Below:

• Judge Chambers' Ruling Overturned; Contact the Obama Administration

• Today: Last Day to Apply for Scholarships for Lobby Week In Washington, D.C.

• Tuesday: Sludge Safety Project Lobby Day

• E-Council and CAG: Stay Current on the Happenings at the WV Legislature

• Join OVEC in Working to Protect Cemeteries

• Join CLEAN National Call to Action for a New Energy Policy

• Eat to Support OVEC's Work

 Judge Chambers' Ruling Overturned; Contact the Obama Administration
A week ago today, Friday the 13th, a-three judge panel from the U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals overturned two favorable decisions granted by U.S. District Court Judge Robert C. Chambers in one of our major lawsuits. Read more about it:
"Court denies reviews of mine permits"
"Court Sides with Mountaintop Removal Coal Mining Industry"
"Making sense of the 4th Circuit decision" (Ken Ward Jr.'s blog has many other postings on the court decision, so you might want to check out other posts.)

As we consider our options on appealing this decision to the full 4^th Circuit or the U.S. Supreme Court, we need your help in redoubling our efforts in organizing and educating the public on the national disgrace that is mountaintop removal.

For starters, please contact contact the Obama administration's EPA and ask the agency to ban this extremely destructive form of coal mining.  In March, come to D.C. to lobby at during End Mountaintop Removal Week -- more on that below. Letters to the editor, no matter where you live, are always needed, so please be sure to write for the mountains. Attend a nearby screening or consider organizing your own showing of Burning the Future, Mountain Mourning, Black Diamonds, Kilowatt Ours, Mountain Top Removal or one of the other documentaries about the people's work to end mountaintop removal. Or just talk to your friends and neighbors about mountaintop removal.  Now's the time to amp up your involvement in the movement to end mountaintop removal.    

Need to tap into a little outrage about what mountaintop removal is doing to our communities, our forests, our water, our mountains and our future? Check out this YouTube posting, this letter to President Obama and these photos.

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 Today: Last Day to Apply for Scholarships for Lobby Week In Washington, D.C.
The 4th Annual End Mountaintop Removal Week, March 14 - 18,  in Washington, D.C. promises to be a truly historic event. With a new congress and administration, we have a real opportunity to pass the Clean Water Protection Act in the House of Representatives this year! Passage of this Act will go a long way toward ending mountaintop removal coal mining.

Today is the last day to apply for scholarships to attend this event and February 25 is the final day to register.  We especially need folks from Michigan, Pennsylvania, Iowa, Washington, Minnesota, Colorado and Florida to attend the lobby week and speak with Congresspeople from their states.

Contact your Congresspeople on the Clean Water Protection Act right now by taking this e-action.  

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 Tuesday: Sludge Safety Project Lobby Day
This Tuesday, Feb. 24, join Sludge Safety Project as we walk the halls of our Capitol and educate our legislators about better policies for health, safety and clean water.  All the details you need to join SSP this coming Tuesday morning are here. If you need more information, contact info@sludgesaftey.org. Remember SSP is a project of OVEC, Coal River Mountain Watch and members of several coalfield communities where people are worried about their health and the way the coal industry "disposes" of coal prep plant waste. SSP is us, making a difference.  Several other groups help SSP make a difference; read more about one of them below. 

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 E-Council and CAG: Stay Current on the Happenings at the WV Legislature
Over the years, SSP has been ably assisted by the West Virginia Environmental Council. E-Council helps us navigate the intricacies of  the lawmaking process, as well as the halls of the Capitol. Right now, E-Council is working on getting a bill number for legislation that would enact a moratorium (a ban) on sludge injection, at least until we have proof that this is not harming health.  So this Tuesday, SSP volunteers will be educating legislators on the need for a ban, especially given the DEP's foot dragging with the Sludge Study, SCR 15. 

To stay abreast of all that's going under the Golden Dome, sign up for E-Council's action alerts and read their Friday legislative updates.

Another sister group that can help you stay current on this legislative session is West Virginia Citizen Action Group. Among other things, CAG helps OVEC advance Clean Elections in West Virginia. Sign up for CAG's action alerts, too, and check in on their Friday newsletter, Capital Eye.

Speaking of Clean Elections, remember the deadline for the video contest is February 28. To get involved in OVEC's Clean Elections work, contact Carol Warren.

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Join OVEC in Working to Protect Cemeteries
Cemeteries are yet another casualty of "cheap" coal -- another heartbreaking loss that accompanies mountaintop removal. Read a column by OVEC co-director Dianne Bady about our cemetery protection work this legislative session here. To help advance cemetery protection in West Virginia, contact Robin Blakeman.     

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 Join CLEAN National Call to Action for a New Energy Policy
A sane national energy policy will help bring an end to mountaintop removal coal mining. The Citizens' Clean Energy Economy Investment Act is our roadmap to a new energy future. It promotes decentralized energy generated by regionally appropriate, reliable, and renewable resources. It protects our environment, stops global warming, disentangles the US from unstable regions of the world, and creates an energy economy that enables sustainable and equitable economic prosperity. Read more about the Act, sign the Act as a citizen supporter and join CLEAN here.

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 Eat to Support OVEC's Work
Hey, we know we are asking you to do quite a bit of work in order to be part of the movement to end mountaintop removal. So here's something you have to do anyway -- eat. If you already have a Kroger gift card from OVEC, thank you and remember to use it when you shop at Kroger. If you don't have one yet, or need a refresher on how to use the card, click here. And eat. For more information, contact Maryanne Graham. 

Thanks for all you do! 

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