Elections Alberta has rejected musician Corb Lund's 'Water Not Coal' petition, which sought to ban new coal mining in the Eastern Slopes of the Rocky Mountains.The petition initially met the required threshold of 177,732 signatures, with over 196,000 submissions.

However, after validation, the verified count dropped to 172,088 due to issues like duplicate signatures, incomplete information, and unverified contact details.The rejection highlights challenges in ensuring the legitimacy of citizen-initiated petitions.Corb Lund, a Canadian country music artist, submitted the petition last month, citing environmental concerns.Organizers now have until Monday to return documents, destroy extra copies, and submit an affidavit.Premier Danielle Smith previously stated the issue would not be included in an upcoming referendum due to time constraints.The case underscores the complexities of validating large-scale petitions and the balance between public participation and administrative rigor.