In an increasingly organized opposition to liquid-to-coal fuels and a “special interest” legislative session, KFTC, along with Mountain Justice Summer and the MTR Roadshow organized a public forum with 40 participants last night in Lexington to raise awareness of the issue.  

Forum participants included John Blair from Indiana, Mel Tyree from West Virginia, and Teri Blanton and Geoff Young, both from KFTC.

“The Economics of Coal to Oil… well, it’s absolutely ridiculous,” said John Blair, Founder of Valley Watch in Evansville, IN.  “$300 million to Peabody coal?  I didn’t realize that the health and well-being of Kentuckians is so good that we have that much extra money to throw away!”

KFTC Coal-to-Fuel Letter-Writing Party – Sunday, July 1^st at 2pm at the Lexington KFTC Office (274 Southland Drive – if coming from Nicholasville Rd on Southland, turn left at “Trumps” and drive straight back).  We’ll write lots of letters to the editor as part of a push to make a big splash – especially on the Herald-Leader Letters to the Editor page.  Please join us! 

“I’d love to have my own tax-free business with a guaranteed profit margin,” mused KFTC member Geoff Young.  “Sign me up for that!”

Participants in the forum discussed coal-to-liquid both on a very long-term and global scale, as well as a very local and short-term scale here in Kentucky. 

Senator Bunning’s office was invited to send a representative to the forum, but declined. 

An action that several speakers encouraged people to take is to write letters to the editor to make a big impact in papers throughout the state.  KFTC is coordinating directly-effected activists in Eastern Kentucky, authors, musicians, and others to send large numbers of letters to the editor all at once this week and next week.

If you live in Central Kentucky and you’d like to meet other people interested in this issue and to get some help writing letters, feel free to drop by the Lexington KFTC office on Sunday.