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ARTICLE · 03 AUGUST 2016

How Sierra Club Became A Player In The Coal Business

Siskinds LLP
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As strange as it might sound, the US chapter of the Sierra Club has acquired control over a large coal reserve in the Appalachians.

CanadaEnvironment
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As strange as it might sound, the US chapter of the Sierra Club has acquired control over a large coal reserve in the Appalachians.

In 2014, Sierra Club and two other environmental non-governmental organizations ("ENGO"s) sued a coal producer, Alpha Natural Resources, for polluting several streams in West Virginia. As part of a 2015 settlement agreement to that litigation, the company agreed that it would clean up its operations by 2019.

Several months later, Alpha went into bankruptcy. During its restructuring, in exchange for a 3-year extension to the 2019 deadline, Alpha agreed to sign control of a 53 million-tonne coal reserve over to Sierra Club and the other ENGOs involved in the lawsuit. The ENGOs also agreed they would not oppose the confirmation of company's restructuring.

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