For now, the campaign has cleared a major seam in the process.

Corb Lund’s Water Not Coal campaign says it has collected enough signatures to meet the minimum requirement under Alberta’s Citizen Initiative Act.

The petition seeks legislation to stop new coal mining and exploration on Alberta’s Eastern Slopes. It specifically names Northback Holdings’ Grassy Mountain Mine and Valory Resources’ Blackstone Mine project.

The campaign needed 177,732 signatures between Feb. 11 and June 10 to move the citizen-led initiative forward. Lund made stops in High River and Okotoks on June 8 during the final days of signature collection.

Since launching in February, organizers say more than 3,000 registered canvassers have collected signatures across Alberta, including at community events, markets, ranches, breweries, sidewalks and doorsteps. The campaign also included a multi-day horseback ride from Longview to Edmonton to draw attention to concerns about coal development in the Eastern Slopes.

A Water Not Coal news release said the effort reflects concern about potential long-term effects of coal mining on water quality, headwaters protection and downstream communities.

Lund, campaign organizers and volunteers are scheduled to deliver the petition to Elections Alberta on June 10 at 3 p.m. for formal verification.

If Elections Alberta validates the petition, the initiative will move to the next step under the Citizen Initiative Act.