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CHARLESTON – “Today’s release by the U.S. EPA of its "final" permitting guidance document continues that agency's assault on the coal miners of West Virginia. The release of this document is further evidence of EPA's willingness to use these guidance documents to completely bypass the established rule-making processes created under the Clean Water Act.
“As we always said, EPA's actions, while focused on the coal industry at the moment, nullify the existence of state water quality programs and can be applied to any activity anywhere. This represents a dangerous precedent in that it tramples on the authority provided to the states under the Clean Water Act.
“The finalization of this document is proof positive of EPA's arrogance its willingness usurp the power of state legislatures, state regulatory authorities, and even Congress, providing even more evidence that the U.S. Senate must join the House of Representatives in demanding an end to EPA's abuse of it's power by passing HR 2018.”
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CHARLESTON – The West Virginia Coal Association (WVCA) today applauded passage yesterday of HR 2018, the "Clean Water Cooperative Federalism Act of 2011," in the U.S. House of Representatives.
“HR 2018 is a bipartisan bill that would rein in the Obama EPA and end the agency’s destructive abuse of authority and restore the balance needed to get America working again,” said Bill Raney, President of the WVCA. "The West Virginia Coal Association and the Friends of Coal would like to thank everyone for their support of HR 2018. This bill has major implications for the 63,000 West Virginia families whose livelihoods depend on mining coal.”
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"The West Virginia Coal Association and the Friends of Coal would like to thank everyone for their support of HR 2018. This bill has major implications for the 63,000 West Virginia families whose livelihoods depend on mining coal. In recent years, the Obama EPA has used the CWA permitting process to block coal mining in Appalachia, however coal mining isn’t the only industry threatened by EPA’s arrogance. Quarries, farmers, and commercial, residential, and infrastructure construction projects also receive CWA scrutiny and are affected by EPA’s abuse of its authority.
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HR 2018 is a bipartisan bill that would rein in the Obama EPA. It would bring an end to the agency’s destructive abuse of authority and restore the balance needed to get America working again. The bill has major implications for the Friends of Coal and the 63,000 West Virginia families whose livelihoods depend on mining coal.
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BRUNSWICK, Maine -- Everett "Brownie" Carson invokes powerful imagery when describing mountaintop removal operations, in which coal companies use explosives to crown mountains and access the resources inside.
"I'm a Vietnam vet, and it reminded me of Agent Orange," Carson said. "Once they blow these mountain tops off, the water's undrinkable, the streams are polluted, the properties are devalued, the schools close."

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