PA IPL is also inviting congregations and citizens to be part of this project.
PA IPL knows institutional faith communities alongside people of faith and conscience are a critical, unique, and underutilized voice in fighting fossil fuels in Pennsylvania.
We are writing a report on Faith & Fossil Fuels to bring this perspective into the larger conversation.
Impacts Of Fossil Fuels
We are blessed to live in an area of beautiful and rich natural resources. Yet our rivers, streams, forests, and mountains are not immune to the effects of pollution and greed.
It is undeniable that fossil fuels, both their extraction and use, interact with the land. Fossil fuels are the largest driver of the climate crisis.
As extreme heat impacts our health and agriculture, sea levels are rising, and storms are worsening, the effects of climate change are felt both locally and globally.
We mobilize to respond to this crisis as a moral issue.
Care For The Earth In Theology
No matter what language your theology uses to teach care for the earth, it is a common throughline across many religions.
The Jewish tradition of Tikkun-Olam calls Jews to repair the world through social and environmental justice.
Christian theology teaches Christians that it is a sacred responsibility to properly steward the earth and care for God’s creation.
Islam teaches Muslims that Allah (SWT) appointed humanity as Khalifah, meaning stewards, to care for sacred and divine creation.
These and many additional teachings help inform a moral environmental ethic.
Mobilizing The Faithful
With our Faith and Fossil Fuels program, we are exploring how we can build a faithful ethic of stewardship for the earth in response to the impacts of polluting industry in Pennsylvania.
We believe mobilizing faith-based communities is a strategic and powerful approach for a variety of reasons!
Faith communities are already organized, practice volunteerism, steward resources, and teach values aligned with environmental justice.
Faith-based action is a sustainable way to build strong, intergenerational movements and create opportunities for community resilience.
Pennsylvania History
Pennsylvania has a rich and complex history with the fossil fuel industry, which has been impacting our beautiful landscape and its peoples for decades.
For example, the Centralia Mine Fire started in 1962 and burns to this day. Residents were displaced and nearby communities are still impacted by dangerous gases being released in the atmosphere.
Pollution has impacted your air quality, making it hard to breathe and causing asthma in many places, like in Philadelphia after the oil refinery explosion in 2019 and in Pittsburgh near the Clairton Coke Works US Steel plant after a fire and ongoing concerns of pollution.
Community health has been impacted by the oil refinery in Chester City.
Water quality has also been directly impacted by fossil fuels, such as abandoned mine drainage across the state.
Storytelling Is Our Tool
Everyone has a story to tell, and those stories are powerful for activating change.
PA IPL is conducting research with the goal to understand the landscape and create a powerful blueprint for just action.
Storytelling is our tool for accomplishing that.
Every Pennsylvanian has been impacted by the fossil fuel industry in some way, and we believe that sharing these stories is a powerful tool for just action.
We want to know what concerns you face in your community.
PA IPL is developing a targeted and strategic multifaith campaign, and we want you to be a part of it!
When we’re done, we’ll present a report and story map which communities in Pennsylvania can use as a blueprint to inspire their own action.
This program seeks to build on our legacy of advocating for clean and just energy transition.
You can see our 2016 Resolution on Fossil Fuel Infrastructure here.
Addressing the impacts of polluting industry also connects to our commitment to environmental justice because not every Pennsylvanian experiences the impacts of fossil fuel pollution equally.
How You Can Get Involved
Here are several ways you can be involved--
-- Fill out our survey about your lived experience with pollution in the state of Pennsylvania. Whether you live with asthma, live near a gas well, or have experienced pollution or climate changes in the landscapes you love, we want to hear from you.
-- Complete a survey as a representative of your congregation or community to help us understand actions you’ve considered taking or have taken to address the impacts of polluting industry. This includes everything from organizing an advocacy action to installing clean energy at your house of worship!
-- Hosting a fossil fuel town hall with your congregation or community. Town halls are an opportunity to be in dialogue with members of your community or group about impacts and stories.
If you have referrals, represent an organization that is interested in collaborating with us, or have general questions about this program, please reach out to info@paipl.org.
This project has been made possible thanks to the generosity of the Ohio River Valley Participatory Fund.
Visit the PA Interfaith Power & Light’s Faith and Fossil Fuels Initiative webpage to learn more.
Related Articles This Week - Fossil Fuels:
-- Environmental Hearing Board Denies Request To End Appeal Of Catalyst Energy, Inc. Oil & Gas Wastewater Injection Well Permit In McKean County [PaEN]
-- Warren Times Editorial: Pennsylvania Needs A New Plan For Abandoned Conventional Oil & Gas Wells; Increasing Bond Amounts Only Part Of Solution [PaEN]
-- Environmental Integrity Project: DEP Made Changes To Permit For MarkWest Harmon Creek Natural Gas Processing Plant In Washington County To Reduce Air Emissions, Improve Accountability [PaEN]
-- Environmental Health Project To Launch Compounds Of Concern Online Tool During July 16 Webinar [PaEN]
-- PUC Approves $750,000 Penalty Against UGI Utilities For 2020 Natural Gas Main Eruption In Monroe County Killing 1 Person [PaEN]
-- PUC Seeks $395,000 Penalty Against UGI Utilities For 2022 Natural Gas House Explosion In Suburban Harrisburg; $50,000 Penalty Against Contractor [PaEN]
-- Mountain Watershed Association Files EHB Appeal Of DEP's Approval Of The 1,452 Acre Expansion of the Rustic Ridge #1 Coal Mine In Fayette, Westmoreland Counties [PaEN]
-- Guest Essay: Remembering Ryerson Station State Park's Duke Lake, Lost To Damage Caused By Underground Coal Mining In Greene County 20 Years Ago - By Sarah Sweeney, Center for Coalfield Justice [PaEN]
NewsClips:
-- PennLive: PUC Files Complaints Against UGI, Plumber For 2022 Dauphin County House Explosion
-- KYW: Deadly Explosion In Philadelphia’s Nicetown Neighborhood Could Be Natural Gas-Fueled, Source Says
-- TribLive: Mountain Watershed Assn. Challenges Rustic Ridge Coal Mine Expansion In Westmoreland, Fayette Counties
-- Post-Gazette: Federal Mine Safety Office To Close In August After Years Of Investigating Deaths, Injuries Of Miners
-- TribLive Letter: Air Pollution And Dementia - By Dr. Marti Haykin
-- TribLive Guest Essay: Drain The Swamp, Bring DOE's Fossil Energy Office To Pennsylvania - By Athan Koutsiouroumbas, Long Nyquist Lobbying Firm
-- Spotlight PA: Costs Of Amazon’s $20 Billion Promise To Build Data Centers In PA Unknown: Impact On Electricity Supply, Power Costs To Consumers, Tax Revenue Forfeit
-- Reuters - Commentary: US Power Plant Pollution Climbs On Higher Coal Use
-- Reuters: US Energy Firms Eye New Northeast Natural Gas Pipelines, Buoyed By President, Demand Outlook
-- Bloomberg: Electronic Warfare During Iran Strikes Crashes Global Shipping’s Navigation System, Including Oil, LNG Natural Gas Ships
-- Canary Media: New US Senate Republican Budget Bill Would Kill Clean Power, Spike Energy Costs
-- TribLive/AP: US Senate Republican Tax Bill Could Crush Wind, Solar Power, Advocates Say
-- EPA Announces It Will Revise Power Plant Wastewater Standards To Support Electric Reliability And Unleash American Energy [Again]
-- Utility Dive: DOE, FERC, Interior, Agriculture, Transportation Revoke Environmental Review Rules On Proposed Projects Under NEPA
-- US Dept Of Energy Announces Updated NEPA Procedures To End Permitting Paralysis, Unleash American Energy
[Posted: July 1, 2025] PA Environment Digest
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