All great ideas start with one person, but they certainly do not end there. The Virginia Alliance for a Cleaner Environment (VACE) was no different. Back in April at Power Shift 2011, Virginia environmentalists were gathered in the state breakout room to talk about various issues in the state. Mountaintop removal, off-shore wind versus off-shore drilling, uranium mining, campus coal plants, and hydraulic fracturing were all recognized as problems faced in in Virginia. But we do not have to face these things alone. Caroline Hansley, a student at the University of Richmond, recognized this and proposed the idea of forming a statewide coalition. A murmur of excitement bubbled through the room as we passed around an email list for the formation of VACE. A conversation which was to be continued…

Months later, into the waning summer, a core group of Virginia students and I were deeply immersed in the planning of Virginia Power Shift 2011. VAPS had one main goal: uniting Virginia in a clean energy coalition. Although we had created the idea of VACE during April, we had not developed any type of structure or purpose, which ultimately led to the idea being amorphous and not fully realized. But we strove to bring life to this idea at VAPS where over 200 students converged to learn about organizing, clean energy solutions, and themselves.

Through the course of the weekend, we held two meetings to discuss VACE and what it should look like. After more than four hours of meetings with anyone who wished to have this discussion, we came up with a general framework: the Alliance would focus on running campaigns in Virginia. We all believed this would provide the glue to hold us together, but the question then became which of the various issues should we focus on? The answer to this question became clear: coal.

We all know king coal. We use it every day in Virginia-around 50% of all electricity generated here is from burning coal. There are more than 20 coal plants in the state; six are on campuses. Virginia mines around 30 million tons of coal every year of which 33% is extracted by surface mining. We have an addiction to coal in VA. VACE recognizes that it is time we break that.

Our vision is a network of students mobilizing Virginia for environmental justice. We are getting closer to that goal every day. Ten universities and colleges in the Commonwealth have already joined the Alliance, and this is just the beginning. Our collective voice is going to shift the power in Virginia. No longer will we allow coal to contribute to ecological degradation on a global scale. No longer will we stand for victims of asthma dealing with the complications created by coal ash polluting their lives. No longer will the people of Appalachia be disproportionately affected by environmental injustices. No longer will king coal strangle our state.

Reflecting back on this short history of VACE, I remember again that an idea begins with one person. And then it grows. From Caroline’s first idea of a coalition to the Alliance we have now only six months have passed. Imagine where this will be in a year. Or five years. This is only the beginning. I have an idea of a Virginia free from coal. I know this idea will grow, and I know I’m not alone. Come January 2012 our campaign against coal will begin. Consider this your call to action Virginia.

Sources

http://www.energy.vt.edu/vept/coal/index.asp

http://216.92.66.74/index.php?title=Category:Existing_coal_plants_in_Vir...