CHARLESTON, W.Va. - This morning, West Virginia political leaders and industry officials will gather at a Charleston hotel to promote coal's role in meeting the nation's energy needs.

At the same time, in cyberspace, the group Coal River Mountain Watch plans to launch a national campaign to build a wind energy project - instead of permitting a series of strip mines - in Raleigh County.

Gov. Joe Manchin, Sen. Jay Rockefeller and Rep. Shelley Moore Capito will be among the speakers at the Coal Forum event at the Embassy Suites hotel.

Participants will focus on recommendations from the business group Imagine West Virginia: more money for coal-related research, promoting safer mining practices, training more miners, and better promoting the industry.

Among the top goals is "a re-branding of the state's image across the nation and around the globe as one that is most progressive, forward-thinking and responsible when managing energy and environmental challenges in tandem."

The Coal River Wind Project's online campaign is run by grass-roots activists, using high-tech wind studies and mapping software to package what they say is a real alternative to continued reliance on mountaintop removal mining.

"This would be the biggest wind farm proposed on the East Coast, and could provide a model for other countries in West Virginia looking to develop affordable, clean energy and create safe, healthy jobs in their own communities," said Matt Noerpel, a spokesman for Whitesville-based Coal River Mountain Watch.

The climate change crisis, skyrocketing energy prices, two years of repeated mine safety disasters and the continued battle over mountaintop removal have the coal industry in the headlines.

At the same time, dueling campaigns like the Coal Forum and the Coal River Wind Project offer competing views not just of the answers to the nation's energy problems, but conflicting ideas of what the questions themselves should be.

Industry supporters say coal must continue to play a major role in the national and world energy mix. Environmental groups say mining is already doing too much damage, and that coal's greenhouse emissions make it a major threat to the planet's climate system.

For example, Coal River Mountain Watch calls its wind proposal "an exciting new energy option."

Organizers are promoting construction of 220 2-megawatt wind turbines on Coal River Mountain ridges. A wind study, funded by North Carolina-based Appalachian Voices, concluded the spot is a good location for a wind farm. The project, the group says, would create enough wind power to "keep the lights on" in 150,000 homes "while preserving the mountain for future economic and community benefits."

CHARLESTON, W.Va. - This morning, West Virginia political leaders and industry officials will gather at a Charleston hotel to promote coal's role in meeting the nation's energy needs.

At the same time, in cyberspace, the group Coal River Mountain Watch plans to launch a national campaign to build a wind energy project - instead of permitting a series of strip mines - in Raleigh County.

Gov. Joe Manchin, Sen. Jay Rockefeller and Rep. Shelley Moore Capito will be among the speakers at the Coal Forum event at the Embassy Suites hotel.

Participants will focus on recommendations from the business group Imagine West Virginia: more money for coal-related research, promoting safer mining practices, training more miners, and better promoting the industry.

Among the top goals is "a re-branding of the state's image across the nation and around the globe as one that is most progressive, forward-thinking and responsible when managing energy and environmental challenges in tandem."

The Coal River Wind Project's online campaign is run by grass-roots activists, using high-tech wind studies and mapping software to package what they say is a real alternative to continued reliance on mountaintop removal mining.

"This would be the biggest wind farm proposed on the East Coast, and could provide a model for other countries in West Virginia looking to develop affordable, clean energy and create safe, healthy jobs in their own communities," said Matt Noerpel, a spokesman for Whitesville-based Coal River Mountain Watch.

The climate change crisis, skyrocketing energy prices, two years of repeated mine safety disasters and the continued battle over mountaintop removal have the coal industry in the headlines.

At the same time, dueling campaigns like the Coal Forum and the Coal River Wind Project offer competing views not just of the answers to the nation's energy problems, but conflicting ideas of what the questions themselves should be.

Industry supporters say coal must continue to play a major role in the national and world energy mix. Environmental groups say mining is already doing too much damage, and that coal's greenhouse emissions make it a major threat to the planet's climate system.

For example, Coal River Mountain Watch calls its wind proposal "an exciting new energy option."

Organizers are promoting construction of 220 2-megawatt wind turbines on Coal River Mountain ridges. A wind study, funded by North Carolina-based Appalachian Voices, concluded the spot is a good location for a wind farm. The project, the group says, would create enough wind power to "keep the lights on" in 150,000 homes "while preserving the mountain for future economic and community benefits."

There's just one problem: Massey Energy plans to mine the area. The company already has two permits and is seeking two more, for a total mine area of more than 6,000 acres.

Even if Massey or the landowners can't be persuaded, wind farm proponents are hoping their proposal convinces the public that there are viable alternatives to coal.

"The national conversation on energy and global warming makes it clear that America needs to start investing heavily in renewable energy, as well as get ourselves off foreign sources of energy," said Rory McIlmoil of Coal River Mountain Watch. "Carbon taxes could make coal more expensive in coming years, and West Virginia needs to prepare itself by developing innovative, affordable, new sources of domestic energy before that happens."

Today's Coal Forum meeting was scheduled to "expose civil, legislative and opinion leaders" to Imagine West Virginia's report, "Coal: Energy, the Environment and West Virginia."

The 16-report depicts coal as the cornerstone of West Virginia's past, present and future economy. But the report also offers a little something for both sides.

For industry supporters, the report, released in April, concludes, "The importance of coal to West Virginia, our nation and the world economy is not well understood and is sometimes misrepresented.

"Some elected officials and others with sincere environmental concerns - and some who also have competing economic interests - have proposed that coal be eliminated," the report says. "These voices are driving the national debate about whether coal truly has a future in America."

For coal's critics, the report acknowledges "despite significant advances, the requirement remains for urgent and mandatory efforts to ensure continuing improvements in the safety, cleanliness and efficiency of the mining and use of coal.

"These improvements are not optional," the report says.

And on climate change, the report concludes, "the future of coal will be significantly influenced by federal and state actions following debate about what types of greenhouse gas regulation will be imposed."

But the report takes no position on various alternatives for greenhouse gas regulations, and it promotes coal-to-liquid technologies that many experts believe will make climate change problems worse.

Reach Ken Ward Jr. at kw...@wvgazette.com or 348-1702.