Alabama Power quietly announced public meetings starting Monday, June 29 about their plans to cap-in-place 5 coal ash dumps throughout the state, where they have been polluting groundwater for years. While the meetings are required by law, Alabama Power performed virtually no outreach, gave no detailed plans for social distancing, and provided no option for virtual attendance.
Join Alabama’s environmental groups in asking Alabama Power to: Reschedule the meetings to allow adequate time for the public to be notified and be able to attend. Provide more days between meetings. Perform robust outreach to notify the public of the meetings (Facebook event, press release, etc.). Provide an option for those who want to attend remotely (Zoom, GoToMeeting or equivalent), including opportunities for remote speaking and questions. Have a clear procedure and means to accept comments. Hold the meetings in a "town hall" format which allows all participants to hear the same information provided by Alabama Power, ask questions publicly, and hear the concerns of other citizens. Plan and specify measures that will be taken to follow CDC COVID-19 guidelines.
Provide an RSVP to determine how many sessions are needed to provide adequate social distancing. Record the meetings and post the recordings publicly (a standard the Alabama Department of Environmental Management regularly follows). Provide for virtual follow-up meetings. You can find a list of the upcoming meeting dates, times, and locations here, as well as further information on groundwater violations and options for closure.
(Note from the editor, Joe Watts)
Below are my additional comments regarding the "public meetings" Alabama Power is planning. Please consider taking action and adding your voice to the outcry and your name to the petition.
"Public meetings during a time of pandemic are absurd. I'm genuinely shocked that you would willingly put the lives of Alabamians at risk during this challenging time. You MUST have better procedures in place to handle public input and you MUST provide the public with more of an opportunity to have input over a longer period of time OR you do not have any interest in the public's input and are simply going through the motions of a public input period. Please be the adult in the room and provide real opportunities for input from those that may be concerned for their safety during the pandemic."