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Alberta ignoring advice it sought from citizens on Rocky Mountain coal policy, former committee member says – by Emma Graney (Globe and Mail – January 22, 2025)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

A member of Alberta’s coal policy committee says the provincial government is ignoring the will of tens of thousands of Albertans as it develops new rules around mining and is instead leaning on industry to guide its hand.

Bill Trafford was appointed to the coal policy engagement committee when it was established by then-Energy Minister Sonya Savage in 2021. Mr. Trafford is also the president of the Livingstone Landowners Group and worked alongside the four other committee members to gather feedback from across the province to help in the development of a modern coal policy.

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Coalspur Vista Coal mine expansion at odds with federal coal commitment: environmental advocate – by Natasha Bulowski (CTV News Edmonton – December 11, 2024)

https://edmonton.ctvnews.ca/

Federal Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault’s decision not to assess the impact of a massive thermal coal mine expansion is “cowardly” and “colossal backtracking” on Canada’s commitments to stop exporting this dirty fossil fuel, says an environmental advocate. On Dec. 6, the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada (IAAC) decided Coalspur’s Vista Coal mine expansion in west-central Alberta will not be subject to a federal impact assessment.

“Over the last two years, we’ve seen zero progress on the thermal coal export ban, and now we’re seeing Canada move in the opposite direction by refusing to even assess the impacts of a major expansion of Canada’s largest thermal coal mine,” Julia Levin of Environmental Defence told Canada’s National Observer in a phone interview.

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Navajo communities seek ‘just transition’ for people affected by coal mine closures – by Arlyssa D. Becenti (Arizona Republic – December 6, 2024)

https://www.azcentral.com/

Nearly 20 years after Peabody Mining closed its Black Mesa Mine and five years after the Kayenta Mine and Navajo Generating Station closed on the Navajo Nation, residents are working toward recovery of what’s left of the land after more than 50 years of coal extraction.

The work includes a land use plan that has been 20 years in the making and a proposal for a community center that will also be instrumental as a climate resilience center. While the coal company initiated reclamation efforts, the post-mining landscape has always appeared different depending on whether it’s seen by someone who resides within the community or someone from the outside.

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Honoring those who built our coal legacy on National Miners Day – by Bobby McCool (Appalachian News- Express – December 2, 2024)

https://www.news-expressky.com/

Bobby McCool is the State Representative 97th District

Electricity, roads, smartphones. What do all these seemingly unrelated things have in common? Their existence is dependent on mined materials, extracted from the earth by hard-working men and women who take pride in the role they play in providing a great quality of life to our nation.

While the products mined can range from rock salt to metals, Kentuckians most often think of mining in terms of the coal industry that accounts for almost 70 percent of our energy portfolio. It is the coal miner that kept our state’s utility rates less expensive than neighboring states.

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Wyoming and Montana Republicans vow to challenge Biden decision to block coal mining in area – by Staff (Washington Examiner – December 3, 2024)

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President Joe Biden’s administration approved legislation blocking new coal mining in parts of Wyoming and Montana due to climate change concerns. Republican politicians in both states vowed to challenge and eventually overturn the decision.

The Bureau of Land Management announced its approval of the Resource Management Plan Amendment for the Buffalo Field Office in Buffalo, Wyoming, according to reports. This amendment will prohibit new federal coal mining leases in the Powder River Basin by 2041. The judgment was made over concerns about the amount of greenhouse gas emissions due to coal mining operations, according to documentation.

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Crowsnest Pass voted for coal — other Alberta communities don’t all share the enthusiasm – by Joel Dryden (CBC News Calgary – November 26, 2024)

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/

More than 70% of voters were in favour of Grassy Mountain mine

Crowsnest Pass residents voted decisively Monday in favour of bringing coal back, with more than 70 per cent of voters saying they’d support a nearby coal project. Though the vote is non-binding, Crowsnest Pass councillors say the vote in support will guide them in the months ahead as they lobby decision-makers to advance the proposed coking coal mine at Grassy Mountain.

“The Crowsnest Pass has made a decisive decision and as mayor and council we will take your position forward to the upper levels of government and through the regulatory process,” Crowsnest Pass Mayor Blair Painter told The Canadian Press late Monday.

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‘Let’s do this’: Crowsnest Pass mayor wants proposed coal mine sooner than later – by Bill Graveland (CTV News Calgary – November 26,2024)

https://calgary.ctvnews.ca/

A mayor in southwestern Alberta is hoping for an immediate meeting with Premier Danielle Smith to discuss a coal project his community has voted in favour of being built. “The sooner the better,” said Crowsnest Pass Mayor Blair Painter. “Let’s do this.”

Residents of the municipality, which saw its last coal mine close four decades ago, voted 72 per cent “yes” to a simple referendum question: “Do you support the development and operations of the metallurgical coal mine at Grassy Mountain?”

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Crowsnest Pass residents divided as voting on mining at Grassy Mountain gets underway – by Karsen Marczuk (CTV News Calgary – November 20, 2024)

https://calgary.ctvnews.ca/

Advance polls for Crowsnest Pass residents were held on Tuesday for a proposed coal mine at Grassy Mountain. In September, the Municipality of Crowsnest Pass announced a non-binding referendum vote would take place asking, “Do you support the development and operations of a metallurgical mine at Grassy Mountain?”

The topic has caused a divide in the community. “Coal mining built the Crowsnest Pass,” said Bonnie Castellarin with Citizens Supportive of Crowsnest Coal. “At that time, it was a very thriving community and as the mines closed, it has definitely hurt our community.”

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Opinion: Alberta should lead in responsible coal mining – by Robin Campbell (Edmonton Journal – November 18, 2024)

https://edmontonjournal.com/

In Alberta, we’ve always proudly told the world about the advantages and attractiveness of investing here. We speak about low taxes, abundant resources, and a highly skilled and motivated workforce. It’s a great story, but as families in communities across the province look for ways to pay their bills, the story needs to be backed by strong public policy.

A shadow looms over what should be a critical element of our mining sector, steelmaking coal. In Alberta, steelmaking coal has immense potential for development. This development can be done responsibly – our laws demand it.

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What Happened to the Canary in the Coal Mine? The Story of How the Real-Life Animal Helper Became Just a Metaphor – by Kat Eschner ; Updated by Sonja Anderson (Smithsonian Magazine – December 30, 2016; March 7, 2024)

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/

The humble bird, which was employed until 1986, represents an important part of mining history

Never mind the gas—it was automation that got them in the end. Throughout much of the 20th century, chirping canaries were staples of the coal mining industry. As coal miners descended into the earth—entering a harsh environment often home to poisonous gases like carbon monoxide—they would bring the yellow birds along as safety mechanisms.

Because carbon monoxide is clear and odorless, miners needed a method for detecting a leak before it killed them. In the mine, a canary’s collapse let workers know there was poisonous gas in the air and gave them some warning time to evacuate.

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Book Brings W.Va. Mine Wars History To Young Readers (West Virginia Public Broadcasting – November 6, 2024)

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The West Virginia mine wars played an important part in U.S. history, but for decades were often left out of history classes. A new book aims to change that. It’s titled The Mine Wars: The Bloody Fight for Workers’ Rights in the West Virginia Coalfields, by Steve Watkins.

The mine wars occurred in the early 1900s as the United Mine Workers tried to unionize coal mines, and coal companies fought back — literally. The conflict culminated in the Battle of Blair Mountain, which was the largest armed insurrection in the US since the American Civil War.

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Opinion – We’re losing the battle to dethrone King Coal – by David Olive (Toronto Star – November 2, 2024)

https://www.thestar.com/

The good news is that the energy transition is well underway. We are electrifying almost everything that was powered by greenhouse-gas emitting fossil fuels. The bad news is that the transition to electricity is largely driven by coal, the dirtiest of fossil fuels and the biggest contributor to climate change.

A quarter of a century after humanity first got serious about global warming at the time of the 1997 Kyoto Protocol, the world this year will burn a record 8.74 billion metric tonnes of coal, according to the Paris-based International Energy Agency (IEA).

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Coal mining in the foothills of the Rockies: A tale of two municipalities – by Emma Graney (Globe and Mail – October 14, 2024)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

A coal mining proposal has divided two neighbouring municipalities in Southern Alberta – and one of them recently received a blow from the Alberta Energy Regulator, which denied its application for an adjournment of licence hearings for a new coal development.

To the north is Ranchland, a municipality of rolling terrain in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains with around 100 residents. To the south is Crowsnest Pass, a municipality of about 5,700 people. Both picturesque, the two municipalities could not be more different when it comes to their positions on coal mining.

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China’s Still Backing Overseas Coal Plants After Ban, Says CREA (Bloomberg News – October 14, 2024)

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

(Bloomberg) — Chinese firms and banks continue to support the expansion of coal power overseas, three years after President Xi Jinping promised to end the practice, according to new research.

Some 8.6 gigawatts of previously unannounced Chinese-backed coal-fired power plants have entered construction or the pre-permitting phase in the past year in places like Southeast Asia and Africa, the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air said in a report on Tuesday.

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Britain’s last coal-fired electricity plant is closing. It ends 142 years of coal power in the UK – by Jill Lawless (Associated Press – September 30, 2024)

https://apnews.com/

LONDON (AP) — Britain’s last coal-fired power plant is closing on Monday, ending 142 years of coal-generated electricity in the nation that sparked the Industrial Revolution.

The Ratcliffe-on-Soar station in central England is finishing its final shift at midnight after more than half a century of turning coal into power. The U.K. government hailed the closure as a milestone in efforts to generate all of Britain’s energy from renewable sources by 2030.

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