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Protesters attempt to block coal plant generator
Two protesters were arrested after locking themselves to a 1.5 million pound generator on its way to a Duke Energy coal plant in Rutherford County, North Carolina. The protesters were aiming to prevent the generator, which had been traveling on a flatbed trailer from reaching the coal plant.
Protester Catherine Anne said: "Our nation has no choice, we must stop burning coal. The only choice that we can make is whether we do that in time to still have breathable air, drinkable water, a livable climate, and standing mountains."
Critics of the Cliffside coal plant say it would emit over 6 million tons of carbon dioxide ever year in addition to toxic levels of heavy metals such as mercury, greatly exacerbating global warming and worsening air quality.
The protesters' act of civil disobedience was held one week before world leaders meet in Copenhagen to hash out a global climate agreement.