Bob Challinor, Desert Valley Times

Michele Burkett traveled all the way to New York City to give Stephen Schwarzman the Christmas present she thought he deserved – a lump of coal.

The gift was ironic and symbolic. Schwarzman is CEO of The Blackstone Group, the financial behemoth that owns 80 percent of Sithe Global, Inc., the company planning to build the Toquop coal-fired power plant 12 miles northwest of Mesquite. Blackstone also is financing two other large coal-burning plants, Desert Rock in the Navajo Nation and the River Hill project in Pennsylvania.

Burkett, president of Defend Our Desert and a member of the Energy Task Force, has led opposition to the Toquop plant ever since construction plans were revealed for it. Last week she appeared right outside The Blackstone Group’s headquarters.

Dressed as an elf and accompanied by Robert Disney of the Sierra Club, who appeared as Santa Claus, Burkett joined several other representatives and leaders from grass roots groups in a sidewalk protest below Schwarzman’s office. Burkett carried a stocking containing a lump of coal and a post card picturing a little boy breathing through an oxygen mask.

Christmas greeting on the card: “Stephen Schwarzman, there’s a reason you’re getting coal in your stocking this year.”

On the back of the card was another message: “Dear Stephen Schwarzman, If you go through with your plan to pollute our air with more dirty coal plants, we’re all going to have to ask Santa for oxygen tanks for Christmas. Please invest in clean, renewable energy instead.”

The anti-coal activists handed out coal and postcards to passers-by.

“It was an opportunity to tell our story,” Burkett said.

Burkett took advantage of other opportunities in the Big Apple. The hotel where she stayed happened to be next door to a restaurant that featured coal-fired pizza.

“Most pizza is baked in wood-fired ovens,” Burkett said. “This restaurant had coal-fired pizza ovens. We wanted to deliver coal to the CEO of Blackstone so we went to a reasonably-sized store looking for coal brickettes. We couldn’t find any, but we went back to the pizza kitchen and we got pieces of coal.”

Defend Our Desert was joined by activists from the Sierra Club, Diné Care and the San Juan Citizens Alliance who delivered their message to Blackstone.

“That morning we walked down to the Blackstone building on Park Avenue – it was about eight blocks from our hotel – and I was dressed as an elf and Robert was dressed as Santa,” Burkett said. “Most people say that people in New York won’t make eye contact. We had people who not only looked at us but actually said, ‘Santa, I’ve been good.’

“We had a permit to stand on the sidewalk and make noise. We handed out postcards. Police came over and said hello and were very nice. I had only been in New York once, and the reception this time was very unique. I found the city to be very friendly.

“We were there at 7:30 a.m. to catch business people heading into the building who might actually deliver the message. We had several business people at break time, about five or six young executives who approached us and asked what was going on. We talked about the future, how power plants were burning yesterday’s technology for 50 years. People were interested in our story.

“A Sierra Club man from New York said it was unusual to see so many New York people give us this kind of recognition. It really doesn’t resonate to New Yorkers where power comes from. We drive by Reid-Gardner (power plant) every day and see hydrological dams, but in New York people are not aware of what generates electricity.”

During the rally, Burkett spotted a man taking notes and watching the group.

“I approached him, and he was from the Wall Street Journal,” Burkett said. “He heard our story.”

And Daniel Hausmann included what Burkett told him in an article that appeared in the paper. Burkett and Disney said Nevada and New Mexico both have several clean energy options and don’t need to build more coal-fired power plants.

“We do think they have alternatives,” Burkett told Hausmann. “They could finance solar as easily as coal.”

“A Blackstone shareholder walked by our group and saw that we were protesting against Blackstone’s financial support of dirty coal plants,” Burkett said. “She said, ‘I’m Blackstone shareholder. What’s going on?’ She listened to our story and said, ‘I don’t agree with what’s going on. I’m going to write a letter to them.’”

Schwarzman’s financial support of coal-fired plants was a contrast to another corporate CEO’s stance, Burkett said.

“The word we use is corporate responsibility,” she said. “I saw a TV interview with the CEO of Pepsico on trying to do the right thing. When they take water out of the ground, they put it back. They try to ship more efficiently. Right now it’s voluntary to do these kinds of things, but smart companies recognize change is coming before regulation. Smart companies are making changes.”

Burkett also said it was fascinating to meet leaders from other activist groups.

“Lori Goodman of Diné Care is fighting against the [Desert] Rock coal plant,” Burkett said. “She’s going against the Navajo Tribal Council that supports the new plant in New Mexico. San Juan Citizens Alliance leader Mike Eisenfeld said he and his group have watched the continuing pollution of the San Juan River exiting from plants in the Navajo Nation. It was great to meet the leaders of these grassroots groups.”

Burkett said it was most satisfying to connect to others who probably would not have known Defend Our Desert’s fight against the proposed Toquop coal-fired plant.

“I truly think being able to look into the eyes of people who I’ll never meet again and see them give us a nod that said, ‘You’re working on something important,’” Burkett said. “I felt that. I think the elf outfit breaks the barriers. It was an experience that won’t ever happen again in my life. It was quite unique.”