PITTSBURGH, Pa. — Hundreds of coal miners and supporters of the coal industry will be gathering in Pittsburgh, Pa. Wednesday for what’s being called the Rally to Support American Energy.
It comes a day before the federal Environmental Protection Agency’s Pittsburgh public hearing on the Clean Power Act — the proposed new carbon emissions limits for existing coal-fired power plants.
Governor Earl Ray Tomblin will be part of the event at Highmark Stadium along with Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett, Ohio Lieutenant Governor Mary Taylor, West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey and representatives of the coal industry and labor groups.
That rally will run from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at West Station Square Drive.
Busloads of coal miners from West Virginia are making the trip. Organizers said it’s designed to raise awareness about the importance of coal and coal miners to America’s energy mix and the effects the EPA’s rules for new and existing power plants could have on the industry.
Public hearings on the proposed Clean Power Act were scheduled to continue Wednesday in Atlanta, Denver and Washington, D.C. The Pittsburgh hearing was set to open at 9 a.m. Thursday at the William S. Moorhead Federal Building on Liberty Ave. and continue into Friday.
Those organizing the Rally to Support American Energy include the West Virginia Coal Association, the Pennsylvania Coal Alliance, the International Brotherhood of Boilermakers Local 154, the Ohio Coal Association and the Partnership for Better Energy Future.