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***FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE***

THRUSDAY,JUNE 14, 2007

Contact: Laurie Howell, (703)-717-3983

Howell [at] earthday.net

Earth Day Network Unites with other Environmental Groups to Oppose Senate Push for Coal-to-Liquids

WASHINGTON, D.C.-Dozens of activists gathered on the U.S. Capitol lawn today holding buckets of coal to protest Senators on both sides of the aisle who support billions of dollars in subsidies for coal-to-liquid programs. Representatives of climate and environmental groups called on all Senators who say they oppose global warming to vote against any subsidies for coal-to-liquids programs.

"We view liquid coal as reinventing a square wheel and square wheels, fossil fuels, cannot be what drives us in the 21st century," said Earth Day Network (EDN) spokeswoman Laurie Howell.

Some Senators, most of whom are from coal-rich states, argue that liquid coal is the way to move America beyond oil. This transportation fuel made from coal, however, could actually double the global warming pollution coming from our cars, trucks and planes.

Expanding the coal industry will also greatly enhance destructive coal mining practices, particularly the devastating impacts of mountaintop-removal mining. A representative from Appalachian Voices, an organization representing the central and southern Appalachian Mountains, one of the areas hit the hardest by mountaintop removal-mining, called the practice "one of the greatest environmental and human rights catastrophes in American history."

Pic 1. "EDN's spokeswoman, Laurie Howell, addresses the media"

Pic 2. "Another moment during the news conference"

Liquid coal is also expensive. The National Coal Council, an industry-laden advisory board, estimated that a $211 billion investment would be needed over the next 20 years to replace 10 percent of current gasoline usage.

Some supporters of liquid coal are working on an amendment to proposed energy legislation that would invest as much as $10 billion in federal loans to pay for capturing and storing greenhouse gases produced by plants that would turn coal into liquid transportation fuels. Yet, according to the Natural Resources Defense Council even capturing 90 percent of the emissions from liquid coal plants leave emissions at levels somewhat higher than those from petroleum production and refining.

"We at the Earth Day Network hope that our leaders on Capital Hill will focus on truly green technologies to drive us in the 21st century and just as important, a smooth as possible transition toe a greener economy," Howell stated.

The groups represented at the conference were Earth Day Network, Appalachian Voices, Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace, Chesapeake Climate Action Network/U.S. Climate Emergency Council, Energy Action Coalition, Oil Change International, and the Hip Hop Caucus.

About Earth Day Network
Earth Day Network, www.earthday.net, seeks to grow and diversify the environmental movement worldwide, and to mobilize it as the most effective vehicle for promoting a healthy, sustainable planet. It pursues these goals through education, politics, cultural events, and consumer activism. Current grassroots programs include the Climate Change Solutions Campaign, Campaign for Communities, and the National Civic Education Project. Earth Day Network works with more than 105,000 K-12 teachers in the United States alone. In 2006, EDN launched Earth Day Television, greatly expanding its reach to a global network of more than 15,000 partners and organizations in 174 countries. More than 500 million people participate in Earth Day civic activities, making it the largest secular civic event in the world. The 40th Earth Day will be celebrated on April 22, 2008.

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