| FOXNews.com

Scientists have been forced to retract a paper that claimed sea level were rising thanks to the effects of global warming, after mistakes were discovered that undermined the results.

The study was published in Nature Geoscience and predicted that sea levels would rise by as much as 2.7 feet by the end of the twenty-first century.

The paper also highlighted that it reinforced the conclusions of the U.N.'s controversial Fourth Assessment report, which warned of the dangerous of man-made climate change.

However, mistakes in time intervals and inaccurately applied statistics have forced the authors to retract their paper -- the first official retraction ever for the three-year-old journal, notes the Guardian. In an officially published retraction of their paper, the authors acknowledged these mistakes as factors that compromised the results.

Urge your Member of Congress to vote in support of three critically important pro-mining amendments being considered by the House today. If enacted, these amendments will help push back against EPA's regulatory destruction of the coal industry, bring back balance to the regulatory uncertainty hindering the coal industry, and provide high-paying jobs for our nation's hardworking miner's.

We urge you to call your representative or visit our Action Center and tell your Member of Congress to vote in support of:

• Amendment No.109 offered by Rep. Morgan Griffith of Virginia 
  
  
• Amendment No. 216 offered by Rep. David McKinley of West Virginia
  
  
• Amendment No.498 offered by Rep. Bill Johnson of Ohio.
  

Contacting your Member of Congress via the NMA Action Center is easy and takes only a moment

CLICK HERE TO VISIT OUR ACTION CENTER - We need you to act now, votes are expected in the next 24 hours!

Thank you for making your voice heard.

ST. LOUIS – Arch Coal, Inc. has announced that Robert W. Shanks has elected to retire as president of Arch’s eastern U.S. operations on March 31 after 35 years of service.  Gary L. Bennett, president and general manager of Arch’s Coal-Mac, Inc. subsidiary, has been promoted to president of eastern operations, and J. Chris Sykes has been promoted from mine manager to general manager of Coal-Mac.

Shanks joined Arch in 1976 as a hydrologist after completing his master’s degree in civil engineering from Purdue University.  He has held a number of engineering, operations and senior management positions during his tenure, most recently as president of eastern operations.  Throughout the course of Shanks’ career, he either worked at or was associated with every one of the company’s operating divisions.  In addition to his long and successful history in managing operations, he played significant roles in the Diamond Shamrock acquisition, the 1993 BCOA-UMWA contract negotiations, the Arch Mineral-Ashland Coal merger and the Atlantic Richfield Coal Company (ARCO) acquisition.

Bennett received a bachelor’s degree in mining engineering from West Virginia Tech and joined Arch as a senior engineer in 1990.  During his 21-year tenure with Arch, he has held various engineering and operating positions in West Virginia, St. Louis and Kentucky.  Arch’s four eastern general managers and the various staff functions in Charleston, W.Va., will report to Bennett.  Bennett will be located in the Charleston office and will report to Senior Vice President of Operations Paul A. Lang.

Sykes earned a bachelor’s degree in mining engineering from Virginia Tech and an executive master’s degree in business administration from the University of Charleston, W.Va., in 1999.  Sykes has 14 years of experience in the coal industry and with Arch Coal.  Sykes most recently served as Coal-Mac’s mine manager.  He will report to Bennett.

The following applications for membership were accepted into the Association:  Appalachian Coal Services, LLC; BASF Corporation-The Chemical Company; IVS Hydro; Liberty Hydrologic Systems; P & H MinePro Services; Preston Contractors, Inc.; and, Williams Forestry & Associates, LLC.

We welcome all of our new members and look forward to working with each during the coming months and years.  Thanks for all that you do to make the coal industry in West Virginia the best that it can be.

Congresswoman Shelley Moore Capito, R.W.Va., released the following statement announcing the re-launch of the Congressional Coal Caucus in the 112th Congress.  Capito was joined by Reps. Altmire, Holden, Shimkus, Rehberg and Costello as co-chairs. “Coal is our nation’s most abundant natural resource and supports more than 130,000 good-paying jobs across the country.  Anyone who turns on a light or plugs in a computer or watches their favorite TV show has coal to thank for providing a low-cost energy supply.  Failure to include this vital resource in an all-of-the-above approach to our energy security will mean widespread consequences, from higher utility bills at home to increased costs at the grocery store. 

“With the Administration’s recent attacks on the industry, most notably the EPA’s veto of the existing Spruce Mine Permit, the Coal Caucus stands to play a key role in bringing to light the important role coal plays in our day-to-day lives.  As a West Virginian, I am especially concerned with the EPA’s attempts to use their regulatory authority to further an anti-coal agenda.  While I agree that the environmental impact of coal mining must be considered, any decisions regarding the future of coal can be done so in a balanced manner that also weighs economic factors.  As such, I’ve supported investment in clean-coal technologies.

“I look forward to working with my coal-state colleagues to make sure the coal industry, and the thousands of jobs it supports, has a strong, unified voice in the 112th Congress.”