Montana Environmental Information Center

MEIC is a non-partisan environmental nonprofit dedicated to livability for Montanans now and in the future by working for clean air, clean water, and a livable climate. Montana is rich in fossil fuels - coal, oil, and methane gas - but extraction and the burning of these fuels has significant consequences, for our climate and for communities near extraction projects. In order to ensure a livable climate for where people are valued over profit, MEIC advocates for, educates, and empowers people working toward our Constitutional right to "a clean and healthful environment" and the protection and restoration of life-sustaining land, air, water, and climate of what is currently known as Montana.

MEIC advocates for clean air, clean water and a healthy climate through campaigns focused on hardrock mining, water and air quality, energy, and land use issues. Recent federal re-investment into coal extraction shines a light on Montana's coal industry, which is positioned on the largest coal reserves in the U.S. (25% of the country's total and 7% of the world's reserves). Extracting and burning coal has significant consequences for both our global climate and for nearby communities. MEIC takes a full life-cycle approach to fighting fossil fuel development in Montana, from challenging extraction and pipeline proposals to preventing combustion for power generation to advocating for clean energy deployment and greater efficiency measures.

Working with partners across the region, MEIC lobbies the Montana legislature, works with administrative agencies, educates the public, informs the media, and, when all else fails, goes to court to seek justice. Through grassroots organizing, we work to get and keep good laws on the books. Through strategic litigation, we help ensure that those laws are enforced. With each of our campaigns, we consider the broader implications for the movement.

Testimonials

"MEIC will go to the mat for the people of Montana. It is not a stretch to say your favorite river, favorite walk in the woods, favorite camping spot and the clean air you breathe and the clean water you drink are still there in large part because of MEIC's work. "

"Vigilant guardian of our constitutional right to a clean and healthy environment, MEIC is the most vital environmental organization in the State of Montana and our family is grateful for its persistence in protecting our rights."

"I count on MEIC to serve as an effective counter-weight to those who would, if unchecked, destroy our air, waters, and lands that are integral to the Montana that we know and love."