Support the Smokestack Six!

On June 23, 2004, four women and two men climbed a 700-foot smokestack in Southwestern Pennsylvania - the heart of coal country. Their aim was to bring attention to the dangers of a dirty power plant and to protest President Bush’s energy plan. They took this bold action to help keep communities that live in the shadow of dirty power plants safe – and now they need your help. These peaceful protestors are facing felony charges for their actions, which could carry lengthy jail terms. With only five weeks until the trial, we’re asking you to support the “Smokestack Six.�?

Allegheny Energy seems to be more concerned with fighting activists who are trying to move America toward a clean energy future than they are with the pollution from its plant that results in 237 premature deaths in the area each year -- tell them you won't stand for it!

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Dear Allegheny Energy, Inc.,

On June 23, 2004, six Greenpeace activists hung a banner from a smokestack at the Hatsfield’s Ferry power plant in Masontown, Pennsylvania, protesting the Bush administration’s failure to keep communities safe from the dangers of coal-fired power plants. As a result of this peaceful protest, these activists now face felony charges and up to seven years in jail.

As you well know, your plant is one of the dirtiest and most dangerous power plants in the country.  In fact, it’s the country’s second largest emitter of sulfur dioxide, the pollution that causes acid rain and smog. It also releases immense amounts of nitrogen oxide and mercury, both dangerous pollutants. According to a recent study by the same researchers that the Bush administration commissioned to evaluate its energy plan, pollution from this plant causes 237 premature deaths each year.  With all of this evidence, Allegheny Energy still chooses to put its corporate profits ahead of the health and safety of the community surrounding Hatfield’s Ferry.

The four women and two men who participated in this peaceful act were motivated by sincere concern for the community around your plant, as well as communities in the shadow of dirty power plants throughout the country. Felony charges for peaceful protests are not the norm and are unjustified in this case.

For over 30 years, Greenpeace has worked around the world, through research, advocacy and action, to protect our Earth's fragile environment and climate. Greenpeace follows in the venerable U.S. tradition of civil protest, from the Boston Tea Party to the modern civil rights movement, a tradition that Allegheny now threatens.

As a responsible corporate citizen, Allegheny Energy should clean up this dirty plant and immediately demand that these unwarranted and heavy-handed felony charges be dropped. I pledge to continue taking action against Allegheny Energy until you do so.

"Sincerely," and your name and contact information will be added to the end of the letter.

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Support the Smokestack Six!

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