About

The Center for Coalfield Justice was formed as the “Tri-State Citizens Mining Network” in 1994 by a coalition of grassroots groups and individuals concerned about the effects coal mining had on communities and the environment. This was shortly after Congress had passed the Surface Mining and Reclamation Act (SMCRA), which created federal regulations on surface coal mining operations.  To read a few words by one of our founders and an activist involved in passing SMCRA, Wyona Coleman, click here. 

The people involved recognized the need to work together to build a strong voice in the coalfield community. As Tri-State Citizens Mining Network, the organization advocated for better protections from longwall coal mining, an extreme form of underground mining, at the state level in Ohio, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania. In 2007 we reorganized into the Center for Coalfield Justice (CCJ) and expanded to work on fossil fuel extraction and use, recognizing that our communities were not just impacted by coal mining but also oil and gas. Around this time, the organization brought on their first paid staff to focus on implementing the mission. During the next few years, the core focus of CCJ’s work was centered around accountability for the destruction of the dam at Ryerson Station State Park because of longwall mining impacts. 

CCJ responded to the boom in fracking the Marcellus Shale in the late 2000s by providing educational resources about people’s rights around leasing. In 2013, we expanded our focus on environmental justice to include economic justice, recognizing the deep connections of energy extraction and our economy in southwestern Pennsylvania. In 2017, after fully recognizing how environmental issues are tied into economic and social ones, we became more people-focused. We recognize that our members don’t live single-issue lives. In 2019, we started a campaign around civic engagement and voter education, as the only way to protect our health and economy is to ensure that those in power are accountable to the people and not CEOs and shareholders. 

Over the last several years, we have focused on investing in the people who live in Washington and Greene counties. Our staff has grown from 2 employees to 15 employees, most of whom live in the communities in which we organize. Our membership has increased by 200% and we have tripled our number of active volunteers. We also moved to a larger office space and added a community meeting space for social justice events in the area. 

The Center for Coalfield Justice is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) organization governed by a volunteer Board of Directors. Most of our staff are from or at least live in Washington or Greene Counties, the two counties we serve in southwestern Pennsylvania. We believe that if we all work together, we can have thriving rural communities. To read more about the principles that form the basis of our organizing, check out this blog.