Our blogs are written by the staff of the Center for Coalfield Justice, with an occasional guest post. The most recent post appears on top, and others show up below in order of publishing date. You can receive the blogs in your inbox by signing up for our mailing list. Once per month we publish a newsletter, which contains most of the blog posts.
Our Exciting New Logo Centers Our Community-Driven Work
Our organization looks a little different these days: of course, we’ve grown the size of our staff to be better prepared to address the challenges we face in Greene and Washington Counties head-on; but, we’ve also expanded the reach of our work to explicitly include not only environmental justice but also economic justice and how…
We had fun at our Kids’ Fishing Day at Dutch Fork Lake!
The Dutch Fork Lake Free Kids’ Fishing day, offered by CCJ and the BCWA (Buffalo Creek Watershed Association), was a good time for all that came out. All but one of the young ones got to reel in a fish at some point during the day. Not only did participants get to do some fishing,…
Learn where Cecil Township Supervisor candidates stand on our environment
The Center for Coalfield Justice has been working with Cecil Township residents on increasing government engagement, transparency, and protecting the health and environment of the community. As part of this effort, we developed a questionnaire and sent it to every candidate running for Cecil Township Supervisor in the Primary Election. We did not receive a…
Updates on the Robena preparation plant site, and a short survey for those who live nearby
Author Ethan Story Ethan comes to CCJ with a J.D. and a Master of Environmental Law and Policy from Vermont Law School. While attending Vermont Law School, Ethan worked as a Research Associate with the Water and Justice Program. In this role, he worked with diverse stakeholders to help protect their access to reliable, clean…
CCJ Celebrates Earth Day With Three Events
This past Earth Week was busy for the CCJ team. We kicked off festivities on Saturday April 24th by supporting the Izaak Walton League Harry Enstrom Chapter of Greene County in their tree planting event at the State Gamelands in Garards Fort. Together with Izaak Walton League, CCJ Staff Heaven Sensky and Veronica Coptis, along…
Overdose deaths are rising. Why not try something different?
This is the 20th installment in our What’s on your mind? blog series and was written by CCJ Community Organizer Heaven Sensky. This past year has brought many new challenges to many of our families, including mine. I lost someone very young and dear to me to an accidental overdose this past fall. My loved…
Join Pennsylvanians to Ensure Our Communities can Thrive
During our monthly community meeting in February we discussed with our supporters about what is in the THRIVE agenda and what this means for our communities in Washington and Greene Counties. At the end of this month we are joining the Thriving PA Working Group* in hosting a statewide town hall to learn about the…
What is Act 54, and how can we use it to ensure better protection for our communities?
The area of Duke Lake in Ryerson Station State Park, after it was drained due to damage from underground coal mining. In 1966, our state enacted a coal mining law known as the Bituminous Mine Subsidence and Land Conservation Act (BMSLCA). The law laid out several requirements and protections to make coal mining safe for…
Highlighting the Too-Often Invisible Labor of Mothers, Who Protect Us and Lead Us
This week two major publications were released that highlight public health impacts on people living next to oil and gas operations. The Environmental Health News released their investigation looking at how chemicals associated with oil and gas are present at levels 90 times higher than the average in families’ urine, including samples from children. The…
Updates to Pennsylvania’s COVID-19 Vaccine Rollout
Considering the importance of knowledge and information around the COVID-19 vaccine, I joined Senator Camera Bartolotta’s telephone town hall last Thursday, where many issues concerning the rollout of the vaccine were discussed. CCJ understands the importance of this information and wants to make sure that everyone in our community receives it; therefore, I have written…