Help protect an Alaskan community from coal mining

What do we do when we don't have clean water to drink and clean air to breathe?" -- Local resident and small business owner Bonnie Zirkle1

Public opposition to a proposed 8,100 acre coal mine about 50 miles northeast of Anchorage is growing. Local residents who are opposed to the mine cite concerns about mining explosions, decreased property value, water pollution and safety.2

The Department of Natural Resources is currently accepting public comments from Alaskans on the proposed permit, and they'll take all comments into account before deciding whether or not to approve the permit.

Tell the Alaska Department of Natural Resources: Reject the permit for the proposed Wishbone Hill coal mine.

150 families live within one mile of the site of the proposed mine,3, and the land has traditionally been used for hunting, fishing and ceremonies by the Chickaloon Tribe, which opposes the mine.4

Taking away traditional hunting and fishing grounds and putting hundreds of people at risk is simply too high of a price to pay for a coal mine.

The Usibelli Mine Company has had a permit to mine on the land since 1992, but they haven't done so yet. The company is now planning a large-scale mine at the site, but first they'll need the Alaska Department of Natural Resources to renew their permit, which expires every five years.

Heather McCausland of the Matanuska Valley Coalition told the Anchorage Daily News that the company chose the location "because they think we're not going to say anything."5 You can help prove them wrong by submitting a public comment to the Department of Natural Resources, voicing your opposition.

Tell the Alaska Department of Natural Resources: Reject the permit for the proposed Wishbone Hill coal mine.

1. Neighbors: No on Coal, Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman, April 1, 2010
http://www.frontiersman.com/articles/2010/04/02/local_news/doc4bb5582637a85003030525.txt

2. Mat-Su Assembly Backs Coal Mine in 5-1 Vote , Anchorage Daily News, September 7, 2011
http://www.adn.com/2011/09/07/2054113/mat-su-assembly-backs-coal-mine.html

3. No Place For a Coal Strip Mine, Mat Valley Coalition
http://org2.democracyinaction.org/o/6221/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=8030

4. Property Values and Coal Don't Mix, Mat Valley Coalition, February 25, 2011
http://matvalley.org/2011/02/25/property-values-coal-dont-mix/

http://act.credoaction.com/campaign/alaska_wishbone_hill/?r=231239&id=27032-3325226-biNlC7x