Action also spoke, saying there were aspects of the draft permit modification that her organization was appalled by and spoke about her concerns in regards to mercury emissions that could affect the Ohio River," Beth Sergent, Pomeroy Daily Sentinel.
- Testimony from Rachael Belz, Ohio Citizen Action.
June 2: Don't cut down mountaintops
Hallie from Ohio wants mountaintop removal to stop.
Paige from Ohio writes, "Save Our Mountains: This is what will happen."
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June 1: Power politics
Facing activist heat, university president quits board of mountaintop removal mining company
COLUMBUS -- "Pressure is building for Massey to clean up its act. Earlier this year, Santa Clara University -- a Jesuit institution in California's Silicon Valley -- divested its holdings in the company. In his state of the university speech, President Michael Engh said the investment had been made "unknowingly" and contradicted the school's 'ethical guidelines for investment.' And in 2007, a coalition of environmentally concerned investors including the North Carolina treasurer targeted 10 companies it identified as lagging behind industry peers in responding to climate change; Massey was among them for failing to disclose how it intends to respond to pressure to cut greenhouse gas emissions," Sue Sturgis, Institute for Southern Studies.
COLUMBUS -- Gee Quits Board of Controversial Energy Company, Inside Higher Ed.
COLUMBUS -- OSU President resigns from Board of Coal Company under fire for mountaintop removal, Gongwer News Service. Published May 29. No link; subscription required.
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June 1: Obama walks a fine line over mining
Environmentalists feel betrayed by the EPA's decision not to block new mountaintop mining projects
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- "Although environmentalists had expected the new administration to put the brakes on mountaintop removal, Rahall and other mining advocates have pointed out that Obama did not promise to end the practice and was more open to it than his Republican opponent, Arizona Sen. John McCain... Ed Hopkins, a top Sierra Club official, said some of the projects that have now obtained the EPA's blessing 'are as large and potentially destructive as the ones they objected to. It makes us wonder what standards -- if any -- the administration is using,' Hopkins said," Tom Hamburger and Peter Wallsten, Los Angeles Times. Published May 31.
As of May 27, 16,607 Ohio Citizen Action members and friends have written President Obama's U.S. EPA chief: Ban mountaintop removal now.
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