CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- NASA climate scientist James Hansen has agreed to debate global warming, the coal industry and mountaintop removal mining with Massey Energy President Don Blankenship later this week.

Officials from Massey and from environmental groups who are working with Hansen on a major protest today in the Coal River Valley were busy late Monday trying to work out details, including a time and location, for the event.

Both sides, along with West Virginia Public Broadcasting, were trying to work out arrangements for the event to take place Wednesday at Mountain State University in Beckley. A time had not yet been set.

Blankenship challenged Hansen to debate the issues after it was announced that Hansen would be among the opponents of mountaintop removal who planned to risk arrest by trespassing on Massey property during today's protest near Marsh Fork Elementary School at Sundial.

Hansen later changed his schedule, to stay in West Virginia another day to take part in the debate. Hansen proposed that the debate take place at a school, with both men getting time for extensive opening statements, followed by a question-and-answer period.

"Thanks for your offer to publicly discuss climate change, human-made global warming and its implications for the coal industry in general and mountaintop removal in particular," Hansen wrote in an e-mail to Blankenship. "That is an excellent suggestion. I would be glad to participate in a format that allows the public to become better acquainted with the science and its implications."

Later, Hansen indicated he would appear and give a presentation on global warming and the coal industry, regardless of whether Blankenship agreed to specific debate logistics.

More than 20 years ago, Hansen first warned Congress about the dangers of climate change and urged actions to reduce carbon dioxide emissions that contribute to the greenhouse effect. Over the last few years, Hansen has become more and more politically active, appearing at rallies and protests, and calling for an end to coal-burning power plants that don't capture and store their carbon dioxide emissions.

Blankenship has said that he doesn't believe in climate change and has said that Hansen and others who speak out on the issue are "totally crazy" and "lying" to the public.

Officials from Massey and from environmental groups who are working with Hansen on a major protest today in the Coal River Valley were busy late Monday trying to work out details, including a time and location, for the event.

Both sides, along with West Virginia Public Broadcasting, were trying to work out arrangements for the event to take place Wednesday at Mountain State University in Beckley. A time had not yet been set.

Blankenship challenged Hansen to debate the issues after it was announced that Hansen would be among the opponents of mountaintop removal who planned to risk arrest by trespassing on Massey property during today's protest near Marsh Fork Elementary School at Sundial.

Hansen later changed his schedule, to stay in West Virginia another day to take part in the debate. Hansen proposed that the debate take place at a school, with both men getting time for extensive opening statements, followed by a question-and-answer period.

"Thanks for your offer to publicly discuss climate change, human-made global warming and its implications for the coal industry in general and mountaintop removal in particular," Hansen wrote in an e-mail to Blankenship. "That is an excellent suggestion. I would be glad to participate in a format that allows the public to become better acquainted with the science and its implications."

Later, Hansen indicated he would appear and give a presentation on global warming and the coal industry, regardless of whether Blankenship agreed to specific debate logistics.

More than 20 years ago, Hansen first warned Congress about the dangers of climate change and urged actions to reduce carbon dioxide emissions that contribute to the greenhouse effect. Over the last few years, Hansen has become more and more politically active, appearing at rallies and protests, and calling for an end to coal-burning power plants that don't capture and store their carbon dioxide emissions.

Blankenship has said that he doesn't believe in climate change and has said that Hansen and others who speak out on the issue are "totally crazy" and "lying" to the public.