FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

July 14, 2010

Over 100 people crowded the hall of a church in Broadlands, Illinois for an informational meeting on the proposed coal mine in Champaign and Vermilion Counties. The meeting, held Thursday July 8, was initiated by a local farmer and landowner, Charles Goodall of Sidell.

Charles Goodall, farmer and PRN board member

Charles Goodall, farmer and PRN board member

Mr. Goodall said he organized the informational meeting after attending a Farm Bureau-sponsored review of the mineral leases used by Sunrise Coal, the Terre Haute company that intends to operate the mine.

“It became increasingly clear that Sunrise Coal has been flying under the radar, trying to sign landowners one at a time while avoiding open public discussion of the many important issues raised by proposing to mine coal in an agricultural community based on highly productive, level, prime farmland,” said Mr. Goodall, “The public needs to know what Sunrise is actually planning.”

Mr. Goodall brought in a panel of presenters that included coalfield landowners Larry Schraut of Montgomery and John Davis of Bond County; Traci Barkley, a water scientist from Prairie Rivers Network; Robert L. Johnson, P.E. Johnson Consulting; and two coal community organizers, Joyce Blumenshine of the Sierra Club and Catherine Edminston of Citizens Against Longwall Mining.

The proposed coal mine spans a 39-section area of farmland bordered by five towns in Vermilion and Champaign Counties. According to information presented at the meeting, Sunrise Coal is currently working to sign leases with enough landowners needed to start the permitting process. The company is also doing exploratory drilling in the area.

Panelists painted a stark picture of what one called the “reality of living with a coal mine.” Dust clouds, sinking land, drainage problems, large sludge basins and polluted water were among the many impacts expected on the surface. They noted that Illinois lacks policy that prohibits mining on and under prime farmland.

“A mine of this size may use up to 2 million gallons of water per day to process the coal. There is no limit to how much they can pump, and there is no fee for using it. Any water that is left will be carried away to streams with pollution in it,” said Ms. Barkley. “When a mine starts work on a new site, they first develop the surface facilities and start re-grading the site for drainage. Because all water falling on site from rain will eventually drain to a stream, the mining company will build basins to help manage the flow. This is of concern because basins do not drain farmland, streams do.”

Other panelists focused on their communities’ experiences working with coal companies. Royalties, tax revenues, jobs and land reclamation did not occur as promised. According to one panelist, the state of Illinois makes a lot of exceptions to the rules, such as letting coal companies avoid cleaning up the large sludge basins that are left after the coal has been extracted.

“I am not against mining. What I care about is that the mine operates under the rules and regulations,” said Mr. Johnson. “If you are thinking in the back of your mind that there are regulators who are going to make sure that the mines are properly permitted, properly constructed and properly reclaimed, that is just simply not the case at this point.”

Several presenters cautioned landowners who sign leases to work with a lawyer to ensure that Sunrise Coal is legally prevented from using a mining technique called longwall mining that removes 80 to 90% of the coal in panels and results in planned subsidence, or immediate sinking of the surface.

Larry Schraut of Montgomery County, whose land will soon affected by an underground longwall coalmine, cautioned landowners against selling their mineral rights. He explained that on his land, the county owned and sold the mineral rights to the coal company. “My land will sink 5 to 6 feet, which will create a bathtub effect, and a new drainage system will have to be created on the surface,” said Mr. Schraut, “Go to a lawyer and make sure that if you sell your rights, they are not going to longwall mine. You people do have a choice if you have your mineral rights.”

Ms. Barkley clarified that no one knows exactly what kind of mining method would be employed, but Sunrise Coal’s lease does not prevent longwall mining from being used. Mr. Goodall continued, “Either way, those who only wanted a little coal royalty may find that they have unintentionally put at risk both their farming operations and their community’s water supply.”

During the question and answer period, Champaign County Board member Ralph Langenheim encouraged landowners and residents to learn as much as they can about coal mining methods.

###