On Thursday, members of the UK Beyond Coal campaign participated in a tour of UK’s coal facility.

Check out the article in the Herald-Leader.

Tomorrow, Monday, April 5, before the Beyond Coal meeting, Sierra Club member Dick Shore will perform a show in which he dresses and acts like Sierra Club founder John Muir.  Come check it out in the Student Center rm. 205 at 7:00!

On Thursday, the EPA released new water quality guidelines.  The new rules will curtail mountaintop removal, a dangerous and destructive coal mining practice in which coal companies blow off the tops of mountains and dump the debris in nearby valleys.

This ruling  is a landmark decision for environmental protection.

This Saturday, the UK Beyond Coal campaign held a showing and panel for the documentary Deep Down.  The panel included Beverly May and Terry Ratliff, the focuses of the movie, Sally Rubin and Jen Gilomen, the directors of the movie, and Laura Peot, a UK student and Beyond Coal intern.

Coal is an important and controversial issue, especially in Kentucky.  92% of the state’s electricity is generated by coal.  The documentary delved into the issue, exploring the tension that coal mining has caused in eastern Kentucky.  Maytown, the small community at the center of the movie, is deeply divided by the issue.  While some, like Beverly May, are determined to send the coal companies out of the region, other are looking to maintain the status quo.

According to May, “you don’t regulate an abomination; you stop it.”

“Deep in the Appalachian mountains of eastern Kentucky, where coal is king, Beverly May and Terry Ratliff find themselves at the center of a contentious community battle over a proposed mountaintop removal coal mine.”

Deep Down Lexington Premiere
Worsham Theatre this Saturday
6:30- Music
7:00- film showing with an introduction from the film producers (more info about the film HERE)
fter the movie, we will host a panel, including Beverly May from the film and representatives of the Lexington community

Join the facebook event and invite your friends HERE

Last week, UK’s Kentuckians for the Commonwealth formally endorsed the UK Beyond Coal campaign.

Check out our article that will appear on the front page of the Kentucky Kernel tomorrow!

“’UK needs to take advantage of the opportunity to lead the rest of the state in the clean and renewable energy future’, Barhorst said.”

We got over 300 public comments signed to the EPA today in support of new rules for clean air! If you didn’t have a chance to sign it, you can sign it HERE

UK Beyond Coal intern Curt Liska wrote into the Kentucky Kernel to let us know how much will really cost Kentucky.

UK beyond Coal got a second letter in the Kentucky Kernel this week; this one is by intern Callie Thomas.

UK Beyond Coal students inform other students of the health and environmental impacts of coal on Tuesday from 10:45- 11:00 between the Classroom Building and the Chem- Physics buildings.

Check out the article in the Kentucky Kernel- Students raise awareness of campus coal with silent demonstration

Here is another- Kentucky students push for clean energy

Katie Mills and Joe Saputo pose with their signs about some of the health impacts of burning coal.