UPDATED: Decorated War Veteran/Resident Arrested: Peabody Coal Overruns Rocky Branch, Despite Appeal Pending: Gov. Quinn and AG Madigan on Enviro Justice, Civil Rights?

  

Despite an appeal over the controversial Rocky Branch 
strip mine permit still pending with an Illinois Department 
of Natural Resources administrative judge, Peabody Energy defiantly ...

crossed closed public roads and moved massive mining equipment in Saline County yesterday, in preparation to carry out its already violation-ridden andstate-subsidized mine operation.

Calling out clear violations of the state's mine permitting process, civil rights and environmental justice policies, besieged farm residents facing toxic mine blasting and water contamination within yards of their homes and wells have appealed to Gov. Pat Quinn and Attorney General Lisa Madigan to halt the state's flawed mine permit process.

"I feel the Attorney General has abandoned us by dragging her feet and letting Peabody destroy a community," Rocky Branch resident Jennifer Dumbris said. "She has the power to stop what is going on until investigations are through but seems to rather look the other way, while Peabody is conducting business as usual."

Last spring, thousands of Illinois residents appealed to Madigan to investigate the numerous inconsistencies and permit violations in the Rocky Branch mine process. Where does the AG stand now?

On behalf of civil rights and environmental justice in Rocky Branch?

Or with Peabody Energy CEO Greg Boyce, who declared in Australia last week that "coal always wins."

In truth, Peabody was named as a party subject to discovery in a recent law suit over the Prairie State coal-fired plant, "a scheme by Peabody," according to Illinois state residents, "to create a market for its high-sulfur, high-ash coal reserves in Southern Illinois." A UK judge also ruled this week that Peabody's "clean coal" ad campaign is misleading.  ... [...] huffingtonpost.com