May 2, 2015 2 min read

Earth Day was April 22, and it was great to see people sharing information and tips on how to reduce the consumption of natural resources and be more conscious of the water and energy-intensive aspects of our lifestyles. At the Center for Coalfield Justice, rather than challenging people to install more energy efficient lightbulbs or take shorter showers – we are confident many have already made those changes – we want to challenge people to stand up against the irresponsible, damaging extraction of fossil fuels and their use for energy generation.

About 52 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States come from industry and electricity production. Greenhouse gas emissions from industry primarily come from burning fossil fuels for energy, as well as certain chemical reactions necessary to produce goods from raw materials. Approximately 67 percent of our electricity comes from burning fossil fuels, mostly coal (39 percent) and natural gas (27 percent).

Lowering our level of energy consumption is an important first step in moving beyond our current reliance on fossil fuels, but it is also crucial that we come together to push for accountability and compliance with the best environmental standards for fossil fuel extraction. The most recent Act 54 Report on underground coal mining made it clear that there are still gaps in law, regulations, and enforcement that are allowing widespread destruction of streams, wetlands, ecosystems, people’s homes and water supplies. The next step is to support policies that allow renewable energy to compete on a level playing field with heavily subsidized fossil fuels.

A study by PennFuture revealed that during 2012-2013, Pennsylvania provided $3.25 billion in subsidies to fossil-fuel industries. That translates to $794 per Pennsylvania taxpayer per year. As we look forward to a transition beyond fossil fuels, we recognize the critical importance of a parallel economic transition in Greene and Washington counties, where we hope to see a community-lead movement into a resilient, sustainable economy of stable jobs that pay living wages which will allow this region to thrive.

Caitlin McCoy

Washington

McCoy is the legal director at the Center for Coalfield Justice in Washington.