Montana court rules in favour of youth on climate challenge: A Montana state court has ruled that  provisions in the Montana Environmental Policy Act and the State Energy Policy Act that promote fossil fuel developments and prevent the government from considering the impact of greenhouse gas emissions or climate change in environmental reviews of proposed projects are unconstitutional. Judge Kathy Seeley ruled energy projects have harmed the state and that children and youth are “disproportionately harmed by fossil fuel pollution and climate impacts”. She also found that emissions from projects in Montana “are nationally and globally significant”, “cause and contribute to climate change,” and reduce the opportunity to avoid injury to the plaintiffs. The case was brought by 16 Montanans aged between 5 and 22 with the support of a non-profit legal group, Our Children’s Trust. The state has 60 days to file an appeal. In 2021, Montana had six coal mines that produced 28.6 million short tons (25.9 million tonnes), making it the fifth largest coal-producing state in the US. (Washington Post, Drilled, Our Children’s Trust, First Judicial District Court of Montana)

South African court grants injunction against coal mine: Johannesburg High Court Acting Judge Elmien du Plessis has ruled in favour of Corneels Greyling Trust, representing a group of farmers that have challenged a decision by the Department of Water & Sanitation to grant a water right to the coal mining company Kangra. Despite filing a challenge against the permit with the water tribunal in July 2022, the company claimed it wasn’t submitted on time. In June 2023, the company began preparatory work on access to the proposed Kusipongo underground mining project vial the Balgarthen A Adit, which the trust argued was unlawful. In her ruling, du Plessis found the trust had lodged the appeal within the required period. She determined that, as there is a risk of irreversible damage to water sources used by the farmers, an injunction was warranted until the tribunal had ruled on the case. (Business Day, High Court of South Africa)

Jakarta air pollution crisis has Indonesian gov't seeking scapegoats: In response to an air pollution crisis that has seen Jakarta ranked as one of the most polluted cities in the world since May, Indonesian President Joko Widodo has sought to downplay the role of emissions from coal power plants surrounding the city. Widodo has blamed motorists, the prolonged dry season, and coal emissions from the manufacturing sector. Widodo told ministers at a cabinet meeting that pollution from coal plants around the city should be monitored. (Reuters, Lauri Myllyvirta Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air [Twitter])

UN Special Rapporteur alarmed by South Africa’s coal sector air pollution: After a two-week visit to South Africa, the United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur on toxics and human rights, Marcos Orellana, expressed his concern about the lack of action in cutting air pollution from coal plants and mines. In the report on his trip, Orellana noted that dust and ash pollution from mines adversely affect surrounding communities, “real-time data on air pollution is lacking, and monitoring equipment is frequently non-functional.” He expressed concern that South Africa’s National Air Quality Standards are far weaker than World Health Organization standards and parts of Mpumalanga province resemble a “sacrifice” zone for the low-income, Black communities living near highly polluting industries. Despite the government’s commitments on climate action, Orellana said that he “was perplexed to hear about its licensing of new coal and greenhouse gas-intensive projects” such as the Musina-Makhado Special Economic Zone and a new coal mine in Lephalale. (News24, United Nations Human Rights Office)

Study finds pollution for coal plants and mines in Tamil Nadu: An analysis of the impacts of the three lignite mines and four lignite power plants operated by NLC India and the 1200 MW IL&FS Tamil Nadu Power Company plant in Cuddalore district of Tamil Nadu has found widespread air, soil and water pollution. The NLC India plants have a combined capacity of 3640 MW. The report by Poovulagin Nanbargal (Friends of the Earth Tamil Nadu) and the research NGO Manthan Adhyayan Kendra found high concentrations of mercury, selenium and fluoride in several drinking water sources near NLC mines and power stations with bore water samples near the IL&FS plant in Parangipettai contain fluoride, iron, calcium, magnesium and silicon above legal limits. The report recommended stricter regulation of the mines and power plants and measures to cut effluent discharges and the dumping of coal ash in local waterbodies. (The Hindu, Manthan Adhyayan Kendra [Pdf])

Court approval sought for South African coal dust class action: An application for the certification of a class action against three coal mining companies has been filed in the High Court of South Africa. The class action, initiated by the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference and filed by lawyer Richard Spoor, alleges that South32, BHP Billiton and Seriti Power failed to implement mandatory safety procedures to protect miners from coal dust exposure that causes pneumoconiosis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. The application seeks approval to represent miners affected by dust diseases between March 12, 1965, and the present. (Bloomberg, Coal Class Action)

Villagers blocked from meeting on new Indian mine: Villagers who stand to be affected by Vedanta’s proposed Kuraloi-A North coal mine in Odisha say police and paramilitary forces blocked them from attending a public meeting to voice their concerns about the project. Villagers said they were stopped at a roadblock kilometres from the meeting and told it was already full. One villager said people from outside the affected area were allowed through the barricades. Vedanta, a London-headquartered company owned by billionaire Anil Agarwal, proposes producing eight million tonnes of coal annually with an expected 23-year mine life. Of the 966 hectares sought for the mine, almost 500 hectares is private agricultural land or forest land used for collecting produce. (Newsclick)

Australia: The corporate regulator is suing the A$13.5 billion (US$8.7 billion) superannuation fund Active Super over marketing its investments as ethical when it held stakes in four coal producers and Russian oil and gas corporations.

Bangladesh: The 1320 MW Rampal plant has restarted after a 16-day shutdown due to a lack of imported coal.

Canada: Nova Scotia’s Department of Labour says the Donkin metallurgical coal mine will remain closed until further studies are completed. On July 15, a 75 cubic metre rockfall occurred in the main access tunnel.

Pakistan: The Sindh provincial government has approved the construction of two new coal railways: a 105-kilometre line between Chhor and the Thar lignite fields and another between Port Qasim and the adjoining town of Bin Qasim.

Philippines: The President and CEO of AboitizPower, Emmanuel Rubio, said the company is studying the possibility of a 150 MW expansion to the 340 MW Therma Visayas coal plant in Cebu province.

Sri Lanka: One of the three 300 MW units at the notoriously unreliable Norochcholai coal plant was offline for a week to August 15 after another breakdown.

UK: The High Court challenge by Friends and the Earth and South Lakes Action on Climate Change against the decision by Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove to approve the Whitehaven metallurgical coal mine has been delayed from October.

Comments by Indonesian ministers raise doubts over decarbonisation: Recent statements by Indonesian government ministers have raised questions about the government’s commitment to transitioning from coal generation to renewables. Speaking at a conference in late July, the Minister of Finance, Sri Mulyani Indrawati, said, “If we have coal, then we should use it. European countries, the US, and even Japan still use coal. Why, when Indonesia wants to use [coal], does it become an issue?” At the recent G20 conference in India, Indonesia opposed proposals to include a commitment to phasing out unabated coal power plants. At the G20 conference, an assistant to the Minister of Energy, Yudo Dwinanda Priaadi, told the Jakarta Post that Indonesia opposed the proposal as installing carbon capture and storage (CCS) on existing coal plants is the “easiest thing to do” to cut emissions. There is currently only one commercial coal plant with a significant CCS plant operating globally. (Mongabay)

Auditor of Adani Ports quits: Deloitte, a global accountancy firm, has resigned as the auditor for Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone. Deloitte stated Adani Ports “did not consider it necessary to have an independent external examination” of allegations in the Hindenburg Research report on related-party transactions. In its audit on the company’s quarterly report to the end of March 2023, Deloitte flagged concerns over the sale of the part-built container port in Myanmar to another company represented as not being a related party. Adani Ports has interests in major coal port projects, including the 60 million tonnes a year North Queensland Export Terminal at Abbott Point and the Mundra port in India. Adani Ports dismissed Deloitte’s concerns about the need for an independent investigation of the Hindenburg Research allegations of related-party transactions, stating they “were not convincing or sufficient to warrant such a move”. Deloitte was appointed company auditor in May 2017 and reappointed in May 2022 for five years. (Reuters, Adani Ports [Pdf])

Indian Coal Ministry to invest US$31.2 billion in railway upgrades for coal: The Ministry of Coal announced it will invest 26 trillion rupees (US$31.2 billion) in 67 projects to facilitate coal conveyor or truck delivery from mines to the nearest railway siding. Fifty-nine projects are at Coal India mines, five at Singareni Collieries Company Limited projects and three at NLC operations. The ministry said the aim is to mechanise the delivery of up to one billion tonnes of coal a year and, by reducing operational costs, improve the sector’s profitability. The projects are part of the National Coal Logistic Plan and complement the development of 13 new coal rail links. (Mint, Ministry of Coal)

Indian Coal Ministry to invest US$31.2 billion in railway upgrades for coal: The Ministry of Coal has announced it will invest 26 trillion rupees (US$31.2 billion) in 67 projects to facilitate coal conveyor or truck delivery from mines to the nearest railway siding. Fifty-nine projects are at Coal India mines, five at Singareni Collieries Company Limited projects and three at NLC operations. The ministry said the aim is to mechanise the delivery of up to one billion tonnes of coal a year and, by reducing operational costs, improve the sector’s profitability. The projects are part of the National Coal Logistic Plan and complement the development of 13 new coal rail links. (Mint, Ministry of Coal)

Bank warns South African load shedding is far worse in 2023: The South African bank Absa estimates that in the first half of 2023, 15,300 gigawatt hours (GWh) of electricity was unserved because of Eskom’s load shedding restrictions. Absa estimates the amount of lost generation due to load shedding is 30 per cent greater than for 2022 and more than all that was lost in the 15 years between 2007 and the end of 2021. Despite the restrictions, Absa noted that gross domestic product increased by 0.4 per cent compared to the forecast earlier in the year of no growth. One key factor is the increase in private sector investment in self-generation and the rapid rate of rooftop solar installations. Absa estimates that more than 13,300 MW of private power projects are seeking approval for grid connection from the National Energy Regulator of South Africa. (Daily Investor)

Company operating Welsh mine has paid handsome dividends: The Good Law Project, a legal support group, revealed that the company operating the Ffos-y-Fran mine in Wales has paid £41.5 million (US$52.7 million) in dividends to its parent company since 2017. The council estimates the cost to rehabilitate the site could be between £75 million (US$95.2 million) and £125 million (USD$158.7 million), but the company had paid only £15 million (UD$19 million) into the fund. Planning permission for the mine expired in September 2022, but the mine continues to operate while a legal challenge against an enforcement notice issued by Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council is before the court. Residents and the Coal Action Network have commenced legal action seeking a judicial review of the decisions of the council and Welsh ministers not to impose a ‘stop notice’ on the mine. Residents and the Welsh Green Party have also called on the Welsh government to prevent coal from the Merthyr (South Wales) Ffos-y-Fran mine from being transported on a railway line owned by Transport for Wales. (ITV Cymru Wales, Wales Online, Good Law Project)