Tell BLM: Stop coal leases on public land
SHORT DEADLINE, JULY 28
SUMMARY: The Bureau of Land Management is developing a plan to resume coal leases on public lands. They plan to tweak the leasing process but are not considering a continued moratorium or an end to coal leasing as a possibility, even though this would be the real "no action alternative".
WHAT YOU CAN DO: Add your name below.
As health professionals we welcome this opportunity to comment on the scope of evaluation of the environmental impact of federal coal leases. From our perspective as guardians of the nation's health, the glaring deficit in the BLM's proposal is the failure to consider ending coal leasing on public lands as a legitimate alternative.
Costly damage to public health
Coal is harmful to human health in every phase of its life cycle and contributes to 4 of our 5 leading causes of death. Harvard's Center for Global Health and the Environment estimates that coal mining costs the American public $175 billion to 523 billion dollars per year in damage to health, the climate and the environment (CGHE, 2011). Since 41% of coal is mined from federal lands, the cost attributable to federal coal leases is $70 to $209 billion dollars annually. Coal leases last 20 years. Their direct health impacts last a lifetime and their indirect health impacts from climate change will last for many thousands of years.
Accelerating climate disaster
US federal coal reserves amount to 25% of the world's carbon budget for 2 C global warming. Keeping this coal in the ground is an essential part of the United States' international climate commitment. Resuming coal leases on public lands will speed up the accumulation of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, bringing us closer to a tipping point and runaway global warming, weaken international cooperation, and threaten the world's ability to keep global warming under 2 C.
Failure to protect public lands.
Our public lands are already heavily impacted by drought, wildfire, pine bark beetles, and elevated temperatures resulting from climate change. Coal leases are incompatible with the BLM's mission “ to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of America's public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations.”
Unnecessary risk.
The BLM itself states in its notice of intent “The approximately 7.75 billion tons of recoverable reserves of Federal coal currently under lease is estimated to be sufficient to continue production at current levels for 20 years, averaged across all leases, and these reserves would be sufficient to cover production, on average, for even longer if coal production declines, as is projected” (BLM, 2016). The federal coal leasing program was established to ensure national energy security. We already have enough coal leases to meet domestic needs until fossil fuels can be replaced by clean energy. We should not endanger our lands and people to subsidize private businesses who want to export coal to other countries.
The “no action alternative” is no coal leasing.
There is currently a moratorium on new coal leases. The true no action alternative is not to resume leasing but to continue the moratorium or go further and permanently ban coal leasing. Given coal's contribution to ill health, climate change, and the degradation of public lands, complete cessation of coal leasing is the only rational course of action. Thanks for the opportunity to provide input in this most important process.
References
Center for Global Health and the Environment. Mining Coal, Mounting Costs: The Life Cycle Consequences of Coal, 2011 http://www.chgeharvard.org/sites/default/files/resources/MiningCoalMountingCosts.pdf
Accessed July 25, 2016
Bureau of Land Management, Notice of Intent To Prepare a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement To Review the Federal Coal Program and To Conduct Public Scoping Meetings. Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 61 / Wednesday, March 30, 2016 / Notices
SUMMARY: The Bureau of Land Management is developing a plan to resume coal leases on public lands. They plan to tweak the leasing process but are not considering a continued moratorium or an end to coal leasing as a possibility, even though this would be the real "no action alternative".
WHAT YOU CAN DO: Add your name below.
As health professionals we welcome this opportunity to comment on the scope of evaluation of the environmental impact of federal coal leases. From our perspective as guardians of the nation's health, the glaring deficit in the BLM's proposal is the failure to consider ending coal leasing on public lands as a legitimate alternative.
Costly damage to public health
Coal is harmful to human health in every phase of its life cycle and contributes to 4 of our 5 leading causes of death. Harvard's Center for Global Health and the Environment estimates that coal mining costs the American public $175 billion to 523 billion dollars per year in damage to health, the climate and the environment (CGHE, 2011). Since 41% of coal is mined from federal lands, the cost attributable to federal coal leases is $70 to $209 billion dollars annually. Coal leases last 20 years. Their direct health impacts last a lifetime and their indirect health impacts from climate change will last for many thousands of years.
Accelerating climate disaster
US federal coal reserves amount to 25% of the world's carbon budget for 2 C global warming. Keeping this coal in the ground is an essential part of the United States' international climate commitment. Resuming coal leases on public lands will speed up the accumulation of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, bringing us closer to a tipping point and runaway global warming, weaken international cooperation, and threaten the world's ability to keep global warming under 2 C.
Failure to protect public lands.
Our public lands are already heavily impacted by drought, wildfire, pine bark beetles, and elevated temperatures resulting from climate change. Coal leases are incompatible with the BLM's mission “ to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of America's public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations.”
Unnecessary risk.
The BLM itself states in its notice of intent “The approximately 7.75 billion tons of recoverable reserves of Federal coal currently under lease is estimated to be sufficient to continue production at current levels for 20 years, averaged across all leases, and these reserves would be sufficient to cover production, on average, for even longer if coal production declines, as is projected” (BLM, 2016). The federal coal leasing program was established to ensure national energy security. We already have enough coal leases to meet domestic needs until fossil fuels can be replaced by clean energy. We should not endanger our lands and people to subsidize private businesses who want to export coal to other countries.
The “no action alternative” is no coal leasing.
There is currently a moratorium on new coal leases. The true no action alternative is not to resume leasing but to continue the moratorium or go further and permanently ban coal leasing. Given coal's contribution to ill health, climate change, and the degradation of public lands, complete cessation of coal leasing is the only rational course of action. Thanks for the opportunity to provide input in this most important process.
References
Center for Global Health and the Environment. Mining Coal, Mounting Costs: The Life Cycle Consequences of Coal, 2011 http://www.chgeharvard.org/sites/default/files/resources/MiningCoalMountingCosts.pdf
Accessed July 25, 2016
Bureau of Land Management, Notice of Intent To Prepare a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement To Review the Federal Coal Program and To Conduct Public Scoping Meetings. Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 61 / Wednesday, March 30, 2016 / Notices
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