TheBeyond Coal movement is a campaign by environmental group theSierra Club to promoterenewable energy instead ofcoal.[1] Their primary objective is to closecoal power plants in theUnited States, including at least one-third of the country's more than 500 coal plants by 2020, and to replace them with renewable energy sources. The campaign is also active in other countries; for example, they are trying to prevent the construction of the Kosovo C thermal power plant nearPristina,Kosovo; to this end, they have collaborated with academic andObama administration climate advisorDan Kammen.[2] Other objectives include keeping coal in the ground, specifically inAppalachia and thePowder River Basin, where the majority of American coal reserves are located,[1] and preventing coal from being exported from America.[3]
The campaign has received at least $80 million fromMichael Bloomberg and his philanthropic foundation,Bloomberg Philanthropies.[4] During the earlyPresidency of George W. Bush, an energy task force convened byDick Cheney advocated the construction of 200 new coal plants in the United States, warning that if they were not built the entire country would faceload shedding asCalifornia had just seen. During the Bush administration, the Beyond Coal campaign prevented 170 of the 200 plants from being built.[5]
In November 2017, a campaign called Europe Beyond Coal (EBC), was launched by a network of civil society organisations in Europe.[6] This campaign was partly inspired by but independent of the US Beyond Coal campaign. Many European countries have committed to closing coal plants by 2030 and EBC's goal is to accelerate that vision.[6]
Europe Beyond Coal is an alliance of civil society groups working to catalyse the closures of coal mines and power plants, prevent the building of any new coal projects and hasten thejust transition to clean, renewable energy and energy efficiency. Over 30 NGOs, includingGreenpeace,WWF, the European Environmental Bureau,Climate Action Network Europe and many others, take part in the European campaign.[7]