By Larisa Manescu
Riding the tide of successful city council resolutions acknowledging Indigenous Peoples’ Day and opposing the border wall on October 5, a group of representatives from Eagle Pass, Public Citizen, and the Sierra Club made their way to the Travis County Courthouse in Austin to demonstrate against a TCEQ-approved wastewater discharge permit for the Dos Republicas coal mine in Eagle Pass, Texas.
Opposition to the Dos Republicas coal mine is not new. The residents of Eagle Pass have been actively opposing it for decades. In addition to polluting local water sources like the Rio Grande River, destroying sacred burial sites, and threatening wildlife, the mine’s coal is shipped to Mexico and burned in some of the dirtiest power plants in the hemisphere and causes air, light, and sound pollution in Eagle Pass. Residents face significant risks and burdens because of the mine’s pollution, while the Dos Republicas Coal Partnership benefits from the production of an export product.
In 2016, TCEQ approved the wastewater permit for the mine despite thousands of Texans (including several Native groups, the Mayor of Eagle Pass and several other elected officials, school districts, hospital districts, and environmental and social justice advocates) urging them to deny it.
In April 2016, a historic gathering of Native Texans representing several tribes marched against the mine in Eagle Pass.
This month’s hearing in Austin was on a legal challenge to the wastewater discharge permit - a small legal step for the Maverick County Environment and Public Health Association’s effort to protect the community’s water.
Half an hour before the meeting, we gathered in a circle outside of the courthouse to exchange introductions among new and familiar faces. People had come from all over Texas, including Austin, Eagle Pass, Brownsville, Alpine, Hondo, Houston, Dallas, Waco, and San Antonio. The Carrizo, Coahuiltecan, and Apache tribes were represented, all of which have sacred ancestral land affected by the presence of the Dos Republicas coal mine.
Afterwards, more than 50 people sat in on the courthouse hearing which lasted more than two hours. With wide eyes and gaping mouths, I listened to the lawyer representing Dos Republicas, Bill Cobb of Cobb & Council, argue that coal was harmless, that coal actually filters water, and that this coal wasn’t any different than the activated charcoal in his fish tank at home. Finally, with a stern smugness, he told the room that this mine was going to continue to go about its (polluting) business regardless of what action was taken with the wastewater permit.
“How does this guy sleep at night?” one spectator pondered aloud.
The Maverick County Environment and Public Health Association now must wait to hear from the Travis County State District Court judge's recommendation and will continue to challenge the permit in court.
It has been a rollercoaster week for coal news, on national and local scales. As we shake our heads in disdain (but not disbelief) at Trump and Pruitt’s formal declaration to scrap the Clean Power Plan, put in place to hold coal plants accountable for emission reductions and powerful legislation to help the U.S. meet its Paris Accord promise, we’re uplifted with news of Bloomberg Philanthropies’ continued commitment - most recently in the form of $64 million - to our Beyond Coal Campaign.
Here in Texas, we’re running off renewed hope after the announcements that Luminant plans to retire its Monticello, Big Brown, and Sandow coal power plants in early 2018, which brings to 262 the number of coal plants set to retire or announce to retire since 2010 - and 14 since Trump took office. We are committed to building a future beyond coal in Texas that supports workers and communities historically dependent on coal while improving air quality and protecting public health.
There’s so much behind-the-scenes and on-the-ground organizing happening in communities all over Texas to ensure clean air and water for all.
Are you ready to step up and volunteer? Let’s get in touch!