On Jan. 31, the head of U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration, Joe Main, announced the next phase of the “Rules to Live By” training, a program with a catchy title that aims to reduce mining fatalities and injuries. The 14 targeted safety standards in the “Rules to Live By III: Preventing Common Mining Deaths” were chosen because violations related to each contributed to at least five deaths and five mine accidents between Jan. 1, 2000 and Dec. 31, 2010.

The third phase of the program also marks a shift toward increased scrutiny of surface mine safety with 11 of the 14 targeted standards directly related to surface mining operations, which are often thought of as safer than underground mines. Main said the need to shift the focus from deep mines to surface operations became clear in 2011 when five deaths occurred in just 41 days and emphasized that, although 2011 was the second safest year on record, two-thirds of the total 37 lives lost occured on coal, metal and nonmetal surface mines.

Of the 14 standards, eight are coal priority standards, including daily inspections of surface coal mines and plans for the safe control of all highwalls, pits and spoil banks, “which shall be consistent with prudent engineering design and will insure safe working conditions.”

An announcement made by MSHA on Tuesday describes the intent of Phase III:

Beginning April 1, MSHA will focus more attention on these 14 standards with enhanced enforcement efforts, increased scrutiny for related violations, and instructions to inspectors to more carefully evaluate gravity and negligence – consistent with the seriousness of the violation – when citing violations that cause or contribute to mining fatalities. MSHA inspectors will receive online training to promote consistency in enforcement activity across the agency.

Increased scrutiny of mine operator safety, effective regulation, inspection and enforcement can only be a good thing. When rules put in place to protect workers are seen as little more than threats to profits, they are ignored, and miners are taken from their families and loved ones by preventable deaths. MSHA should be commended on their efforts to stay up-to-date with the conditions that put workers at risk.

But Main’s announcement can also be read as a ironic reminder: Mountaintop removal puts entire communities at risk by imposing an economic, environmental, and public health burden on families. They have their own “Rules to Live By” that include clean air, water and economic and legal justice against a destructive industry encroaching on their homes. Most of these citizens have no way to defend themselves from the long list of negative impacts, conveniently considered “externalities” by the coal industry. And as peer-reviewed studies and mounting evidence show an increase in birth defects around these sites it’s becoming clearer than ever, citizens of Appalachia need stronger enforcement of their rules too.

Just like we need safe mines, we need safe communities. But we can’t have either when mountaintop removal is the mining method of choice.

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MSHA’s “Rules to Live By” Remind Us of Real Risks

Barbara Kingsolver and Kathy Mattea present “A View from the Mountaintop” at the Bijou Theatre on March 11

Tickets go on sale TODAY, February 3 through KnoxvilleTickets.com, KnoxBijou.com, or by calling 684-1200

KNOXVILLE, TN: At 5 p.m. on March 11, 2012, renowned author, Barbara Kingsolver, and Grammy-award winning singer, Kathy Mattea, will combine their talents to present “A View from the Mountaintop,” an evening of spoken word and song at the Bijou Theatre that celebrates their shared Appalachian heritage and casts a spotlight on mountaintop removal mining, a controversial practice that has destroyed over 500 mountains across Appalachia and presents a looming threat to Tennessee’s mountains on the Cumberland Plateau. Tickets will go on sale Friday, February 3 at 10:00 AM through KnoxvilleTickets.com, KnoxBijou.com, the Tennessee Theatre box office, and by calling (865) 684-1200. Tickets are $25.00 plus handling costs.

Kentucky native, Barbara Kingsolver, has been named one of the most important writers of the 20th Century by Writer’s Digest. Her novel, The Poisonwood Bible, was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. Other works include: Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, and The Lacuna. In 2000, Kingsolver was awarded the National Humanities Medal, our country’s highest honor for service through the arts.

Kathy Mattea, a native of West Virginia, has won two Grammys and has twice been named Female Vocalist of the Year by the Country Music Association. Her recordings intertwine Celtic, gospel, and bluegrass influences with the folk and acoustic music that have always served as her artistic anchor. Her most recent CD, the Grammy-nominated, Coal, celebrates the culture of Appalachia.

The evening is sponsored by LEAF (Lindquist Environmental Appalachian Fellowship) a non-profit, non-denominational fellowship of Tennesseans whose faith leads them to take action for Tennessee’s environment. LEAF seeks to protect Tennessee’s highest ridgelines by working for the passage of the Tennessee Scenic Vistas Protection Act that is currently under consideration by the Tennessee Legislature. For more information on mountaintop removal and its impact in Tennessee: www.tnleaf.org

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A View From the Mountaintop: An Evening with Barbara Kingsolver and Kathy Mattea

The event is $50 and includes a shirt, lift pass, and registration for poker run and prize drawing. Preregistration is at Footsloggers in downtown Boone on Friday, January 20 from 6-8 PM. Come get your shirt and registration out of the way and enjoy a beer in the courtyard courtesy of Blowing Rock Ale. Pick up any last minute items from Footsloggers (one of the main sponsors) who will remain open for us.

You may also register the day of the event.

Look for signs at Beech Mountain Resort for directions to our gathering area.

Footsloggers is proud to be the presenting sponsor of the Banff Mountain Film Festival World Tour at Appalachian State University for 2012.  This year marks the 16th annual screening of the Banff Mountain Film Festival in Boone, as well as the 16th year of Footsloggers sponsorship.  Folks, this is one event you don’t want to miss.  The world tour is a “best of” collection of films from the annual Banff Mountain Festival, held in Banff, Canada each fall, showcasing the best in mountain adventure, culture, and environment.  The World Tour has received such a response from the Boone community over the years that the tour stays in Boone for two nights, with different films shown each night.  Check out the trailer for the festival below for an idea of what to expect.

Tickets are on sale now at Farthing Auditorium and Footsloggers in downtown Boone.  Tickets purchased at Footsloggers in Boone will include a special coupon valid at Footsloggers in Boone or Blowing Rock for 12% off the original price of any single item! Some vendor exclusions apply, including Patagonia, Mountain Hardwear, and Montbell.

From the ASU Outdoor Programs website:

Join us for an Outdoor Programs and High Country tradition. The Banff Mountain Film Festival comes to Boone for the 16th annual “Best of the Festival” World Tour on Friday March 30 and Saturday March 31 2012, 7:30 pm at Farthing Auditorium.

The Banff Mountain Film Festival features the world’s best films on mountain adventure, culture, and the environment selected from hundreds of entries submitted from around the world. We choose screenings designed to educate, entertain, and inspire you.

You will notice that we have restructured our online product offering and it is much more focused.  Our best work is done one-on-one, so that we can best understand our customers and help them plan the best possible adventures (just ask, and many of us are readily available to offer ‘sherpa’ services, if there is a free airline ticket involved!)  Simplifying our website allows us more energy to serve you.  Besides, life’s too short, and our relationships with customers and one another are the only thing that matters at the end of the day…

We hope you find the site resourceful, and we are enthusiastic to see you the next time you’re in Boone or Blowing Rock!  We also welcome phone orders, so feel free to call us at 828-262-5111 and we will do our best to help you find the product you are looking for.  We welcome your feedback as we make some changes to the site, and you can contact us at the above phone number or through our customer service page.

Fresh off the road from a fantastic Appalachian Treasures Tour in Pennsylvania and Ohio, I wanted to take a moment to wrap up the tour with a recap of events.

First of all I wanted to give my profound thanks from the entire Appalachian Voices team and to Adam Hall who joined us on this latest tour. Adam, a native of Raleigh County West Virginia, is a highly decorated veteran of the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars (Recipient of: Distinguished Service Cross, Silver Star, Bronze Star, Purple Heart), whose family farm was destroyed by the Edwight mountaintop removal mine in Raleigh County, WV. This sprawling mountaintop removal mine sits above the Marsh Fork Elementary School. He is rapidly becoming leader in the fight to end mountaintop removal coal mining, and I am honored he is willing to take time away from his work with the Friends Of Blair Mountain and the Keepers Of The Mountains to travel with us.

We had a great presentation tour in Pennsylvania and Ohio. Speaking at churches, rotary clubs and local businesses we encountered dozens of caring individuals who upon learning about the horrors of mountaintop removal became instantly energized to join the movement that will put an end to this practice.

We shared the story of mountaintop removal and it’s devastating impacts to communities and the environment of Appalachia to approximately 200 Ohioans and Pennsylvanians. The presentations generated dozens of hand written letters to Representative Steve Latourette (Oh-14), Representative Todd Platts (PA-19), Representative Mike Doyle (PA-14) and Representative Mike Fitzpatrick (PA-8) urging them to protect the mountains of Appalachia and co-sponsor the Clean Water Protection Act HR 1375. Hopefully our efforts and the efforts of our presentation hosts and audiences will result in important new bipartisan co-sponsors to this bill that will help end mountaintop removal!

Thank you so much to all of our hosts, without you these trips would be impossible. We cannot express how much we value those who attend, host and assist these vital presentations.

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Appalachian Treasures Tour Pennsylvania and Ohio: It’s A Wrap.

New Board Member Nominees (1st Term)

Clara Bingham — Clara Bingham is an award winning journalist and author. She is a former Newsweek White House correspondent, and the author (with Laura Leedy Gansler) of Class Action: The Landmark Case that Changed Sexual Harassment Law (Doubleday 2002). Her book was adapted into the 2005 film North Country (Warner Bros.), staring Charlize Theron and Frances McDormand. Both actresses received Oscar nominations for their roles. Class Action was a Los Angeles Times best book of the year and won the AAUW Speaking Out For Justice Award. Bingham is also the author of Women on the Hill: Challenging the Culture of Congress (Times Books 1997), and she has written for many publications including Vanity Fair, Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, Talk, The Washington Monthly, Ms., and United Press International. While reporting a story in West Virginia, Bingham, a Kentucky native, witnessed the destructive effects of Mountaintop Removal coal mining for the first time. Since then she has dedicated her time and energy to producing The Last Mountain, which was in competition at that Sundance Film Festival January 2011.

Annie Brown has had a life-long interest in social and environmental issues and currently spends her (semi-retirement) time between Jefferson, NC (resident 30+ years), Michigan, and Florida. Ashe County volunteer work includes: National Committee for the New River (Board, & employed as Director); Arts Council (President & Board); Humane Society (President, Board, Animal Cruelty Investigator); Native American educational programs. For five years she was part of the inaugural staff which helped to establish the National Museum of the American Indian (Washington, DC). She has worked on a variety of projects in Indian Country, including several years with Vine Deloria, Jr. (Native scholar, author, and statesman). Her work history, volunteer involvement, and life experiences, confirms a commitment to addressing issues and solutions in a direct manner.

Silas Haus — Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Proin auctor nisi vel tellus feugiat eget varius ligula vehicula. Nullam eu tellus eget purus dapibus mattis ut ut arcu. Pellentesque habitant morbi tristique senectus et netus et malesuada fames ac turpis egestas. Praesent in nisl quis ligula cursus eleifend. Phasellus vulputate risus id turpis blandit ac dignissim odio commodo. Phasellus elit nulla, rutrum at fringilla ut, tempor eget neque. Etiam facilisis, massa at dignissim egestas, elit sem ornare quam, non ultrices ante felis quis tortor. Nullam pulvinar lectus eget urna fermentum sed tincidunt velit pellentesque. Integer sollicitudin, tellus venenatis consequat pulvinar, urna orci iaculis orci, in luctus velit diam ac enim. Maecenas sagittis gravida arcu. Maecenas non tellus a purus iaculis.

Landra Lewis — Landra is a native of eastern Kentucky. She has a BA in Political Science and a certificate in mediation from Duke University. She is involved in a variety of professional associations and environmental organizations, and in 2010 she even ran for a seat in the Kentucky state Senate. She is dedicated to ending mountaintop removal coal mining and bringing about positive change in her home state of Kentucky.

Kathy Selvage — Kathy, daughter of a coal miner and Wise County, VA resident, has brought local, regional, and national exposure to the destruction that mountaintop removal coal mining is wreaking on her native land, its people, and their culture. As a strong advocate for herself and others, she was instrumental in the fight against Dominion’s Wise County coal-fired plant and the mile-long petition delivered in Richmond, VA, the recipient of the 2006 St. Francis Ecological Award for innovative work; was named in Blue Ridge Country magazine as one of 14 individuals shaping the region, and appeared in the Evans/Gellar documentary “Coal Country” as a path to bring the devastation of the Appalachian region to the consciousness of every American. In 2010, she emerged in another documentary, “Electricity Fairy”, to be utilized to support work against future coal-fired plants and mountain top removal and instead promote energy efficiency, conservation, and renewable energies.

Board Member Reelections (2nd Term)

Matthew Anderson-Stembridge — Matthew’s background includes training with Green Corps and working with Greenpeace. Matthew directed environmental and rural advocacy and education in Washington, DC for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, as well as national campaign efforts on climate and energy for the National Council of Churches in Christ. Matthew has served as executive director of Twin Cities-based coalition Faith in the City and currently directs the Creation Care Fund, which provides financial and technical support to Christian environmental grassroots initiatives. Matthew graduated from Dartmouth College with a B.A. in environmental studies and is completing a Masters in Advocacy and Political Leadership from the University of Minnesota – Duluth. He lives in Saint Paul with his wife Kirsten. Matthew enjoys curling and coaching ultimate Frisbee.

Mary Anne Hitt — Mary Anne Hitt is director of the Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal Campaign, which is working to eliminate coal’s contribution to global warming by preventing the construction of new coal-fired power plants, accelerating the retirement and replacement of existing coal plants, and ensuring the massive coal reserves in the US remain underground and out of export markets. She previously served as executive director of Appalachian Voices, where she was one of the co-creators of iLoveMountains.org. She was also previously the executive director of the Ecology Center and the Southern Appalachian Biodiversity Project. She grew up in the mountains of east Tennessee and now lives in West Virginia.

Christina Howe — Christina resides in Valle Crucis where the Watauga River forms the western boundary of her property. She came to Boone after living and working in Miami, Fl. She was senior vice-president of a very large development company, which built, managed and sold shopping centers, office buildings and airport hangers. Christina became a commercially rated, single and multi-engine pilot with an instrument rating. She founded and still owns two real estate companies. She went on to assist her late husband in building a 350,000 sq.ft. terminal in Sanford, Fl. now known as the Orlando-Sanford International Airport or OSI. Christina is a sailor, an avid tennis player, and enjoys golf. She was the President of the High Country Conservancy for 4 years. Christina is presently President of the Shull’s Farm POA. She is a passionate environmentalist and Green has always been her favorite color.

Bunk Spann– Bunk Spann is the founder of the National Center for Developmental Education at Appalachian State University, a former member of the Boone, N.C. town council and current chair of the Boone area Planning Commission.
Pat Watkins — Pat is an ordained minister in the Virginia Conference of the United Methodist Church. He and his wife, Denise Honeycutt, served as missionaries in Nigeria with the United Methodist General Board of Global Ministries. He currently serves as the Executive Director of Caretakers of God’s Creation, an environmental ministry of the Virginia Conference. He is a member of the United Methodist Women’s Division Green Team for the denomination. Pat tries to live out his passion for God’s creation by living his life in such a way as to make a smaller footprint on God’s earth. He is an avid organic, permaculture gardener. His passion is to raise the awareness, particularly among people of faith, that there is a connection between faith and taking care of God’s creation. He and Denise live in Fairfax VA.

Officer Elections

Christina Howe — Chair (see bio above)

Bunk Spann — Treasurer (see bio above)

Matthew Anderson-Stembridge — Secretary (see bio above)

Heidi Binko — Vice Chair
In October 2008, Heidi Binko joined Rockefeller Family Fund (RFF) as associate director of Special Climate Initiatives. In this position, she works closely with national and regional advocates and foundations working at the nexus of climate and coal. Since joining RFF, Heidi has played a leading role in creating strategic partnerships between funders and advocates interested in helping the nation move beyond a coal-based economy. Prior to joining RFF, Heidi was the executive director of the WestWind Foundation, a family foundation based in Virginia. She currently serves as a board member of the Environmental Grantmakers Association, Appalachian Voices, and as a co-chair of the Climate and Energy Funders Group. She holds degrees from the University of Notre Dame and the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies.

Board Members-At-Large

These are current board members not up for reelection this year.

Jim Deming — Rev. Jim Deming is the Minister for Environmental Justice for the United Church of Christ where he is involved in grassroots environmental justice programs, education, and advocacy. For three years, he was the Executive Director of Tennessee Interfaith Power and Light, educating congregations on environmental stewardship, renewable energy, and energy conservation. He also served as the Executive Director of the Kentucky/ Tennessee Water Environment Association. He is excited about working with Appalachian Voices and members of the faith community to draw attention to environmental injustices like mountaintop removal.

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Groundswell from fundraising events

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Exum Guide Tour at Hound Ears Bouldering Comp Sat Night

It Took a Movement to Create the Clean Water Act- We Need Another to Save It

Update: The House passed the polluter-friendly TRAIN Act, H.R. 2041 by a vote of 249 to 169.

A People’s Movement Made This Clean Water Possible

At this moment, the U.S. House is debating HR 2041, the TRAIN Act. The Transparency in Regulatory Analysis of Impacts on the Nation Act is a dangerous bill designed to give coal-fired plants a free pass when it comes to controlling pollutants like mercury- for up to 5 years.

The TRAIN Act would delay vital protections like the utility mercury standard, still under EPA consideration, and the recently finalized Cross-State Air Pollution Rule.

The Utility mercury rule would reduce mercury from coal-fired power plants by 91%. 500,000 Americans recently let the EPA know that they support this safeguard. The recently finalized Cross-State Air Pollution Rule would curb smog and particulate pollution that blow across state lines from coal-fired power plants.

These protections have both public health and economic benefits. The two rules combined, according to a University of Massachusetts study, commissioned by CERES, would:

-prevent 17,000 premature deaths every year;
-prevent 12,000 hospitalizations and emergency room visits every year;
-saving taxpayers a minimum of $59 billion, and would
-create nearly 1.5 million jobs, or nearly 300,000 jobs a year on average over the next five years

The utility mercury standard has been long overdue. In 2004, a more industry-friendly EPA decided to buck their own previous assessment of mercury as a hazardous air pollutant, which would have required the EPA to regulate mercury under Section 112 of the Clean Water Act, the MACT standard. This standard requires that the “Maximum Available Control Technology” be used to clean up mercury from power plants, and is based on the emissions levels already achieved by the best-performing similar facilities.

The EPA decided to try to regulate under a less stringent standard (section 111). Environmental groups like Earthjustice, Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), Southern Environmental Law Center and Waterkeeper Alliance forced the EPA to reverse this decision and re-release a proposal using the standards for hazardous air pollutants.

The EPA is expected to release a final rule on curbing mercury from coal utilities in November. But they might not be able to implement the rule, if some members of Congress have their way.

The TRAIN Act is part of a bigger campaign to dismantle important and popular laws like the Clean Water Act and the Clean Air Act, and weaken the federal agencies charged with implementing these laws, primarily the Environmental Protection Agency.

Why? Because the coal industry doesn’t want to cut into their massive profits; instead they would rather that we continue to pick up the tab for their pollution with our personal health and the health of our waterways.

Big Coal wants to continue to dump their waste from mountaintop removal mining into our headwater streams, to let mercury fall into our rivers, and allow coal ash to contaminate groundwater. It’s cheaper for them to lobby Congress to weaken our laws- at a tune of $200 million in 2010 alone.

To allow Congress to gut these popular laws would thrust America back to a time where polluting industries were in charge of our air and water. Where would that leave us?

1969- The Year Before the Clean Water Act

“Cuyahoga River Fire,” Fred Bottomer

On June 22, 1969, American witnessed an environmental horror- the burning of an oil slick on the Cuyahoga River in Ohio (again- it wasn’t the first time). However, this time the fire caught the attention of Time Magazine, which famously wrote,

“No Visible Life. Some river! Chocolate-brown, oily, bubbling with subsurface gases, it oozes rather than flows…The Federal Water Pollution Control Administration dryly notes: “The lower Cuyahoga has no visible life, not even low forms such as leeches and sludge worms that usually thrive on wastes.”

This event was the straw that broke the camel’s back. Americans took to the streets, angry that corporate polluters were being given free rein in using our nation’s waterways as their dumping grounds. In 1970, the following year, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was established and the Clean Water Act was passed into law. This occurred under a Republican Administration (Nixon) and a Democratic Congress, no less.

Before the EPA and the Clean Water Act, states had little incentive to have strong water or air protections, unless similar protections were instituted by several other states. Water and air know no boundaries, so state air and water laws were of little use without consistent federal standards to back them up. The burning of the Cuyahoga brought to light the grave need for these federal standards.

We have come a long way since 1969; however, we still have a long way to go. To this day, over half of our rivers streams are classified as “threatened” or “impaired.” And we have written countless times about the damage mountaintop removal coal mining has caused to our headwater streams and local well water in Appalachian coal-bearing regions.

But with the passage of the Clean Water Act and the creation of the EPA,
we demonstrated a strong national commitment to clean water as an important natural resource. Whether you love to go fishing, swimming, or just drinking a glass of cool refreshing water, it’s laws like the Clean Water Act that make those activities safe for you to enjoy.

The EPA and the Clean Water Act exists because the American people exercised their political will- and we need to do so again, because there are politicians intent on partying like it’s 1969. And Big Coal is paying for the keg and snacks.

Join the movement to save America’s clean water

It took a movement to create the Clean Water Act- it’s going to take another movement to save it. Won’t you please join this movement and sign the Red, White, Water pledge?

We need to hold Congress accountable- otherwise we might get pushed into the Big Coal time machine and reverse all the progress we have made in the past 40 years in cleaning up our waterways.

I also encourage to call your Representative- you can use the U.S. Capitol Switchboard 202-224-3121 and ask them to vote NO on HR 2041, the TRAIN Act. A vote is expected later on today.

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Dirty Politics: The Biggest Threat to America’s Waterways

President: Scott Gilliam

Vice Pres.: Phil Hoffman

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CCC Board nominations

Family Fun at The Footsloggers Courtyard

When: This Saturday, October 29 10:30a.m.-2:30p.m

Who: Friends of High Country State Parks

What: There will be food, music, and s’mores over a campfire. There is guaranteed to be something that everyone in the family will love to do.

Where:  Footsloggers in Downtown Boone, in the Climbing Tower courtyard

Cost:  FREE

Details:  Parking for this event will be available on Depot Street and King Street. There will be hotdogs (for a suggested donation) on the grill in the afternoon for lunch with s’mores over the camp fire to follow.

Come out and have a great afternoon of fun with the family, while also supporting a great cause. Help us protect the places we love in our high country by supporting the Friends of High Country Parks.

We also have lots of new winter clothing and gear in the main shop, come in and take a look at the great new winter lines that we have just gotten in from Patagonia, PrAna,  Arc’Teryx, North Face, Outdoor Research, and many more.

There will also be representatives from our four local state parks at the event, in order to answer any questions you may have and to show you all of the beautiful attractions that each of the state parks has to offer. In addition to answering any questions you may have they will also be having a membership drive, allowing you to join in the efforts that this great organization stands for. For more information on the goals and ambitions of this organization visit their facebook . Or copy and paste this into your browser: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Friends-of-High-Country-State-Parks/149093295149656

We all hope to see you this Saturday to have a great afternoon of music, food, and great family fun. Come in and see us in the store to check out all of the new winter clothing and gear that we have received for this season.

Have A Great Day!

In the end of July, Appalachian Voices was contacted by Ted Withrow of Kentuckians for the Commonwealth, who reported a family in rural Pike County, Kentucky, with possible methane contamination of their drinking water well, as indicated by flames shooting more than a foot out of the top of the well. The fire had been reported to local media by friends of the family. The contamination was believed to be the result of underground mining activities by the nearby Excel Number 2 mine. As we looked into this case further to see how we might help, we realized the problem was more wide-spread and long-term than we originally thought.

Appalachian Voices initially provided heavy metal testing for four families – the Howard family, whose well was on fire, and three nearby families. Next, through the generous donation of 30,000 bottles of water from Keeper Springs Natural Spring Water and Nestle Pure Life Purified Water, KFTC and Appalachian Voices were able to provide safe drinking water to each affected family – 13 families in total.

Upon delivery of the water, we were able to speak with multiple affected families and collect additional water samples for volatile organic compound testing. We learned that some families in the area had already been purchasing bottled drinking water for 8 years. In a country where we often assume our access to clean drinking water is a right, it was astonishing to realize that this right had been stripped from these families for so long. The families reported recent health problems, including hair loss, skin rashes and burning sensations while showering. Several families also reported sounds of explosions and rocks falling underneath their homes. Pontiki Coal (an associate of Excel Mining, both subsidiaries of Alliance Resource Partners) reported operating an underground coal mine beneath these homes between 1985 and 1987. We heard anecdotal reports from the residents of recent underground slurry injection, a common use for abandoned underground mines, in the immediate area. The site of the coal waste injection was allegedly far from the road and difficult to relocate, as it may have been covered with brush by heavy machinery. Appalachian Voices is continuing to investigate the possibility of slurry injection in the area, though illegal, unpermitted injection would be difficult to verify after the fact.

We learned of an ongoing history between the families and Pontiki coal. The Howard family had two wells drilled by Pontiki Coal. The first well was determined to be unusable and eventually exploded, burning down the pump house on May 1, 2011. Pontiki Coal had drilled new wells for at least two other families, but these wells were also determined to be unusable by the families. Following the well explosion, Pontiki Coal wanted to cap the burning well, but the family initially refused, fearing this would increase the chance of a methane explosion under their home. The well was tested for methane by Pike County Emergency Management, Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA), Kentucky Division of Mine Reclamation and Enforcement (DMRE), and Pontiki Coal on May 3rd and May 10th, 2011, with results ranging widely, from 9.0% to 92.2% methane. The Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet tested the composition of the gas emitting from the well and determine it to be similar to that of coal bed methane, a form of natural gas from coal beds, indicating that the gas was likely caused by mining activity. The coal seam in this area is also known for high methane concentrations.

Of the four wells tested for heavy metals by Appalachian Voices and KFTC, two came back with elevated levels of iron and manganese – the levels were above the EPA secondary maximum contaminant levels for drinking water. Not surprisingly, manganese and iron are two metals commonly associated with water pollution from coal mining. The Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet also inspected and tested several wells. The Cabinet declared the burning well “mine impacted” due to the methane presence. The Cabinet’s inspection also indicated elevated iron and manganese levels in the Howard’s well, but sulfate levels below those commonly found in mine impacted water. The Cabinet tested the wells of at least three other families for heavy metals. Though they found elevated levels of iron and manganese at a second home and elevated manganese levels at a third home, neither of these wells were declared mine impacted, apparently because the wells contained neither methane nor sufficiently high sulfate levels, nor were they on fire.

Despite only one well being declared mine impacted, it appears all families will soon receive a permanent water solution. With assistance from Excel Mining, the families should be able to connect to Martin County water lines. Though the families live in Pike County, the Martin County lines are closer to the homes – approximately 1.1 miles. Martin County Judge Executive Kelly Callihan met with Excel Mining representatives, persuading the company to pay for the water line extension and water meters. The families will have to pay for lines from the main meter to their homes. Shane Watts, General Manager for Excel, said, “We’re just trying to be good neighbors.” While we thank Excel Mining for addressing this issue, we are disappointed it took intense media coverage of the flaming well and the water donation before they found a permanent solution. According to Ronnie Ellis’s story, neither the families nor the Department of Natural Resources have received any notice of the pending water line extension or funding for the project. Appalachian Voices will continue to monitor this situation to be sure that a permanent solution is implemented. In the words of affected resident, Denise Howard, “When I see it running through my faucets, I’ll believe it.”

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Excel Mining Addresses Pike County Residents’ Flaming Well With A Solution Other Than Just Drilling More Contaminated Wells

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Will Your Member of Congress Speak Up for You, Or Mercury Polluters?

On September 14th, a conference was held with Hearing Officer Blanton in the Office of Administrative Hearing case brought by the Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet against Nally & Hamilton. The conference determined whether Appalachian Voices, Kentuckians for the Commonwealth, Kentucky Riverkeeper, and Waterkeeper Alliance, represented by Natural Resources Defense Council attorneys, may continue with legal proceedings as intervenors in the case. Unfortunately for Appalachian Voices and the citizens of Kentucky, the results of the hearing will allow the Cabinet to continue making deals with Nally & Hamilton behind closed doors.

This case is the Cabinet’s response to the Notice of Intent to sue Nally & Hamilton for 12,000 violations of the Clean Water Act, filed in March 2011 by Appalachian Voices and its partners. To address the violations identified by Appalachian Voices, the Cabinet settled with Nally & Hamilton for $507,000 in fines, topping the previous record-setting fines issued in Appalachian Voices’ other on-going cases against big coal in which Frasure Creek and ICG coal companies were fined $310,000 and $350,000, respectively.

Though these fines represent a great step toward holding coal companies accountable for the pollution they create, the fines are still insufficient. Under Kentucky law, Nally & Hamilton could be fined as much as $300 million for the 12,000 violations. The recognition that the Cabinet consistently does not adequately enforce the law is one reason Appalachian Voices and its partners stepped in as intervenors in the Cabinet’s case. Once the Cabinet and Nally & Hamilton proposed a token settlement in the case they then filed a motion for a continuance. In the conference, the Hearing Officer granted the motion for continuance, based on his determination that he did not have authority to require more discovery in our case.

Those of you without a legal degree are probably wondering what all of this means. I’ll do my best to explain – in short, the Cabinet continues to shield the coal companies, without adequate prosecution. The continuance effectively halts legal proceedings – in this case, it halts discovery, or our ability to request further documentation and other evidence from Nally & Hamilton and the Cabinet, which would likely strengthen and clarify our case. We will still be allowed to submit comments on the Agreed Order between the Cabinet and Nally & Hamilton before the order is sent to the Cabinet Secretary for review.

Besides filing the motion for continuance, the Cabinet has attempted to undermine our involvement in other ways as well. The Cabinet failed to respond to any of our discovery requests, despite the responses being due in August. Because of this, we have been unable to determine the facts the Cabinet considered when entering into the settlement with Nally & Hamilton. We do not know how fines were determined, what violations were identified, or how thorough an investigation was conducted.

The Clean Water Act violations that were identified indicate that pollution is being under reported and inaccurately reported. This improper reporting harms Kentucky’s waterways and the health of Kentucky’s citizens. The Cabinet failed to identify most of these violations until they were uncovered by Appalachian Voices. Despite the Hearing Officer’s request to the Cabinet and Nally that they include Appalachian Voices and its partners in the settlement negotiations, the Cabinet completed a closed-door settlement with Nally & Hamilton and is attempting to prevent further action by us. The current settlement provides a relatively low monetary penalty, does not provide for true stipulated penalties for future violations, ignores the potential of intentional fraud, and claims to resolve Nally’s liability for all previous violations of “the same type” despite there being no evidence the Cabinet bothered to identify different types of violations.

It is obvious the Cabinet is taking the side of big coal in this case. The settlement clearly does not provide for effective, ongoing protection of the people of Kentucky from corporate coal abuses. Kentucky citizens deserve better than this from their state officials.

Read the original post here:
Higher Fines For Big Coal, More Secrecy From The Kentucky Energy And Environment Cabinet

This summer, Appalachian Voices joined Free Speech for People and Rainforest Action Network to petition Delaware Attorney General Beau Biden to repeal Massey Energy’s corporate charter due to their gross disregard for Appalachian communities. Massey Energy, like many corporations, is legally chartered in Delaware. And though Alpha Resources bought Massey Energy earlier this year, Massey still exists as wholly-owned subsidiary.

Massey Energy has violated the Clean Water Water Act over 60,000 times, has been the biggest perpetrator of mountaintop removal coal mining and is directly responsible for the preventable deaths of 29 miners in the Upper Big Branch mine explosion in April of 2010, according an independent report commissioned by then- West Virginia Governor (now Senator) Joe Manchin.

Willa Mays, Appalachian Voices Executive Director and Lorelei Scarbro prepare to meet with Delaware Attorney General’s office

Over 35,000 Americans have joined our call to action to hold Massey Energy accountable for the lives, mountains and waterways they have ruined. Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., also joined the campaign and on a tele-conference implored Attorney General Biden,

“…to be one of the few public officials … who is willing to stand up in this country, to corporate power, to say at some point, corporations do not have the power to dismantle our democracy and violate our laws, willfully and systematically.”

Full audio of tele-conference here:

On Friday, we took the campaign to Delaware. We met with the Attorney General’s office to deliver the petitions and to meet two strong Appalachian women who have been directly impacted by Massey’s various wrongdoings.  Betty Harrah is the sister of Steve “Smiley” Harrah, one of the 29 miners that died during the Upper Big Branch mine disaster.  Lorelei Scarbro has been an advocate of the Coal River Wind project, a campaign to halt Massey Energy from blasting away the top of Coal River Mountain, the last intact mountain in the Coal River Valley. She is the granddaughter, daughter, and widow of coal miners, and has family who currently work at the Upper Big Branch mine.

We then hosted a screening of The Last Mountain, the film that shows the massive destruction that Massey Energy has imposed upon the people of the Coal River Valley and beyond. After the film, we held a forum with Betty Harrah, Lorelei Scarbro, Clara Bingham, producer of The Last Mountain and representatives from Appalachian Voices and Free Speech for People.

Special thanks to Delaware Pacem in Terris, a peace group based in Wilmington and Sarah Culver, founding member of Rising Tide Delaware for help in getting the word about the campaign and the screening. Below is Sarah’s reaction to the evening.

Written by Sarah Culver:
The auditorium in the Delaware Art Museum was standing-room-only, and an audience ranging from high school freshmen to WWII veterans witnessed the utter horror and senseless devastation perpetrated by Massey Energy. The film was as powerful as it was grave, and I could tell from the continued silence after the film had ended and the lights were brought up that each person in that auditorium was still trying to process what they had just seen.

After the screening, an intense public forum was held to discuss the campaign to revoke Massey’s corporate charter.

Since Massey Energy’s corporate charter is issued right here in Delaware, and it is within our Attorney General Beau Biden’s right to revoke that charter as a consequence of their unimaginable number of safety and environmental violations, their reckless abandon of air and water safety standards, and, of course, Massey’s blatant, and unyielding disregard for the culture and communities of Appalachia.

To revoke Massey’s privilege to operate as a company would be a massive step towards the fight to save Coal River Mountain, to educate more people about mountaintop removal, to empower and defend union miners, towards a sustainable economy in Appalachia. Finally, it would bring a sense of closure and justice to the heartbroken people like Betty Harrah and the scores of others who are still struggling to get on, day to day, knowing that it wasn’t an ‘act of God’ but the utter negligence  of Massey Energy that took the lives of their husbands, brothers, sons, and fathers at Upper Big Branch on that senseless day in April 2010.

To hold Massey accountable would be nothing short of the beginning of an ethical and environmental revolution in this country, and the hills and hollows of Appalachia might be able to begin that long, slow road of recovery.

The good news is that you can help. Yes, you. Sign the petition to Delaware Attorney General Beau Biden today and ask him to investigate and revoke Massey Energy’s charter. As Lorelei asked so bluntly during the forum – “If not now, when?”

If the wonderful Appalachians who joined us on Friday night take nothing else back with them from their long trip to Delaware, I hope that it’s this: They have advocates here.

This message is for Betty and Lorelei: We know what’s happening, and we’re fighting for you. We marched with you on Blair Mountain in June, and we’re marching in solidarity with you still. Your sacrifices have not been in vain, and we have been so deeply honored and humbled by your trip over to see us.

Please sign the petition today.

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Speaking Truth to Power: Appalachian Women Travel to Delaware To Hold Massey Energy Accountable

Interested in an internship with Appalachian Voices? Fill out the form below to indicate your interests (descriptions of each internship are available here).

Read the original post here:
Internship Application

Appalachian Voices is proud to join 50 co-signers on a statement issued by United for America’s Arctic. We recognize the Arctic’s Chukchi and Beaufort Seas as critical habitat for polar bears and marine mammals such as endangered bowhead whales, walrus and seals. Similar to the mountains and streams of Appalachia, the Arctic’s national treasures are worthy of protection.

Alarmingly, Shell Oil is moving closer to beginning a two-year offshore drilling program in the Arctic Ocean next summer. This comes as Shell Oil faces criticism in the UK for failing to promptly report an August oil spill in the North Sea. Shell is seeking federal approval of its Arctic oil-spill response plan despite their plan’s failure to adequately address sea ice and severe weather conditions.

For example, Shell admits that they cannot safely or effectively respond to a spill that occurs more than 21 days into the Arctic drilling season (July to October). This means a well rupture in August could contaminate the Arctic unchecked until ice melts in June.

As stated by United for America’s Arctic,

“A major oil spill in the Arctic Ocean would be impossible to clean up and could have enormous consequences for the region’s communities and ecosystems. During the winter months, the Arctic seas are covered with ice and are not navigable by oil spill response ships. If a spill started as winter ice sets in, the oil could continue to gush into the sea and under the ice for eight long months. Cleanup in the Arctic would be hampered by sea ice, extreme cold, hurricane-strength storms and pervasive fog. The nearest Coast Guard facilities are nearly 1,000 miles away, and there is no port in the Arctic capable of serving large response vessels.”

Learn more about Shell Oil’s dangerous plans for the Arctic Ocean here, and read United for America’s Arctic’s full statement.

Read the original post here:
United for America’s Arctic

Today, the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform is working hard to protect your right to dirty water. Or maybe it’s the right of coal companies to blow up mountains anywhere, anytime, and poison your water without paying the consequences. Whatever they want to call it, the fallacy of “regulation kills jobs in Appalachia” is once again being touted on Capitol Hill by the coal industry, and some in Congress are echoing them in the recent staff report Broken Government: How the Administrative State has Broken President Obama’s Promise of Regulatory Reform.

While the same idea that the EPA acting to protect public health from the effects of mountaintop removal coal mining is bad for business is relayed throughout the report, this number is new to me:

“… the EPA’s permitorium has a direct and indirect impact on over 162,000 jobs. “

Now, let’s accept for a moment that “permitorium” is a word (though it is most certainly not). The Environmental Protection Agency, as a governmental agency, is required to obey and uphold the law. If a proposed mountaintop removal coal mine does not meet the requirements of the Clean Water Act, the EPA cannot simply give it the green light on a permit. If your business plan is to dump toxic waste into headwater streams that feed into people’s drinking water, why should they allow you to mine?

Before getting caught up in the false dichotomy of “jobs vs. the environment,” it should be noted that the report’s numbers are bogus, strip mining does not support job growth, and stopping mountaintop removal coal mines is actually good for the economies of Appalachian communities.

First of all, let’s be clear: the principle reason mining companies use the mountaintop removal method to mine coal is to eliminate the need for jobs. Underground mining requires more miners. In order to increase profit margins by eliminating costs (read: employees), they use machines and explosives to replace people. Since adopting the practice of mountaintop removal, coal production has increased, and mining jobs have plummeted. Good for mining executives, bad for miners.

This graph demonstrates the decades long trend in West Virginia, where coal mining jobs are now about a quarter of what they once were despite the increase in coal mined.

Note that in recent years as mountaintop removal permits are harder to get and more of the coal is mined underground, the number of jobs has begun to increase – a result that can be directly attributed to the EPA’s enforcement of the Clean Water Act.
The report’s reference to 162,000 jobs is supposedly calculated using the premise that for every mining job, 11 other jobs are supported. While one job certainly has an effect on other jobs, the greater effect on local economies that comes from destroying the mountains and streams of a region is completely overlooked. Billions of dollars’ worth of coal has been mined in Central Appalachia for generations, and what significant economic development do they have to show for it? The mountaintop removal coalfields are some of the poorest, least healthy regions in the country. It has also been demonstrated in the study Mountaintop Removal and Job Creation: Exploring the Relationship Using Spatial Regression by Woods and Gordon that mountaintop mines introduced to these areas do nothing to boost employment. This is largely because these mines hire few workers, many of whom are from outside of the community.

The below image demonstrates the correlation between strip mines, in red, and counties with high poverty rates, in darker blue.

Note: This map was created using 2002 census numbers, and the number of people living under the poverty line has increased by approximately 20% since then.

As you can see, poverty rates in areas with strip mines are significantly higher than in nearby areas without mines. These mines destroy enormous portions of land, and harm property values, tourism, and local businesses with them. That’s before getting into the myriad health impacts that have a drag on local economies.

Yet Rep. Darrell Issa, Chair of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and committee staff are still working diligently to inhibit the EPA’s ability to protect human health under the pretense of saving jobs. They want us to believe that the economy will be fixed by simply removing the burden of government regulation from our tired backs. They will continue to claim to fight for the Mom and Pop coal companies (the same ones that have given Speaker Boehner $1.5 million this year), and accuse the EPA of carrying out a “war on coal.” Unfortunately, they will also continue to ignore new polls that show citizens of Central Appalachia oppose mountaintop removal, and the majority of all Americans oppose mountaintop removal.

Read the original post here:
An Intentional Government Oversight

Appalachian Voices staff and members are getting geared up for the 4th annual Weekend in Wise, a Weekend of Communion for the Mountains. And the best part is you’re invited! This Friday, we’ll head for Appalachia, Va. in the beautiful mountains of Southwest Virginia to learn more about the destructive process of mountaintop removal coal mining, hear stories from coalfield activists, and get to know every stage of the dirty life cycle of coal.

On top of the chance to learn about mountaintop removal, we’re looking forward to participating in service projects and workshops including tours of mountaintop removal sites and a course in water quality testing. On Saturday evening, there will be a citizens panel, where we’ll have the chance to meet people living with mountaintop removal in their communities, the same folks leading the charge against coal companies by standing up for a brighter future. Learn more and check out the itinerary here or visit their page on Facebook.

There will be time to kick back and enjoy live music, local food and a special screening of the documentary The Last Mountain. Hosted by the good people at the Southern Appalachian Mountain Stewards and Wise Energy for Virginia, it’s sure to be an enlightening couple of days. We’ll all walk away with a better understanding of mountaintop removal, our personal connection to coal and the confidence to get engaged in our communities.

Seeing the many aerial shots of mountaintop removal provides perspective on the effect a few machines and a lot of explosives can have on the landscape. The Weekend in Wise event is a chance to see these effects at ground-level. We hope to see you there! But if you can’t make it, check back next week for our reactions and a report on the many happenings of the weekend.

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You’re Invited to the 4th Annual Weekend in Wise!

It’s fun on the New River with family and friends, all while bettering your New River community.

Meet on Saturday, September 17, at 9:30 a.m. at the covered picnic shelter at Foster Falls Recreation Center in Wythe County off I-77.

Want to participate?  Meet us at the picnic shelter at 9:30 am and bring a boat if you’ve got one.  Other items to bring:  Sunscreen, water, snacks, shoes that stay on your feet (tevas, chacos, keens, old sneakers – no flip flops or crocs). Dress in clothes that WILL get dirty and wet.  A change of clothes, ball cap and sunglasses are suggested but optional.

We’re providing:  Boats, paddles, life jackets, shuttle, gloves, trash bags and a pre-clean up breakfast.

We clean up the river bottom and its banks by boat; most canoes haul not only volunteers, but the trash you pick up along the way!

If you have any questions about the clean up please contact Courtney Wait either by email, Courtney@ncnr.org  or phone, 866-481-6267

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
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CONTACTS: Erin Savage, Upper Watauga Riverkeeper 828-262-1500
Lisa Doty, Watauga County Recycling Coordinator 828-265-4852
Captain L. Reed, Watauga County Sherriff 828-264-3761
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October 7th and 8th, 2011

Watauga County, NC – Do you have outdated or unused prescription drugs, over the counter medications, syringes or other medical supplies? Drop them off at the sponsored take-back centers this October. Any prescription or over the counter drugs will be accepted, no questions asked.

Across Watauga County drugs will be collected on Saturday October 8th, from 10:00am to 2:00pm, in conjunction with Hazardous Household Waste Collection Day. Two new take-back locations have been added in Beaverdam and Beech Mountain, bringing the total number of locations in Watauga County to seven. Take-back locations will be available at the Beaverdam Volunteer Fire Department on Bethel Road, Beech Mountain Town Hall, Foscoe Fire Department, and the three Food Lion stores in Watauga County: the Highway 321 store in Boone, the Highway 421 Deep Gap store, and the Blowing Rock store.

ASU will hold its take-back on October 7th, from 11:00am to 2:00pm in the Plemmons Student Union building.

On Oct. 3, 2009, a broad coalition of community partners came together to create the first ever prescription drug take-back day in the High Country. The event was a huge success, and collections have been held twice per year since then, once in the fall and once in the spring. In total the past four collections have safely disposed of over half a million pills and 60 gallons of liquid medication, making this one of the most successful drug take back programs in the state. Organizers hope to continue this success and collect even more drugs this fall.

The disposal of prescription drugs has long been a dilemma, and many medicine cabinets contain unused or outdated medications. Among teenagers, the fastest growing illegal drug use is the abuse of prescription drugs. The most common method of obtaining prescription drugs is by raiding the medicine cabinet of a friend or family, then consuming the pills or selling them.

“From a law enforcement perspective, one of our most important jobs is to work diligently and proactively to prevent drug abuse,” said Watauga County Sherriff Len D. Hagaman. “By hosting an amnesty day that allows the public to turn in any kind of unused or unwanted medications, hopefully, we will keep those drugs off the street and out of the hands of children.”

Another problem with outdated or unused prescription drugs is that people dispose of them improperly by flushing them down the toilet. If their home is connected to a local wastewater treatment facility, then the drugs wind up in either the Watauga River or New River.

“A recent investigation by the Associated Press found a whole host of pharmaceuticals-including antibiotics, pain medication, anti-depressants, sex hormones, heart and blood pressure medicine-in the drinking water supplies of more than 40 million Americans,” said Donna Lisenby, Watauga Riverkeeper.

ASU biology and chemistry students and faculty have conducted environmental tests to determine the effects of estrogenic compounds (including estrogen pharmaceuticals, plasticizers, and many alkylphenol surfactants used in detergents, cleaners, and emulsifiers) on male fish populations in the South Fork of the New River.

The results indicated that 60 to 66 percent of two species of male fish below the WWTP effluent are being feminized; tests with rainbow trout have yet to be conducted.

“Although preliminary tests have shown that pharmaceutical estrogens in the river just below the WWTP are right at levels known to cause feminization, it is unlikely that these levels persist very far downstream,” said Dr. Shea Tuberty, of ASU’s biology department. “Any attempt to reduce the quantity of pharmaceuticals in water is a significant step towards environmental conservation.”

Community members reached out to law enforcement officials from the Drug Enforcement Administration, the State Bureau of Investigation, the Sheriff’s Department as well as the Boone, Blowing Rock and Seven Devils Police Departments. The river conservationists and law enforcement community united to fight the problem of prescription drug misuse.

“It has been an amazing testament to the collaborative spirit of our community to see how enthusiastically people have united to help host Operation Medicine Cabinet,” said Wendy Patoprsty, Watauga County Extension Agent. “We have over 30 community partners, including, Helen M. Clabough Charitable Foundation, MountainKeepers, Watauga River Conservation Partners, Towns, and police departments of, Boone, Blowing Rock and Seven Devils, the Ashe and Watauga County Sheriff’s Office, the State Bureau of Investigation, the Drug Enforcement Administration, Safe Kids North Carolina, Boone Drug, Watauga County Recycling/Solid Waste Department, Watauga Riverkeeper, Appalachian Voices, Food Lion, CVS, the Grandfather Mountain Highland Games, Trophy Water Guide Service, Rotary Club of Blowing Rock, The National Committee for the New River, MPrints, NC Cooperative Extension Service, Precision Printing, the Smoky Mountain Center and Appalachian State University just to name a few,” she continued.

“On behalf of all our partners, we are pleased to offer this opportunity to our citizens to safely dispose of unused or unwanted medications properly, and we hope you will come see us on Saturday, October 8th, and be a part of the community effort to save the rivers and kids from drugs,” said Watauga County Recycling Coordinator Lisa Doty.

To find out more about the event visit DrugTakeBackDay.com

Read the original post here:
Saving Our Kids and Rivers from Drugs: Operation Medicine Cabinet Hopes to Build on Previous Success in the High Country, October 7th and 8th, 2011

Read the original post here:
Last Mountain Invite – Blacksburg

A big thanks goes out to all those who helped make the Watauga River a cleaner, more beautiful place to swim, fish, and boat.

On Saturday, September 10th, the Upper Watauga Riverkeeper helped to complete a cleanup of the Watauga River, as part of the nationwide river cleanup day. Wendy Patoprsty and staff from the Watauga County Cooperative Extension organized the event and several ASU professors recruited student volunteers.

A total of 114 volunteers removed 3,740 pounds of trash from the Watauga along Highway 105 between Foscoe and Boone, and along Highway 321. The total weight collected last fall was 1,940 pounds. Let’s hope this indicates that this year’s volunteers did an even better job of finding trash and removing hard-to-access objects, and not that more people have been discarding trash in the river.

I was privileged to take a group of Appalachian State freshman down to the Guy Ford bridge, off Highway 321. I was able to con about 13 students into joining me at the bridge with sincere promises that the area around Guy Ford bridge “wasn’t that bad.” Little did I know, some campers had half-burned camping equipment and left it with broken glass and other trash just downstream of the bridge. After the campsite was cleaned, students hiked up and down the river. The best finds were by volunteers who swam through the river, which had calmed after Tuesday’s rain, and dove to find tires, lumber and even a large road construction sign.

The collection from our site alone filled the back of a pickup truck.

I hope the volunteers who were new to the area took ownership and pride in their contribution and will return to enjoy the river in its spruced up state. When you are down at the river, keep in mind the awesome service the new students contributed to our community.

Other group leaders included: Barbara Michel of ASU Walker School of Business, Dick Hearn, Joan Hearn, and Teresa Buckwalter from the Watauga River Partners, Travis Small and Andi Cochran of Appalachian Geographical Society, Jaimie McGirt, and Andy Hill. Thanks goes out to GDS disposal service, Watauga County Sanitation, and Watauga County Maintenance for help with trash and recyclable disposal.

Check out the Watauga County Cooperative Extension blog for more information.

Read the original post here:
Cleaning Up The Watauga!

The hearing against the Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet, and ICG and Frasure Creek coal companies wrapped up last Friday. Appalachian Voices, Kentuckians for the Commonwealth, Kentucky Riverkeeper, and Waterkeeper Alliance intervened in the settlement between the Cabinet and the coal companies, arguing the settlement was not fair, reasonable or in the public interest. Appalachian Voices has identified more than 20,000 Clean Water Act (CWA) violations committed by the two companies between 2008 and 2009. Additional violations have been identified in 2011, but are the subject of a separate Notice of Intent to sue. Under the CWA, the violations could result in fines of more than $740 million dollars. The Cabinet originally fined the two companies a total of $1.25 million, but negotiated a consent judgment of $660,000 — $310,000 for Frasure Creek and $350,000 for ICG. These fines represent less than 1% of the total possible fines.

Wednesday, the first day of the hearing, began with opening statements, in which our attorney, Mary Cromer, argued the Cabinet’s fines were insufficient and did not account for the financial benefit gained by the companies through inaccurate reporting. The types of violations identified by Appalachian Voices included repeating data in reports from different quarters, and exceeding pollution limits. State employees, Jeff Cummins, Assistant Director of the Division of Environmental Protection, and R. Bruce Scott, Commissioner of Environmental Protection, were questioned to determine how violations were identified and counted, as well as how fines were assessed. Cabinet attorneys objected to many of the questions regarding the Cabinet’s deliberative process. Judge Shepherd, a former Cabinet Secretary, rejected most of the objections, stating that an understanding of the process was necessary to determine whether fines were adequate, and would probably help the Cabinet’s case.

The Cabinet employees reported that they did not know the total number of pollution discharges held between the two coal companies. Mark Cleland, Environmental Control Manager, attributed some of the violations to transcription and administrative errors. Recognizing the implications of inaccurate discharge monitoring reports (DMRs), Judge Shepherd later asked Scott, without accurate data, “how will the cabinet ever determine if there is a water pollution violation?”

On Thursday, the opposing counsel requested summary judgment from Judge Shepherd, but the judge declined. Tom Gabbard, manager of the Cabinet’s Compliance and Technical Assistance branch, was called as a witness. Gabbard testified to inspections of three sediment ponds. Gabbard reported high conductivity readings, as well as red-orange precipitate, indicative of acid-mine drainage, extending as far as 300 feet down a stream exiting one of the ponds. While the Cabinet’s settlement does require corrective action plans, Gabbard stated that, besides remedial action, the plans do not require anything further than what is already required under existing law.

Eric Chance, of Appalachian Voices, testified that he calculated $31,000 per month saved by Frasure Creek and $10,000 saved by ICG through the use of non-certified, and therefore less expensive, labs. Patrick Garrity, the state’s Drinking Water Laboratory Certification Officer, testified the previous day to the inadequacies of one of the labs used by the coal companies. He cited a lack of record keeping, failure to use proper quality control procedures, and disorganized equipment in the lab. The opposing counsel challenged Chance’s data interpretation. When asked by Frasure Creek attorney Jack Bender if he had included the instances of repeating data in his graphs, he replied, “It was not our priority to correct your DMRs.”

In the final day of the hearing, Bruce Scott was called as a witness for a second time, this time in defense of the Cabinet. He testified to the Cabinet’s efforts in addressing the violations of ICG and Frasure Creek, but claimed that the suit was interfering in the ability of the Cabinet to pursue other environmental problems within the state. Nevertheless, Scott also admitted that Appalachian Voices identified violations that had not been noticed by the Cabinet. Furthermore, the Cabinet has only investigated and fined the three coal companies original identified by Appalachian Voices as having violated the CWA. The coal companies each called a witness to assert that the problems were merely a result of substandard lab work and that the companies had quit using the offending lab, S & S Monitoring. ICG has recently hired a new company, East Kentucky Water Monitoring, to collect water samples. The company was founded and operated by the same employees who previously worked at S & S Monitoring.

At the end of the hearing, all parties agreed to submit post-trial findings and conclusions within 30 days, in place of oral closing statements. Judge Shepherd strongly urged all parties to attempt to settle through a second round of mediation. Judge Shepherd stated that he foresees “difficult and novel issues that are likely to keep the problem in litigation for a long time.”

Appalachian Voices is willing to consider a second round of mediation, provided the other parties come to the table in good faith. Any settlement reached must assure that these companies stop polluting Kentucky’s waterways. Barring successful mediation, we look forward to continuing with this precedent-setting litigation. Setting new legal precedents in clean water act litigation is something that makes Waterkeepers very happy. Regardless of the future outcome, we have already succeeded in achieving record-setting Clean Water Act fines against coal companies in Kentucky and changing the way they have to do environmental compliance.

Additional coverage of the hearing can be found in the following news articles:

Wall Street Journal
Courier-Journal
The Lexington Herald-Leader
The Independent: article 1, article 2, article 3

Read the original post here:
Big Coal’s Watergate Hearing Wrap Up

The Scene, A climbing flick by Chuck Fryberger

When: Saturday Oct 15th: Doors at 6pm / Show at 7pm

Where: Looking Glass Outfitters 69 Hendersonville Hwy, Ste 1 Pisgah Forest, NC 28768

Why: Carolina Climbers Coalition Benefit

Cost: $5

Food / Drinks/

The hearing against the Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet, and ICG and Frasure Creek coal companies wrapped up last Friday. Appalachian Voices, Kentuckians for the Commonwealth, Kentucky Riverkeeper, and Waterkeeper Alliance intervened in the settlement between the Cabinet and the coal companies, arguing the settlement was not fair, reasonable or in the public interest. Appalachian Voices has identified more than 20,000 Clean Water Act (CWA) violations committed by the two companies between 2008 and 2009. Additional violations have been identified in 2011, but are the subject of a separate Notice of Intent to sue. Under the CWA, the violations could result in fines of more than $740 million dollars. The Cabinet originally fined the two companies a total of $1.25 million, but negotiated a consent judgment of $660,000 — $310,000 for Frasure Creek and $350,000 for ICG. These fines represent less than 1% of the total possible fines.

Wednesday, the first day of the hearing, began with opening statements, in which our attorney, Mary Cromer, argued the Cabinet’s fines were insufficient and did not account for the financial benefit gained by the companies through inaccurate reporting. The types of violations identified by Appalachian Voices included repeating data in reports from different quarters, and exceeding pollution limits. State employees, Jeff Cummins, Assistant Director of the Division of Environmental Protection, and R. Bruce Scott, Commissioner of Environmental Protection, were questioned to determine how violations were identified and counted, as well as how fines were assessed. Cabinet attorneys objected to many of the questions regarding the Cabinet’s deliberative process. Judge Shepherd, a former Cabinet Secretary, rejected most of the objections, stating that an understanding of the process was necessary to determine whether fines were adequate, and would probably help the Cabinet’s case.

The Cabinet employees reported that they did not know the total number of pollution discharges held between the two coal companies. Mark Cleland, Environmental Control Manager, attributed some of the violations to transcription and administrative errors. Recognizing the implications of inaccurate discharge monitoring reports (DMRs), Judge Shepherd later asked Scott, without accurate data, “how will the cabinet ever determine if there is a water pollution violation?”

On Thursday, the opposing counsel requested summary judgment from Judge Shepherd, but the judge declined. Tom Gabbard, manager of the Cabinet’s Compliance and Technical Assistance branch, was called as a witness. Gabbard testified to inspections of three sediment ponds. Gabbard reported high conductivity readings, as well as red-orange precipitate, indicative of acid-mine drainage, extending as far as 300 feet down a stream exiting one of the ponds. While the Cabinet’s settlement does require corrective action plans, Gabbard stated that, besides remedial action, the plans do not require anything further than what is already required under existing law.

Eric Chance, of Appalachian Voices, testified that he calculated $31,000 per month saved by Frasure Creek and $10,000 saved by ICG through the use of non-certified, and therefore less expensive, labs. Patrick Garrity, the state’s Drinking Water Laboratory Certification Officer, testified the previous day to the inadequacies of one of the labs used by the coal companies. He cited a lack of record keeping, failure to use proper quality control procedures, and disorganized equipment in the lab. The opposing counsel challenged Chance’s data interpretation. When asked by Frasure Creek attorney Jack Bender if he had included the instances of repeating data in his graphs, he replied, “It was not our priority to correct your DMRs.”

In the final day of the hearing, Bruce Scott was called as a witness for a second time, this time in defense of the Cabinet. He testified to the Cabinet’s efforts in addressing the violations of ICG and Frasure Creek, but claimed that the suit was interfering in the ability of the Cabinet to pursue other environmental problems within the state. Nevertheless, Scott also admitted that Appalachian Voices identified violations that had not been noticed by the Cabinet. Furthermore, the Cabinet has only investigated and fined the three coal companies original identified by Appalachian Voices as having violated the CWA. The coal companies each called a witness to assert that the problems were merely a result of substandard lab work and that the companies had quit using the offending lab, S & S Monitoring. ICG has recently hired a new company, East Kentucky Water Monitoring, to collect water samples. The company was founded and operated by the same employees who previously worked at S & S Monitoring.

At the end of the hearing, all parties agreed to submit post-trial findings and conclusions within 30 days, in place of oral closing statements. Judge Shepherd strongly urged all parties to attempt to settle through a second round of mediation. Judge Shepherd stated that he foresees “difficult and novel issues that are likely to keep the problem in litigation for a long time.”

Appalachian Voices is willing to consider a second round of mediation, provided the other parties come to the table in good faith. Any settlement reached must assure that these companies stop polluting Kentucky’s waterways. Barring successful mediation, we look forward to continuing with this precedent-setting litigation. Setting new legal precedents in clean water act litigation is something that makes Waterkeepers very happy. Regardless of the future outcome, we have already succeeded in achieving record-setting Clean Water Act fines against coal companies in Kentucky and changing the way the do environmental compliance.

Additional coverage of the hearing can be found in the following news articles:

Wall Street Journal
Courier-Journal
The Lexington Herald-Leader
The Independent: article 1, article 2, article 3

Read the original post here:
Big Coal’s Watergate Hearing Wrap Up

A note from Chuck Keeney, Secretary of the Friends of Blair Mountain:

Since the “March on Blair Mountain: Appalachia is Rising” event, some coal industry executives have claimed that if our preservation efforts succeed and Blair Mountain is spared from mountaintop removal, the “fabric of the community” will be destroyed. We at Friends of Blair Mountain disagree and are putting our words into action.

On September 4, we held the grand opening of the Blair Mountain Community Center and Museum. Located two miles north of the historic battlefield, the facility will serve as a catalyst for community revitalization, education and historic preservation. In addition to museum exhibits, we plan to offer a coal heritage archive for research, a library of relevant books, music collection and films. There will be space for musical performances, activist gatherings, workshops, history tours and some good ole’ Appalachian gatherings of fellowship and fun.

The Blair Mountain Community Center and Museum is a place to display the pride of Appalachian culture and the depth of coalfield heritage while building a healthier, cleaner and more economically diverse Appalachia.

For more information or to learn about how you can help our grassroots efforts, go to www.friendsofblairmountain.org or call our Community Center and Museum staff at (304) 369-9800

You can also read the press release here.

Read the original post here:
Blair Mountain Community Center and Museum Opens

Help Grow the Movement to Protect America’s Clean Water

The Clean Water Act is under an unprecedented assault.

It took a movement to create the Clean Water Act, and now we now need a movement to save it.

Ask your friends to join the Red, White and Water movement to protect our clean water!

Your browser does not support iframes.

Read the original post here:
Grow the Movement to Protect America’s Clean Water

Read the original post here:
Carl Galie Invite

Volunteers are still needed for NCNR’s Annual New River Clean Up on Saturday, September 10. It’s fun on the New River with family and friends, all while bettering your New River community. Meet on Saturday, September 10, at 9:00 a.m. at participating canoe outfitters along the New River in Watauga, Ashe and Alleghany counties.

Want to participate? Contact Courtney Wait at Courtney@ncnr.org or 336-846-6267 to sign up and get more information. We’ll designate a clean up site! Be prepared to bring: Sunscreen water, snacks, shoes that stay on your feet (tevas, chacos, keens, old sneakers – no flip flops or crocs). Dress in clothes that WILL get dirty and wet. A change of clothes, ball cap and sunglasses are suggested but optional

We’re providing: Boats, paddles, life jackets, shuttle, gloves, trash bags and a post clean up cookout – BE SURE TO RSVP so we’re able to shuttle and feed you! We clean up the river bottom and its banks by boat; most canoes haul not only volunteers, but the trash you pick up along the way!

THANKS!
Courtney Wait – courtney@ncnr.org — 336/846-6267

The first day of the hearing against the Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet and ICG and Frasure mining companies concluded Wednesday evening. Appalachian Voices, Kentucky Riverkeeper, Kentuckians for the Commonwealth and Waterkeeper Alliance intend to show that the penalties assessed by the Cabinet for the two coal companies are not sufficient to address the severity of the Clean Water Act violations committed by the two companies. If the judge rules in our favor, we will be able to pursue further legal action against both ICG and Frasure Creek for their violations.

Over the course of the day, our attorneys built a case that demonstrated the violations found were not merely administrative violations, but substantive pollution violations that indicated clear disregard for the law. Patrick Garrity, of the Kentucky Department for Environmental Protection, testified to the poor condition of the lab used for many of the coal companies’ discharge monitoring reports, as well as the large discrepancies between testing results from the lab and the state during split sampling. The Cabinet was reluctant to disclose details of the means by which the number of violations and fine amounts were determined. Judge Shepard acknowledged the need for “protection of the Cabinet’s deliberative process,” but explained that understanding this detail would allow the court to determine the appropriateness of the Cabinet’s actions against the coal companies. Throughout the proceedings, objections came quickly from the opposing counsel. For the most part, these objections were overruled or noted, rather than sustained. We were not allowed to call the Energy and Environment Cabinet Secretary, Len Peters, as a witness, as he was not directly involved with investigation of the companies. We were allowed to ask questions about his op-ed article addressing reasons for the Cabinet’s enforcement failures. You can read more on this in Ronnie Ellis’s story here.

Several interesting facts were revealed during the hearing. The Cabinet admitted to not knowing the total number of NPDES pollution discharges held between the two companies. Given that wastewater discharge pipes from sediment and slurry ponds on surface coal mines are required to be permitted under the Clean Water Act, it is reasonable to believe that an accurate count of such discharges would be known to the regulators. Additionally, the Cabinet acknowledged new, on-going violations by both companies in 2011. Unlike many earlier violations that consisted of repeating “cut and paste” data, the 2011 violations are often permit limit violations of heavy metals and pH levels. This confirms our suspicion that the earlier inaccurate data likely covered up excessive, illegal pollution discharges. The Cabinet has brought new enforcement actions against both companies for the new violations. Additional coverage of the trial can be found in James Bruggers’s article.

Appalachian Voices just received copies of the Notice of Violation (NOV) documents submitted by the Cabinet to both ICG and Frasure for their most recent violations. The violations, listed below, are clearly much more serious than mere administrative violations.

The violations cited for ICG are:

• 75 instances of permit limit violations for manganese, iron, total suspended solids and pH
• 17 instances of failing to report twice a month as required
• failure to submit any DMRs for the Left Fork Processing Waste Impoundment for January, February, and March 2011
• failure to submit iron, manganese and flow results for three outfalls

The violations cited for Frasure Creek are:

• failure to submit any DMRs for 260 outfalls at 32 facilities for January, February and March 2011
• 165 instances of monthly average and daily max permit limit violations for manganese, iron, total suspended solids and pH
• failure to get permit coverage for 9 outfalls (discharging without a valid permit)
• 4 instances of failing to sample twice a month as required

To put these violations in perspective, it would require all wastewater outfalls* from sewage and storm water treatment facilities between Pike, Letcher, Harlan, Martin, Floyd, Knott and Perry counties in eastern Kentucky discharging illegally for 7 months in order to equal the violations from 260 outfalls for which Frasure Creek submitted no DMRs in any one of three total months.

The Cabinet seems to be more stringent in its requirements of Frasure Creek, as compared to ICG. The Cabinet required Frasure to submit 21 corrective action plans to prevent additional pollution discharges above allowable levels; however, even though ICG had 75 pollution exceedences at 18 facilities, they were not required to submit any corrective action plans.

While we are pleased that the Cabinet has continued to investigate both companies for on-going violations, we realize we must not consider our job done. These violations would likely not have been identified had we not put pressure on both the coal companies and the Cabinet through the original notices of intent (NOI) to sue. This most recent set of NOVs came only after we filed our second set of NOIs against Frasure and ICG — the the NOVs were filed just inside the 60 day notice period. Furthermore, the Cabinet has only brought complaints against the companies we have identified. While we certainly hope this fact indicates that all other surface coal mines are operating within the law, we find this possibility unlikely. The fact remains that mountaintop removal mining and valley filling result in tremendous negative impact to water quality, making it both difficult and costly for mining companies to properly control their pollution discharge.

*as calculated from 35 total outfalls mapped by the state of Kentucky for the above mentioned counties.

Read the original post here:
First Day Wrap-up of Kentucky Coal Trials

Groups Ask State Corporation Commission to Ensure Utilities Invest in Clean Air, Clean Energy, and Green Jobs for Virginia

For Immediate Release
August 30th, 2011

- – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – -
CONTACTS:
Southern Environmental Law Center: Frank Rambo: 434-977-4090
Sierra Club: Glen Besa: 804-225-9113, x104
Chesapeake Climate Action Network: Beth Kemler, 804-335-0915
Appalachian Voices: Tom Cormons: 434-293-6373
- – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – -

Richmond, VA – With the commonwealth’s largest utilities submitting their long term plans for meeting Virginia’s electricity needs to Virginia’s regulators later this week, a group of public health and environmental organizations called for a vision for a clean energy future. Appalachian Voices, Chesapeake Climate Action Network, Sierra Club, and Southern Environmental Law Center are calling on the State Corporation Commission to ensure that “Integrated Resource Plans” from Dominion and AEP address the needs and concerns of Virginia’s ratepayers, workers, and citizens by increasing investment in energy efficiency and renewable energy, rather than spending billions of ratepayer dollars to extend the lives of some of the companies’ oldest and dirtiest energy sources or investing in risky new coal-fired power plants.

Advocates hope to see specific elements in Dominion and AEP’s forthcoming Integrated Resource Plans. They expect that the State Corporation Commission will ensure that the plans include:

· No plans for new coal-fired power plants.

· No further investment in the Commonwealth’s oldest and dirtiest coal-fired power plants, such as Chesapeake, Yorktown, Glen Lyn, and Clinch River. Even with expensive, ratepayer-funded retrofits, these plants would continue to emit millions of tons of carbon pollution annually, together with dangerous pollutants like mercury and soot- and smog-forming chemicals that contribute to respiratory disease and premature death.

· Investment in the generation of wind power off the coast of Virginia, which could provide over 10,000 gWh of clean, renewable energy per year within the next decade without releasing any pollution. The industry could also provide 10,000 jobs and $1.9 billion a year in state GDP.

· Increased achievement of energy efficiency in Virginia, which has a potential for reducing energy needs by 39,000 gWh and shaving 11,000 MW (or more than 20 average size coal plants) off of peak demand by 2025 while saving a cumulative $15 billion for ratepayers and creating 10,000 jobs, according to a 2008 study by the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy.

“Virginia ratepayers shouldn’t be forced to invest more money in old coal-fired power plants like Chesapeake, Yorktown, Glen Lyn, and Clinch River so they can continue poisoning our air and water and costing Virginians hundreds of millions of dollars in premature deaths and increased health costs,” said Glen Besa, Director of the Virginia Chapter of the Sierra Club. “It is past time to end the harmful pollution from these coal plants and invest instead in a new clean energy future and jobs for our workers with energy efficiency, wind, and solar power.”

Air pollution in Virginia from coal-fired power plants contributes to 647 premature deaths and 896 heart attacks annually, according to research by the Clean Air Task Force: http://www.catf.us/coal/problems/power_plants/existing/map.php?state=Virginia. Across the four-state central Appalachian region, over 2,000 miles of streams and 500 mountains have been destroyed by mountaintop removal in order to produce coal for power plants in Virginia and nationwide, causing elevated rates of cancer, heart disease, and birth defects in surrounding communities. Rather than continuing to spend money retrofitting old, dirty coal-fired power plants in order to comply with modern environmental regulations, the groups called on utilities to invest in renewable energy, such as offshore wind power.

“The price of coal in our region is skyrocketing – and that’s not counting the enormous cost imposed on society when it’s mined, processed, and burned. We simply cannot afford to pour billions in ratepayer dollars into these coal plants and effectively lock Virginia into greater dependence on this destructive and increasingly expensive fuel for decades to come,” said Tom Cormons, Virginia Director for Appalachian Voices.

Dominion has been participating in discussions of offshore wind power and has an executive, Mary Doswell, on the board of the Virginia Offshore Wind Development Authority. However Dominion has yet to commit to investing in this energy source in its official plans. Advocates worry that without a utility leading the way, Virginia will not only lose out on the thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in GDP associated with developing the commonwealth’s offshore wind industry but will likely also lose the race for the associated supply chain businesses to other states.

“Hurricane Irene shined a spotlight on the need for our utilities to transition to clean, renewable energy, instead of stubbornly sticking with fossil fuels,” said Beth Kemler, Virginia State Director for Chesapeake Climate Action Network. “While coal, oil and biomass power plants release greenhouse gases that contribute to more extreme weather events and rising sea levels through climate change, offshore wind turbines are a clean source of energy. In addition, the offshore wind power industry could provide thousands of much-needed jobs to Virginians. Environmentalists and policy-makers can talk about these benefits all we want but it’s really the utilities who have the power to flip the switch on this new industry.”

“Energy efficiency is a win-win-win for Virginia. Utilities can control their costs by weaning themselves from fossil fuels whose prices fluctuate dramatically. Workers across the state can benefit from implementing a suite of locally based energy-efficiency programs. Citizens will save money by using less energy. And everyone will breathe easier,” said Frank Rambo, head of the Clean Energy and Air Program at the Southern Environmental Law Center.

Dominion and AEP customers are also encouraged to contact the State Corporation Commission after the plans are filed – http://www.scc.virginia.gov/case/PublicComments.aspx.

###

Read the original post here:
Public Health and Environmental Advocates Call for A Clean Energy Vision in Dominion and AEP’s Forthcoming Energy Plans

After much preparation and anticipation, our first day in court will begin in just two short days. Appalachian Voices, along with its partners, Kentucky Riverkeeper, Kentuckians for the Commonwealth, and Waterkeeper Alliance will appear in court in Franklin County, Kentucky this Wednesday to begin the first portion of litigation against ICG, Inc. (now owned by Arch Coal) and Frasure Creek Mining, two of the largest coal mining companies in Kentucky.

We have filed two notices of intent to sue for a combined total of more than 24,000 violations of the Clean Water Act by both companies. This initial hearing serves to determine whether the $660,000 in fines issued by the Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet against the two companies are fair, reasonable and in the public interest. The fines were issued as a response by the Cabinet to our initial notice of intent to sue, but the amount represents less than 1% of the more than $700 million in fines allowable under the Clean Water Act. We think the fines are woefully inadequate and we hope the judge will decide the same.

The trial is open to the public. We appreciate any of our supporters in the Frankfort area taking the time to attend this groundbreaking trial. Your presence will show the coal companies that they cannot blatantly break the law and expect it to remain concealed from the public. For those who cannot attend, we will be providing updates via the Appalachian Voices twitter feed.

The trial information:

Date: Wednesday, August 31st, scheduled to continue through September 2nd
Time: 9:00am
Place: Franklin County Courthouse
669 Chamberlain Ave
Frankfort, KY 40601
Courthouse Telephone: (502) 564-7013

Read the original post here:
Appalachian Voices’ First Clean Water Act Trial Beginning This Wednesday in Kentucky

It’s fun on the New River with family and friends, all while bettering your New River community.

Meet on Saturday, September 10, at 9:00 a.m. at participating canoe outfitters along the New River in Watauga, Ashe and Alleghany counties.

Want to participate?  Contact Courtney Wait at Courtney@ncnr.org or 336-846-6267 to sign up and get more information.  We’ll designate a clean up site!

Be prepared to bring:  Sunscreen water, snacks, shoes that stay on your feet (tevas, chacos, keens, old sneakers – no flip flops or crocs). Dress in clothes that WILL get dirty and wet.  A change of clothes, ball cap and sunglasses are suggested but optional

We’re providing:  Boats, paddles, life jackets, shuttle, gloves, trash bags and a post clean up cookout – BE SURE TO RSVP so we’re able to shuttle and feed you!

We clean up the river bottom and its banks by boat; most canoes haul not only volunteers, but the trash you pick up along the way!

An overwhelming number of Illinois Representatives in Congress are voting to strip US residents of the only clean water protection they have. Most have voted in support of the Dirty Water Bill (H.R. 2018), a bill that would gut the Clean Water Act by giving states, rather than the EPA, the ultimate decision-making authority over our nation’s water quality standards. This would spell disaster in states where mountaintop removal coal mining is practiced, as seen by the states’ poor record on permitting and enforcement.

So we teamed up with Prairie Rivers Network and the Environmental Integrity Project to call out Reps in IL who are voting to further degrade water quality in the US. More specifically, we paid Tea Party Representative Adam Kinzinger a visit to his in district office. Not only has he been voting to take away power from the EPA, but he has a toxic coal ash pond miles from his office that has contaminated his constituent’s drinking water. This problem has been left at the wayside by the Governor’s office, and yet Kinzinger is voting away the only protection his constituents have left.

Citizens gather outside Kinzinger’s district office in Joliet, IL

Citizens ranging in age from 3- 79 rallied outside Kinzinger’s office holding signs that read, ‘Honk for Clean Water’, ‘Let the EPA do its job!’, and ‘Coal Ash Kills.’ Following the rally, we marched into his office and demanded a meeting. “The Congressman owes an explanation to his constituents as to why he is voting to pollute their drinking water,” said one resident to the scheduler. Dozens then requested personal meetings with the Representative while he is in district.

While Tea Party Representatives and their friends are slamming the EPA, citizens in coal mining affected states overwhelmingly support the Clean Water Act, and want to see even more steps taken to protect the health and water supply of all Americans.

These polls give us great leverage to demand that our elected officials follow their moral compass, follow the science, and follow regional and national public opinion by ending mountaintop removal. Please take a moment to write your congressperson about this poll to make sure that they see these figures.
www.iLoveMountains.org/we-dont-want-MTR.

For clean water and communities,

Kate Finneran

Read the original post here:
Appalachian Voices, Prairie Rivers Network, and Environmental Integrity Project team up in IL

Appalachian Voices, Kentuckians For The Commonwealth, Kentucky Riverkeeper and Waterkeeper Alliance today sent Nally and Hamilton a 60-day notice of intent to sue the company over additional Clean Water Act violations with potential penalties of more than $180 million.

Based on a review of state water monitoring reports, the coalition identified more than 5,000 additional violations of the Clean Water Act on top of the 12,000 violations previously discovered in March.

“The undeniable pattern of coal companies blatantly disregarding the law in Kentucky is nothing new to our coalfield citizens,” said Suzanne Tallichet with Kentuckians For The Commonwealth. “Their ongoing pollution of the rivers and streams that our citizens rely on for drinking water is precisely why more and more health studies link mountaintop removal coal mining to a whole host of human health impacts from cancer to birth defects in babies.”

Just like the previous violations discovered in March, the new information shows the company used the same data in permit reports month after month, rather than submitting the results of any monitoring and testing that it might have done. This is a continuing problem that has occurred at more than a dozen Nally and Hamilton operations in five eastern Kentucky counties from October 2006 through March 2011, according to the coalition. These groups previously identified the same pattern of violations committed by ICG and Frasure Creek coal companies, which also submitted false or fraudulent water monitoring data.

“Every time we exposed the violations by Nally and Hamilton, ICG, and Frasure Creek mining in October, March, and June, the state agency said they would start reviewing water test results submitted by coal companies and start enforcing the law,” said Marc Yaggi, Executive Director of Waterkeeper Alliance. “They had the same opportunity we did to find and bring an enforcement action for these newly discovered Clean Water Act violations, but instead of them stepping up and announcing their own legal action today, we have to do their job for them – no one in government seems to have the backbone to make coal companies abide by the law in Kentucky.”

Falsifying monitoring reports is another in a long list of recent allegations against the coal industry, which is under widespread pressure to clean up its destructive practices and take responsibility for its enormous and devastating ecological footprint.

“State officials in our Department of Natural Resources and Division of Water are supposed to protect citizens and the environment from lawless acts by scofflaw polluters,” Tallichet said. “Instead they are part of the overall problem that we intend to resolve through legal action. That is our right and duty as U.S. citizens under the Clean Water Act.”

Under the Clean Water Act, the company has 60 days to respond to the allegations made in the notice letter. If all violations have not been corrected at the end of 60 days, or the state has not preempted the suit, the groups plan on filing suit.

• Read the full press release
• Download the Notice of Intent to Sue letter (pdf format)

Read the original post here:
App Voices and Partners Enter into a Second Lawsuit against KY Coal Company Nally & Hamilton

Coalition To Sue Mining Company In Latest Revelation of a Pattern of Violations

- – – – – – – – – – -
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Contacts: Donna Lisenby, Appalachian Voices, 704-277-6055, donna@appvoices.org
Suzanne Struglinski, NRDC, 202-289-2387, sstruglinski@nrdc.org
Suzanne Tallichet, KFTC, 606-776-7970, suetallichet@windstream.net
Pat Banks, Kentucky Riverkeeper, 859-622-3065, kyriverkeeper@eku.edu
Heath Fradkoff, Goodman Media for Waterkeeper Alliance, 212-576-2700, hfradkoff@goodmanmedia.com
- – – – – – – – – – -

EASTERN KENTUCKY (August 23, 2011)— Newly discovered information suggests that coal company Nally and Hamilton has filed even more false – and potentially fraudulent – water pollution monitoring data with state agencies than previously believed, according to a coalition of clean water advocates. As a result, residents of Kentucky do not know how badly polluted their water is.

Based on a review of state water monitoring reports, the coalition identified more than 5,000 additional violations of the Clean Water Act on top of the 12,000 violations previously discovered in March. Appalachian Voices, Kentuckians For The Commonwealth, Kentucky Riverkeeper and Waterkeeper Alliance today sent Nally and Hamilton a 60-day notice of intent to sue the company over these additional Clean Water Act violations with potential penalties of more than $180 million.

“The undeniable pattern of coal companies blatantly disregarding the law in Kentucky is nothing new to our coalfield citizens,” said Suzanne Tallichet with Kentuckians For The Commonwealth. “Their ongoing pollution of the rivers and streams that our citizens rely on for drinking water is precisely why more and more health studies link mountaintop removal coal mining to a whole host of human health impacts from cancer to birth defects in babies.”

Just like the previous violations discovered in March, the new information shows the company used the same data in permit reports month after month, rather than submitting the results of any monitoring and testing that it might have done. This is a continuing problem that has occurred at more than a dozen Nally and Hamilton operations in five eastern Kentucky counties from October 2006 through March 2011, according to the coalition. These groups previously identified the same pattern of violations committed by ICG and Frasure Creek coal companies, which also submitted false or fraudulent water monitoring data.

“In the last 10 months we uncovered more than 41,000 Clean Water Act violations from three coal companies in Kentucky,” said Donna Lisenby, Director of Water Programs for Appalachian Voices. “With the filing of this fourth notice of intent to sue, it is undeniable that there is a clear pattern of Clean Water Act violations and yet no one in any government agency discovered these violations or brought enforcement action until we exposed the blatant lawlessness.”

State permits allow Nally and Hamilton, and other companies, to discharge limited amounts of pollutants into streams and rivers but require the companies to carefully monitor and report these polluted discharges. The coalition uses these publicly available reports to check on the companies.

“The abysmal failure to hold coal companies accountable to the law, a law put into place to protect our citizens from poisonous discharges being illegally dumped into our waters, has been so complete in Kentucky that I am stunned. Are we to conclude that our government is nothing more than a willing accomplice who aids and abets coal companies when they illegally dump their poison and waste in our Kentucky waterways? What message are they sending to the companies that are in compliance? Other industry leaders are furious at this double standard,” said Pat Banks, the Kentucky Riverkeeper.

According to the coalition, Nally and Hamilton’s discharge reports suggest that the company cut-and-pasted previous sets of data in later reports rather than monitoring the discharge and submitting accurate data for each month. It also omitted legally-required data from its reports.

“Every time we exposed the violations by Nally and Hamilton, ICG, and Frasure Creek mining in October, March, and June, the state agency said they would start reviewing water test results submitted by coal companies and start enforcing the law,” said Marc Yaggi, Executive Director of Waterkeeper Alliance. “They had the same opportunity we did to find and bring an enforcement action for these newly discovered Clean Water Act violations, but instead of them stepping up and announcing their own legal action today, we have to do their job for them – no one in government seems to have the backbone to make coal companies abide by the law in Kentucky.”

Falsifying monitoring reports is another in a long list of recent allegations against the coal industry, which is under widespread pressure to clean up its destructive practices and take responsibility for its enormous and devastating ecological footprint.

“State officials in our Department of Natural Resources and Division of Water are supposed to protect citizens and the environment from lawless acts by scofflaw polluters,” Tallichet said. “Instead they are part of the overall problem that we intend to resolve through legal action. That is our right and duty as U.S. citizens under the Clean Water Act.”
Under the Clean Water Act, the company has 60 days to respond to the allegations made in the notice letter. If all violations have not been corrected at the end of 60 days, or the state has not preempted the suit, the groups plan on filing suit. The plaintiffs are being represented by lawyers with the Natural Resources Defense Council.

Download the Notice of Intent to Sue letter (pdf format)

###

Appalachian Voices is an award-winning, environmental non-profit committed to protecting the land, air and water of the central and southern Appalachian region. Since the impacts of coal threaten Appalachia more than any other single source of pollution, we are committed to reducing coal’s impact on the region and advancing our vision for a cleaner energy future. For more information please visit www.AppalachianVoices.org.

Kentuckians For The Commonwealth is a grassroots, citizens’ organization that believes in the power of people, working together, to challenge injustices, right wrongs, and improve the quality of life for all Kentuckians. Visit KFTC online at www.kftc.org.

Kentucky Riverkeeper’s mission is to serve as educator and citizen-based advocate for the responsible stewardship of the Kentucky River watershed and its resources for the present and future generations.

The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) is an international nonprofit environmental organization with more than 1.3 million members and online activists. Since 1970, our lawyers, scientists, and other environmental specialists have worked to protect the world’s natural resources, public health, and the environment. NRDC has offices in New York City, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Livingston, Montana, and Beijing. Visit us at www.nrdc.org.

Waterkeeper Alliance is a global environmental organization uniting more than 190 Waterkeeper organizations around the world and focusing citizen advocacy on the issues that affect our waterways, from pollution to climate change. Waterkeepers patrol more than 1.5 million square miles of rivers, streams and coastlines in the Americas, Europe, Australia, Asia and Africa. Part scientist, teacher, and legal advocate, Waterkeepers combine firsthand knowledge of their waterways with an unwavering commitment to their communities. www.waterkeeper.org

Read the original post here:
Kentucky Coal Company Falsifies More Water Monitoring Data, Advocates Allege

I have just returned from another epic journey into the dark side of coal mining. If you, me or anyone else in America poisoned a neighbor’s drinking water we would be castigated and made a pariah at the very least and possibly jailed for attempted murder at the worst. But if you are a coal company operating in Appalachia you can get away with it. Very seldom will anyone in government or law enforcement make the coal industry stop harming human health. It is a tragedy that has been repeated time and time again across Appalachia. Here is the latest chapter:

Read the original post here:
Flaming wells, poisoned water show abuses of coal.

On Thursday, Appalachian Voices and Kentuckians for the Commonwealth helped Keeper Springs Natural Spring Water delivered 30,000 bottles of water to thirteen Kentucky families in Pike County whose well water is contaminated with methane.

Earlier this year a well became contaminated with so much methane gas that it caught on fire. Residents say their well water flows black and orange sometimes and other times burns their skin. They reported the problem to government officials in May.

Four months have gone by and the residents still do not have a permanent source of clean, safe drinking water. Now Keeper Springs Natural Spring Water, Kentuckians for the Commonwealth and Appalachian Voices have stepped in to provide residents with a tractor-trailer load of bottled water.

• Read the full press release
• Story by the Institute for Southern Studies

Read the original post here:
Delivering 30,000 Bottles of Water to KY Families with Contaminated Wells

The following email was sent to the 100,000+ supporters of iLoveMountains.org. To sign up to receive free email alerts, click here.

Great news! This week we received the results of a public opinion poll that confirms that voters in Appalachia overwhelmingly want to end mountaintop removal and strengthen protections provided by the Clean Water Act.

A new poll commissioned by Appalachian Mountain Advocates, Earthjustice and the Sierra Club shows staggering support for ending mountaintop removal coal mining in Appalachian coal mining states. Conducted by two bipartisan firms, the poll has revealed that 57% of informed voters oppose the practice, versus 20% approving.

And even more astoundingly, when asked about increasing Clean Water protections on mountaintop removal, 78% of respondents supported increasing Clean Water Act protections, with just 9% opposing.

This announcement comes on the heels of a national poll released by CNN last week, showing that Americans across the country oppose mountaintop removal 57% to 36%.

People like you have made it clear for a long time that the majority of citizens in the U.S. oppose mountaintop removal. This poll puts to rest out-of-date perceptions that Appalachians support mountaintop removal.

These two polls give us great leverage to demand that our elected officials follow their moral compass, follow the science, and follow regional and national public opinion by ending mountaintop removal. Please take a moment to write your congressperson about this poll to make sure that they see these figures.
www.iLoveMountains.org/we-dont-want-MTR

For the Mountains,
Matt Wasson

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Spread the News! Appalachians overwhelmingly oppose mountaintop removal

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact Ted Withrow, Kentuckians for the Commonwealth, 606-784-6885
Donna Lisenby, Appalachian Voices, 704-277-6055
Chris Bartle, Keeper Springs, 917-414-9495

- – – – – – – – – – -

Keeper Springs, Appalachian Voices and Kentuckians for the Commonwealth Provide 30, 000 Bottles of Water to Kentucky community with Contaminated Drinking Water

Pike County, Kentucky (August 17, 2011) – Keeper Springs Natural Spring Water is arranging for the immediate donation and delivery of 30, 000 bottles of water-through its partners Appalachian Voices and Kentuckians for the Commonwealth (KFTC)-to thirteen Kentucky families in Pike County whose well water is contaminated. Earlier this year a well became contaminated with so much methane gas that it caught on fire. Residents say their well water flows black and orange sometimes and other times burns their skin. They reported the problem to government officials in May.

Pike County Judge Executive Wayne T. Rutherford inspected the area and told residents that he would do everything he could to get the residents clean, safe drinking water. Prior to notifying Mr. Rutherford, the residents say a nearby coal mining company had offered to install a water filtration system but there has been no follow through.

Four months have gone by and the residents still do not have a permanent source of clean, safe drinking water. Now Keeper Springs Natural Spring Water, Kentuckians for the Commonwealth and Appalachian Voices are stepping in to provide residents with a tractor-trailer load of bottled water.

KFTC Steering Committee member Ted Withrow got the ball rolling when he learned of the well water contamination problem in late July. Withrow contacted Donna Lisenby, the Director of Water Programs from Appalachian Voices and asked if she could test the well water for contamination. Lisenby not only agreed to test the most impacted wells but also informed Withrow that through a partnership with Keeper Springs Natural Spring Water, she may be able to arrange for a delivery of bottled water to the area. Chris Bartle, the president of Keeper Springs Natural Spring Water was contacted and he immediately got 30, 000 bottles Keeper Springs and Nestle Pure Life Purified Water donated.

“Based on my direct, first hand experience with contamination of water by coal operations, I am deeply worried about the safety of the drinking water of these families,” said Withrow the former Big Sandy River Basin coordinator for the Kentucky Division of Water. “I just had to take the bull by the horns and get something done.”

“In all my 20 years of working on water quality problems, I have never seen a drinking water well catch on fire and burn continuously for days on end,” said Donna Lisenby. “When Ted sent me the link to the WKYT news story, I was stunned beyond belief and realized I had to do something. Thankfully Appalachian Voices has a strong partnership with Keeper Springs and we were able to act quickly.”

“Keeper Springs recognizes bottled water plays a needed role when safe drinking water is unavailable, ” said Chris Bartle, who cofounded Keeper Springs with environmentalist Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. “We sought to create a bottled water company that responds to this need, respects the environment, and advocates for clean water. Keeper Springs Natural Spring Water gives 100 percent of its profit back to America’s waterways through the Waterkeeper Alliance and local keepers such as the Upper Watauga Riverkeeper at Appalachian Voices. Supplying a truck load of bottled water to these families in Pike County is a part of our mission because we believe clean, safe water is a basic human right,” continued Bartle.

The tractor trailer load of bottled water will arrive in Pike County on the 18th of August much to the relief of all the families in the community. “You are amazing and I’m so grateful for everything you are doing to help us” said Jessica Bevins who is a recipient of the water. “It’s so good to know there are still a few people like you that will help someone you’ve never even met. I promise you I’ll never forget you for what you’re doing to help me.”

Kentuckians for the Commonwealth and Appalachian Voices will host a brief press conference at 1:30 pm on August 18, 2011 in Pike County at 2884 Big Branch Road In Pikeville, Kentucky. Members of the news media are encouraged to attend and learn more.

###

Background Information-News Stories:

1. Water contaminated with methane gas
WKYT News 27, May 23, 2011, Reporter Sean Evans (sean.evans@wymtnews.com)

It’s something no one should have to deal with, but one Pike County family’s water source has been contaminated with methane gas for months and they want something done about it. The gas content is so high the water is actually flammable.
A water well with methane gas concentration so high it’s literally on fire.
Pike County Judge Executive Wayne T. Rutherford visited the area and said he would do everything in his power to get the problem fixed. Residents say Excel Mining has offered to install a water filtration system as long as they as they sign a waiver and they did not want them going to the media with the problem. As of right now, this is the most extreme example, but others have had water problems in the past.

To read more and view pictures please see:

http://www.wkyt.com/news/headlines/Water_contaminated_with_methane_gas_122473834.html

2. Pike County Family Still Without Clean Water

WKYT News 27, July 28, 2011, Reporter Sean Evans (sean.evans@wymtnews.com)

Back in May we told you about a Pike County family that can not drink their water because it literally burns! Two months later they still cannot drink their water.

Families along Big Branch rely on well water for their drinking supply.
But for the last two months people like Denise Howard have had to buy water to drink and cook with.
They’re worried, because their families still have to bathe in the water. “You never know what methane in the water is liable to cause. You don’t know what kind of health problems or anything else that they can get from that,” said Kenya Conn.

Some in the area suspect nearby Excel Number Two Mine. “I am not here to place the blame on anyone, however I am asking, if this is not mine related then why is the content of the methane gas so high?” said Carolyn Waugh.

We were out here at the Howard’s a little more than two months ago. Then the flames were just about to the top of the well, now they’re shooting out at least a foot and a half. And they say it isn’t getting any better.
“It sometimes looks like that. This color right here. Yeah, it looks like that most of the time,” said Denise Howard. “Probably thousands, no joke. Because, that’s literally what we have to spend on water, and we don’t have that kind of money,” said Howard. All she and her family want is a new water source. Family members say they will pay to have the Martin County’s water run to their house, a connection only several thousand feet away.

But Mountain Water District officials in Pike County say that could cost between 125 and 150 thousand dollars.”From our existing lines it’s eleven miles to the homes. That’s why we’re looking at going through Martin County, where it’s just a few thousand feet to be able to do that,” said Roy Sawyers with Mountain Water District.

Sawyer says from the day the agreement is made to purchase water from Martin County, it will still take at least three months for the water to be connected.
We attempted to reach Excel Mining, but were unable to get a comment.

http://www.wkyt.com/wymtnews/headlines/Pike_County_Family_Still_Without_Clean_Water_126363493.html

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Groups Provide 30,000 Bottles of Water To Kentucky Community with Contaminated Drinking Water

Controversial Appalachian politicians promoting mountaintop removal are in the vast minority in their own states

Joe Lovett, as he is known to do, says it best:

A new poll conducted by two bipartisan firms shows overwhelming support for ending mountaintop removal within the Appalachian states of KY, TN, VA, and WV. The poll was commissioned by the Appalachian Mountain Advocates (formerly “Appalachian Center for the Economy and the Environment)”, EarthJustice, and the Sierra Club, and sampled more than 1300 likely voters, oversampling in WV and KY, and has a margin of error of just ±2.8%. These organizations are releasing the complete poll to the public, and you can find the full cross-tabs are here. Without description, voters oppose mountaintop removal 38%-24%. Given a brief description of mountaintop removal, likely Appalachian voters oppose the practice 57%-20%. This announcement comes on the back of a national poll released by CNN last week, showing that Americans across the country strongly oppose mountaintop removal (57%-36%).

The results are astonishing in that Appalachian voters clearly differentiate between coal mining (which they strongly support 61%-21%) and mountaintop removal (which they strongly oppose 57%-27%). These are not “out of state hippies” or “anti-coal activists.” These are the Appalachian people, who clearly understand that mountaintop removal is a unique form of coal mining that has unprecedented negative impacts on our region, and needs to end. In fact, when asked if they supported increasing Clean Water Protections to protect ourselves from mountaintop removal, voters responded with an astonishing 78% supporting an increase in Clean Water Act protections and just 9% opposing.

The support for the Clean Water Act is both deep and wide. According to the pollsters’ memo:

Support for increasing protections in—the Clean Water Act to safeguard streams, rivers, and lakes in their states from mountaintop removal coal mining is far-reaching, encompassing solid majorities of Democrats (86%), independents (76%), Republicans (71%), and Tea Party supporters (67%).

Our movement to end mountaintop removal and increase protections within the Clean Water Act is working, and has strong popular support not just across the country, but across all political lines and all geographic lines. This new poll confirms that voters across the Appalachian region feel just as strongly about protecting the Clean Water Act, and protecting our mountains.

But of course, you’ve noted a lot of Appalachian politicians saying just the opposite…

Throughout the last two years, Democratic Congressman Nick Rahall (WV-03) has made promoting mountaintop removal his #1 issue in Washington. Time, after time, after time the Congressman has fought Congressional and Administrative efforts to protect Appalachian citizens from the impacts of coal, joining the most radical elements of our Congress in calling regulation of mountaintop removal , and gleefully ignoring the flood of new peer-reviewed scientific studies showing horrific health impacts to his constituents. After the 2010 elections, Rahall was joined in Congress by Senator Joe Manchin, whose defense of mountaintop removal has been equally verbose, and perhaps even more willfully ignorant.

Other coal-state politicians have shown a desire to bend over backwards to the demands of a radical and shrinking regional coal industry. This includes Republican Senators Mitch McConnell and Rand Paul of Kentucky, Senator Rockefeller of West Virginia, Representatives Shelly Moore Capito and David McKinley of West Virginia, and Morgan Griffith of southwestern Virginia.

They’ll all be disappointed to know that most of their constituents, including a majority of Republicans, Democrats, and Independents oppose ending mountaintop removal, while even 67% of tea party supporters support increasing protections within the Clean Water Act. Not only that, but those who want more protections from mountaintop removal are more likely to help them make a decision in the voting booth.

It sure does make Senator Lamar Alexander (R-TN), who supports ending mountaintop removal, look awful smart.

There is hope yet for Rahall and his Congressional comrades. He has known for a long-time that the writing is on the wall for mountaintop removal. Just two short years ago he said:

The state’s most productive coal seams likely will be exhausted in 20 years. And while coal will remain an important part of the economy, the state should emphasize green job development. That is especially important as pressure against mountaintop mining increases. Pressure is coming from both Republicans and Democrats. During the 2008 presidential race, Republican nominee John McCain came out in favor of ending mountaintop mining. It’s something that’s evolving over time in our industry and the responsible segment of our industry realizes that.
- Congressman Nick Rahall (D-WV-03), 04-02-09

This was, of course, before he learned that these words upset Don Blankenship, and went on a full-court press to promote mountaintop removal and eliminate the few citizen protections that re currently in place. Thanks to our friends at Appalachian Mountain Advocates, EarthJustice, and Sierra Club, we now know that Nick Rahall can feel free to express what he already knows – we must protect his constituents and end mountaintop removal. And he can do it knowing that West Virginia Democrats, West Virginia Republicans, and even West Virginia Tea Party members support increasing Clean Water Act protections regarding mountaintop removal.

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BREAKING: New Poll Finds that Appalachian People Strongly Oppose Mountaintop Removal

On Sunday, CNN premiered an hour-long documentary by Soledad O’Brien on the battle to save historic Blair Mountain in West Virginia from destruction by mountaintop removal coal mining. Blair Mountain, site of the second largest armed insurrection in American history, is also one of the most important historical sites for organized labor in the country.

While O’Brien and her crew were able to tell both sides of the debate in compelling and emotionally powerful ways, the documentary suffered from the same flaw that just about every environmental story CNN has ever done suffers from: it is presented in a “jobs vs environment” frame that is devoid of any actual analysis of whether that frame is appropriate. Following is a brief fact-check of statements made by by mountaintop removal supporters and opponents in O’Brien’s documentary.

Is “Jobs vs Environment” the Appropriate Frame for the Issue of Mountaintop Removal?

There are two conflicting statements made by local residents in the documentary regarding the impact that mountaintop removal has had on jobs and the community around Blair Mountain. On the one hand, in response to a question by O’Brien about when the community around Blair Mountain started to disappear, resident Diane Kish responded:

“The community began to disappear when federal judges and the EPA came in and started messing with our livelihood.”

On the other hand, another nearby resident, Billy Smutko, said that the community began to disappear when mountaintop removal started. Fortunately, data are readily available to resolve these two conflicting versions of events and it turns out those data support Smutko’s version beyond a shadow of a doubt.

According to data from a study recently published in the Journal Population Health Metrics , Logan County, WV (the county that is home to both Blair Mountain and the controversial Spruce #1 mountaintop removal mine), saw a 10.7% decline in population between 1997 and 2007. This would at first seem to support the pro-mountaintop removal version of events, as the timeframe roughly correlates with the timeframe in which federal judges and the EPA first began to impose restrictions on mountaintop removal mining. Specifically, the first temporary restraining order on mountaintop removal permits was imposed by Judge Haden in 1999.

However, data from the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) show that the number of mining jobs in Logan County stayed roughly the same over that period, even as production of coal from mountaintop removal mines declined by a third. But what really blows a hole through the pro-mountaintop removal arguments is the fact that the population of Logan County decreased by a jaw-dropping 14.4% between 1987 and 1997, during which time the EPA and federal judges did nothing to restrict mountaintop removal and production from such mines more than tripled — from less than 5 million to more than 16 million tons.

As shown in the graph below, and in stark contrast to some claims in the CNN documentary, the number of mining jobs in Logan County has more than doubled since 1999 when Judge Haden imposed the first moratorium on mountaintop removal permits, and mining jobs across West Virginia as a whole have increased by a third.

Furthermore, recent MSHA data show an increase in employment in both the county and the state since June of 2009 when EPA began more stringent scrutiny of mountaintop removal permits. This increase in jobs even occurred at a time when demand for Appalachian coal plummeted (see chart below):

In a world where facts mattered to major news organizations more than generating controversy, even a cursory analysis of employment trends in Logan County and across West Virginia would drive a stake through the intuitively simple but demonstrably false “jobs vs environment” frame for the mountaintop removal debate. And while it’s unlikely that actual data are going to convince CNN (or Congress, for that matter) to abandon the erroneous “jobs vs environment” frame, at least Bill Smutko and Chuck Keeney can feel vindicated that their statements in CNN’s documentary were correct, while the claims from the other side were wildly, if almost certainly unintentionally, off the mark.

Coal does not supply 50% of America’s Energy – it’s more like 20%

Both supporters and opponents of increasing America’s reliance on coal for energy frequently conflate “electricity” with “energy” and make the claim that coal supplies 50% of America’s energy or “power.” In fact, O’Brien herself makes that mistake during the documentary.

The oft-cited “fact” that coal provides 50% of US energy needs is actually wrong on two fronts. First, electricity from all sources, including coal, nuclear natural gas and renewables, actually supplies somewhat less than half of US energy needs (petroleum for transportation and natural gas for heating are the other big-ticket items). Second, the percentage of US electricity that is generated from coal has been declining for decades and is projected to supply a little less than 44% of US electricity this year. Given the consistent and rapidly declining trend in coal’s share of the generation mix, making this distinction amounts to more than just picking fly poop out of pepper (see graph below). Taken together, these facts mean that coal accounts for close to 20% of US energy needs, not 50%.

Also evident in this graph is the fact that the decline in coal’s share of electricity has come almost entirely at the expense of Appalachian coal, the production of which peaked in the 1990s and which has since declined by more than 25%. This fact makes it all the more tragic that good people like Linda Dials in the CNN documentary continue to believe that the Appalachian mining industry would simply rebound for the forseeable future if only regulators would go back to rubber-stamping permits for mountaintop removal mines. Whatever happens with mountaintop removal regulation, coal mining is an economic dead end for Appalachia.

Other Incorrect Facts in the CNN documentary

In addition to incorrect statements about employment and poulation trends in Appalachian coal communities, there are numerous smaller errors or misleading statements that should really be addressed.

As usual, Bill Raney, President of the West Virginia Coal Association, wins in the “misleading statement” category. Most striking is his questioning of the studies by Michael Hendryx that show a strong correlation between one’s health and one’s proximity to a mountaintop removal mine.

While Raney is technically correct that these studies are based on “correlation and not causation,” it’s a meaningless distinction for nearly every public health study ever conducted. There is no way to ever prove causation in public health studies, which is why researchers have to use statistics to tease apart trends and find evidence for – but never prove – causation. The peer-review process in science is what protects against misuse and abuse of statistics.

Obtaining direct evidence of health impacts of mountaintop removal would require treating people like lab rats, forcing them to move to different locations or directly poisoning them with coal waste by-products to see what the effect would be. Even then, such a study would not “prove” health impacts from coal waste because the scientific method does not allow for “proving” hypotheses, it only allows for disproving them or assessing the statistical likelihood that they would happen by chance. For instance, a scientist can provide an excellent description of why the sun is likely to come up tomoroow morning, but he or she can never actually “prove” that it will.

But criticizing science as “unproven” has long been the main tactic of spokespeople for polluting industries, and Bill Raney is one of the best. But his tactics are meant only to obfuscate, not to illuminate, and people interested in understanding science and the impacts of mountaintop removal would do a lot better by ignoring anything and everything Bill Raney says.

It should also be mentioned that O’Brien’s statement that EPA has placed a hold on all pending mountaintop removal permits is flat out wrong – EPA has allowed state agencies and the Army Corps of Engineers to approve dozens of permits over the past few years. Yes, EPA has adopted more stringent procedures for reviewing permits, but, to the dismay of many local residents, its actions have fallen well short of imposing a moratorium.

Despite all of my criticisms about the incorrect facts in the documentary, Soledad O’Brien and CNN have done a real service by producing such a powerful documentary on mountaintop removal and the struggle to save Blair Mountain from obliteration. Furthermore, watching the emotionally wrenching moments faced by the Dials and other mining families in the documentary should help those of us who oppose mountaintop removal better understand the deep fear and distress faced by families who believe their livelihood will be destroyed if mountaintop removal is ended. While I believe much of their fear is based on the inflammatory and irresponsible rhetoric of coal companies and politicians, and that ending mountaintop removal will improve the economic situation and quality of life of those working in the mining industry as well as those who feel oppressed by it, nothing positive can come from treating the fears of good people insensitively – or behaving in a manner that inflames those fears even more.

As we fight to save Blair Mountain and to end the environmental, cultural and economic destruction caused by mountaintop removal (click here to help), say a prayer for the Dials and think about how we can approach that effort with compassion and empathy — and in a way that improves the likelihood that the enormous changes the Dials and other mining families face as the Appalachian coal industry declines will, in the end, lead them to a better future than they ever thought possible.

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Fact-Checking CNN’s New Documentary about Mountaintop Removal: the “Jobs vs Environment” Frame is Dead Wrong Once Again

“In all my 20 years of working on water quality problems, I have never seen a drinking water well catch on fire and burn continuously for days on end,” Donna Lisenby said in reaction to news reports of a well fire in Pike County, Kentucky.

Ted Withrow of KFTC observes the well fire in Pike County, KY. Photo Credit: Sue Tallichet

Kentuckians for the Commonwealth Steering Committee member Ted Withrow contacted Appalachian Voices for assistance with heavy metal sampling for 4 Kentucky families whose wells may be contaminated with methane. One well has flames that shoot more than a foot high out of the top of their well. Families in the area report that the water sometimes runs orange or black, and causes their skin to burn upon contact. Some individuals suspect nearby Excel Number 2 mine to be the source of the contamination. The families reported the water problems to government officials in May, but no action has been taken to help the families.

Keeper Springs, Appalachian Voices and Kentuckians for the Commonwealth have stepped in and will be providing a truckload of bottled water to the families. This generous donation will hopefully fulfill the families’ water needs and alleviate some financial strain until a permanent solution can be found. Appalachian Voices is providing heavy metal testing to identify any other pollutants in the water.

The fact that many aspects of the coal cycle can damage drinking water supplies is nothing new – underground slurry injections and slurry ponds contaminate water in West Virginia, coal ash from power plants contaminates water in Tennessee and now underground mining operations may be contaminating drinking water wells in Kentucky. As we receive the results of heavy metal tests, we should be able to make progress on identifying the extent of the contamination. Stay tuned to the Front Porch Blog as this story develops.

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Possible Methane Contamination of Drinking Water Wells in Kentucky

According to RAMPS (Radical Action for Mountain People’s Survival), a treesit by Catherine-Ann MacDougal near the Bee Tree surface mine has entered its fourth week. MacDougal was joined for the first two weeks by another sitter, Becks Kolins. According to the press release, Kolins “descended to begin legal processing” and was charged with “conspiracy, trespassing, and littering and was released Tuesday on personal recognizance.”

According to RAMPS, this treesit is the longest in West Virginia history.

Visit rampscampaign.org for the full story.

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Treesit on Coal River Mountain enters fourth week

From the Music on the Mountaintop website:

Our goal is to give a percentage of our 2011 proceeds to the Boone based non-profit organizations, Appalachian Voices and The Mountain Alliance.

Appalachian Voices is an award-winning, environmental organization committed to protecting the land, air and water of the central and southern Appalachian region and advancing a vision for a cleaner energy future. The organization was listed as one of E! Environmental Magazine’s top 5 favorite ways to become environmentally active, and has been recognized as a Google Earth Hero for their work on iLoveMountains.org, a website dedicated to ending mountaintop removal coal mining. The organization is headquartered in Boone, with offices in Charlottesville, Virginia and Washington, D.C. For more information, visit AppVoices.org.

Mountain Alliance is a community of individuals committed to providing Watauga County high school aged youth with opportunities to explore and develop their leadership potential through experiential learning.

Tickets are on sale now at Footsloggers in Boone, as well as online by clicking here!

Visit the Music on the Mountaintop website for all event details, including artist lineup, directions, camping information and more.

An Orwellian approach to Appalachian history

By removing federal protection from the Blair Mountain Battlefield site, state and federal officials have abrogated a sacred trust. Even worse, by removing the protection in an underhanded manner, and ignoring evidence of skullduggery, they have set a scandalous, shocking and inexcusable precedent.

No one questions the fact that the Blair Mountain Battlefield is a site of major national historic significance. No one has challenged the many leading historians and historical organizations that have presented mountains of evidence about the 1921 armed confrontation between thousands of union miners and coal industry mine guards.

Yet the process for protecting historic sites through the National Register of Historic Places requires the agreement of landowners, and that process is subject to the worst kind of political abuse.

Originally, a majority of 57 landowners agreed to the protection. After decades of very difficult work, the site was listed in the Register in April 2009. However, only a few days later, the state official responsible for counting letters of support from property owners suddenly “discovered” more letters. West Virginia then began the unprecedented process of delisting the site.

Advocates for historic protection uncovered extraordinary flaws in the process. Two of those who supposedly objected happened to be deceased. In addition, preservation advocates found another 13 property owners who had not even been contacted.

Although faced with new evidence, state officials refused to reconsider. But they did offer a paltry consolation prize by assuring preservationists that the site’s “eligibility” for listing would still offer protection in the future. A legal analysis has now found that these assurances were inaccurate, to say the least.

In the book 1984, George Orwell said: “He who controls the past controls the future.” In that respect, the West Virginia state historic preservation office ought to be renamed the Ministry of Truth.

Unless the courts overturn the delisting, bulldozers will soon bury a precious piece of Appalachia’s history.

Friends of Blair Mountain are encouraging people to write to Carol Shull, keeper of the National Register of Historic Places. For more information visit their website at FriendsOfBlairMountain.org.

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Editorials

By Jillian Varkas

The Portrait Story project came to the southern highlands in March 2008 to continue a legacy of capturing images and stories to identify with the region through the eyes of its people.

The artist, Francesco Di Santis, had recently completed a portrait project of Hurricane Katrina victims. Days after the hurricane devastated the Louisiana and Mississippi Gulf Coast, di Santis came to the area and stayed for 15 months drawing portraits of victims, only asking for their stories.

Many in the environmental movement for Appalachia felt the project could show the public the impacts “King Coal” has had on the lives of people who feel a connection to the region.

The project began as a five-month quest into the coalfields where sympathizers had organized to fight the consequences of mountaintop removal coal mining.

As the project developed into a much larger undertaking, Di Santis quickly realized that if the voices from throughout Appalachia were to be heard, he would have to cover thousands of square miles. After two years, he had taken portraits of thousands of people throughout seven states.

The artists’ spirits were bolstered by an incredible desire to participate. Dozens of families invited the artists into their households and spread the word to family and friends.

Di Santis, drew simple but strong portraits with the request that people would write their own personal narrative.

“The media infrastructure of The Portrait-Story Project is the participants’ handwriting on the same physical page as an original portrait of themselves,” said Di Santis.

Subjects wrote about folk culture, family, stories of the old United Mine Workers, and how surface mining has impacted their lives and the land. Many of the stories related the longing for peace to return again in the mountains.

One man he portrayed wrote, “I don’t want to be an old man in a plastic house next to a golf course under a black sky. I want to sit by a clear stream in the Blue Ridge, talking to salamanders as big as my arm, watching the world become wiser.”

After much anticipation, the public will be able to view Voices for Appalachia, A Portrait-Story Project, Written and Narrated by Hundreds. The art series will be displayed March 2 to 27 at the Unitarian Universalist Church in Chattanooga, Tenn., and then April 2 to 27 at Rosetta’s Kitchen in Asheville, N.C.

To request the art series in your community visit UnitedMountainDefense.org.

To view the entire art series, click to VoicesForAppalachia.org.

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Portrait Story Project Highlights Ties To Appalachia

Reported by Kyle Wolff

TVA’s environmental policies are putting low income Americans at risk, according to the nation’s most prominent advocate for environmental justice.

“We take your poison for a price,” said Dr. Robert Bullard on TVA’s decision to ship coal ash from spill in Kingston, Tenn., to waste disposal facilities near poverty-stricken neighborhoods in Uniontown, Ala.

Dr. Bullard, director of the Environmental Justice Resource Center at Clark Atlanta University, delivered his message to a packed Lipinsky Auditorium at the University of North Carolina-Asheville on Jan. 20, 2010.

In his presentation, Dr. Bullard challenged government and industrial policies that place low-income minority populations at special risk. His example of this was Uniontown, an area receiving waste from an environmental disaster that happened 300 miles north of them, in a county with a population that is 88 percent African American.

Environmental justice, as defined by Dr. Bullard and other advocates, is the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations and policies.

Dr. Bullard explained that the TVA had to get rid of the coal ash mess, and they unjustly sent it south. He said Perry County was living with the effects of an “out of sight, out of mind” mentality by EPA and TVA.

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Environmental Injustice Seen in TVA Policies

Scientists say Mysterious Disease is Spreading Quickly

By Maureen Halsema

Hibernating little brown bats showing signs of white nose syndrome. Photo by Nancy Heaslip, New York Department of Environmental Conservation, provided by the U.S Fish and Wildlife Service.

The world’s only flying mammal may be extinct by the end of the decade.

White nose syndrome—believed to be caused by a fungus—has already killed about a million bats in the northeastern regions of the U.S. and Canada, and is spreading into Appalachia.

The fungus attacks bats as they hibernate in winter months. Once the fungus starts in a bat cave, 90 to 100 percent of the bats die, and bat carcasses are scattered across the cave floors.

“The biggest concern is that white-nose syndrome WNS is moving about 200 kilometers a year,” said Dr. Thomas Kunz, biology professor and director of the Center for Ecology and Conservation Biology at Boston University. “It’s moving at a rate that is typical of an infectious disease.”

Earlier this year, the epidemic hit Virginia and West Virginia, and the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency recently confirmed it in that state as well.

Since white-nose syndrome’s discovery in 2006 in a cave near Albany, N.Y., about a million bats have died. A spelunker exploring the cave discovered the disease when he found and photographed several bats with the fungus growing on their faces.

The following winter, January 2007, the New York Department of Environmental Conservation observed and documented the beginning of the white-nose syndrome epidemic.

Thus far, six hibernating bat species in the northeastern U.S. have been affected by WNS, including the big brown bat, tri-colored bat, little brown myotis, eastern-small footed myotis, northern long-eared bat, and the Indiana bat (an endangered species).

Should the disease spread further into Appalachia, there are two other species—both of which are endangered—that may be affected: the Virginia big-eared bat and the grey myotis.
What is the cause of this massive epidemic? The answer is still unknown, but there are several hypotheses.

Many scientists believe that a fungus called Geomyces destructans that thrives in cold and humid conditions is the cause.

The illness is dubbed white-nose syndrome because Geomyces destructans is a fungus that attacks their skin glands and hair follicles and in the later stages grows in white tufts on the muzzle, wings, ears, and tails of many of the infected bats.

Bats affected by the disease display abnormal behaviors, such as moving to the colder sections of the cave and flying during the day and during months of hibernation when their food source is nonexistent and fat stores are vital. These daytime excursions may be desperate attempts to find food, depleting the bats’ remaining energy and fat reserves and effectively starving them to death.

Although this fungus has been observed in Europe’s caves for quite some time, it is new to the scientific world and scientists are not certain if the fungus itself is the cause of death or if it is a secondary symptom.

One hypothesis, the itch-and-scratch hypothesis, suggests that irritation caused by the fungus causes bats to prematurely arouse from hibernation—a side effect of the fungus.

“If they are scratching those itchy places, this is likely to cause higher bouts of arousal and thus they expend energy,” said Dr. Kunz.

To test this hypothesis, studies conducted by Dr. DeeAnn Reeder of the Department of Biology at Bucknell University and Sarah Brownlee, a masters student at Bucknell University, are using infrared motion-sensitive video cameras set up in hibernacula to monitor what bats are doing after they arouse from hibernation.

Another hypothesis proposes that bats are not ingesting sufficient amounts of polyunsaturated fatty acids for their fat reserves to last the duration of hibernation.

To try to combat white nose syndrome, scientists are testing bat immune systems and fungicides to see if they can find a way to combat white nose syndrome before it wipes out North American bat species.

“Another concern is how we could implement a cure if one could be found,” said Rick Reynolds, wildlife diversity biologist for the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. “For example, if you found a way to treat white nose syndrome on bats, how do you implement the treatment across the landscape?  This would be especially difficult if it is not a one-time-treatment.”

In 2008, the U.S. Forest Service closed down approximately 2,000 caves and mines across the eastern states in an attempt to try to stop the spread of the fungus.

It is possible that unsuspecting spelunkers, who accumulate the fungus on their equipment and reuse that equipment in uninfected caves, are transmitting the disease from cave to cave.

Even if scientists do find a cure, bat populations have already been dealt a severe blow—the majority of bat species are only capable of birthing one pup each year. It would seem unlikely that many populations could recover for many generations. This could have serious implications for the ecosystem, in which bats play a significant role.

“The loss of bat populations at the scale we are looking at right now has economic, ecological and public health implications,” said Dr. Kunz. “Ecologically, bats play an important role in pest control in agriculture and forestry.”

During the warm months of the year, when they are not hibernating, bats can consume up to their body weight each night in insects. With the loss of one of nature’s best pest controls, the use of pesticides to combat insects that attack agriculture and horticulture would likely increase. This would impact public health as well as agricultural economics.

“It’s a pretty dire situation because there is not adequate funding to support the research that needs to be done,” said Dr. Kunz. “We don’t have adequate resources to even go out and monitor some of these colonies. It’s pretty basic biology that we need to understand before we can get to the root causes.”

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White Nose Syndrome & The Fate of Appalachia’s Bats

Revisiting TVA’s Coal Ash Disaster

Mountains of coal ash still tower over Swan Pond Road near the Kingston Fossil Plant, the site of the 2008 coal ash disaster. Photo by Steve Scarborough.

Over a year after the Dec. 22, 2008 failure of TVA’s impoundment dam released 5.4 million cubic yards of coal sludge, ash still covers the land and clouds the river. In spite of TVA officials’ assurance that the cleanup would last three months and the waste was safe, studies and reports of health concerns suggest otherwise and a final clean up date is years away..

Families Struggle in the Aftermath

By Maureen Halsema
Gary and Pam Topmiller are the last remaining homeowners living in a ghost town on the Emory River.

As they drive to what they once considered their dream home, they pass rows of houses bearing white notices on the doors of recent acquisitions by the Tennessee Valley Authority.

“Just about everybody around here that left has told us the same thing,” Pam Topmiller said. “They left because of the health scare.”

The Topmiller’s home is just across the river from the TVA’s Kingston Fossil Plant, site of the coal ash disaster of Dec. 22, 2008. Early that morning, a tsunami of 5.4 million cubic yards of coal ash hit the Emory River and the once-thriving neighborhood.

In terms of toxins released, it was the largest single environmental disaster in recorded history.

Fly Ash Flu

Over the last year, the Topmillers said they have experienced mounting health problems including nosebleeds, chronic headaches, and respiratory complications.

“We got what we call the fly ash flu,” Gary Topmiller said. “We had to go to Nashville to a doctor down there and he said for us to get out of here, but we don’t have any place to go.”

Not far away on Quarry Road, Rev. Peggy Blanchard is raising her great-granddaughter, Julianna, who is five years old. She worries about the potential health impacts related to fly ash.

“We are concerned in terms of exposure to ourselves but we’re mostly concerned about Julianna because not only is this a cumulative thing over a lifetime,” Blanchard said, “but also at her age she’s very much still in the process of neurological development and you don’t want anything that is going to have a negative impact on that.”

According to the Tennessee Department of Health, “If dust suppression measures should fail and particulate matter is present in concentrations greater than National Ambient Air Quality Standards due to the coal ash becoming airborne for periods longer than one day, the department concludes that particulate matter from airborne coal ash could harm people’s health, especially for those persons with pre-existing respiratory or heart conditions.”

“If there is a medical concern, they are welcome to go to the claims office and file a claim,” said Barbara Martocci, a TVA spokesperson.

Oak Ridge Associated University (ORAU) is handling the medical claims that residents file with TVA.
According to Pam Bonnee, director of communications at ORAU, 314 people have signed up for toxicology screenings, testing for aluminum, arsenic, barium, beryllium, chromium, cobalt, copper, nickel, selenium, thallium, and vanadium.

Gary Topmiller walks to the dock of his former dream home where the waters have been contaminated by toxic pollutants from the coal ash spill. Photo by Maureen Halsema.

A Pricey Proposition

Steve Scarborough, chairman of the Conservation Commission, a section of the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, has property out on Swan Harbor. Real estate was Scarborough’s investment plan for his family, and now he cannot withdraw the funds from his investments.

“When you sell your property to TVA, they give you a price on the property and they also have you sign a medical waiver,” Scarborough said. “You are required to sign the waiver saying that you cannot sue them for any medical effects. It’s an onerous piece of paper to have to sign. If it were me presenting this to folks, I couldn’t do it in good conscience.”

“They sign a waiver about not coming back against TVA once they get paid for the property,” Martocci said.
The Topmillers also want to sell their house to TVA, but they don’t like the strings attached to TVA’s offer either.

“If you sign that paper, TVA is no longer liable for anything in the future, like if you come up with cancer, they are not liable,” said Pam Topmiller. “That is what you sign off on and that is what we would not sign.”

The Topmillers’ neighbor, Glenn Daugherty, has a 1.25 acre lakefront lot. Since the spill, Daugherty said he has experienced nosebleeds, watery eyes, and chronic sinus issues.

Daugherty said that TVA told him they were going to make him another offer after he declined their $140,000 offer for his lot. “I just wanted fair market value for it,” Daugherty said. “I have yet to get that offer.”

“TVA is trying to say the housing market was down already, you can’t try to recoup your loss at our expense,” Blanchard, who purchased her house prior to the spill and would like to take her family away from the disaster site, said. “Excuse me, there is a big difference between having a decline in value and having a crash in value, which is what has happened to us. Who would buy our property? I don’t know, would you buy property, even after all these years, where Love Canal was?”

Not Affected

How does TVA determine if residents are affected by the coal ash spill?

“It is people who could be bothered by the noise, by the equipment, by the spill itself, the water surge, the ash, and the truck traffic,” said Martocci. “If they are affected, those pieces of equipment are touching them or around them or causing them so much disturbance that they cannot sleep or do their work. That is the sort of thing that they look at.”

Blanchard and Scarborough both said TVA told them that their properties were outside the affected area of the spill and they would not be compensated.

“You don’t tell somebody if they are affected, you ask them,” said Blanchard. “And yes, we are definitely affected.”

Blanchard lives by the quarry, where at the height of the cleanup she reports having up to 800 gravel truck trips passing by her home each day.

Rogers Group Inc., increased the volume of extraction from the Roane County Quarry near Blanchard’s home in order to obtain materials TVA needed to build the weirs and dike in the river to keep the sediments contained in the disaster site.

“So what do we get,” Blanchard said. “All of this dust and blasting from the quarry, which we did not have before, not to mention, all of the traffic. We’ve got fly ash coming from the spill site and dust coming from the quarry. Don’t tell me I’m not affected.”

Scarborough echoed Blanchard’s frustration.

“My property was on the market when this disaster occurred,” Scarborough said. “Since then we have had one offer of pennies on the dollar of the appraised value. It is unsellable because of TVA, but they tell me I’m not affected.”

“They tell me that I’m outside the affected area,” Scarborough continued. “How can you be outside the affected area when the river is closed and they are dredging in front of it? We’ve also been told that mortgage lenders won’t take mortgages from this area on the secondary market as well. This is an impossible situation for us.”

The cleanup effort still has a long way to go.

Federal officials have presented three cleanup plans to the public for review in a document called “Engineering Evaluation/Cost Analysis.”

“We don’t know a final date,” Martocci said. “We’re looking at around 2013, but it may be longer.”

Lawsuits Stalled Over TVA Immunity Claims

By Julie Johnson
Lawsuits against the Tennessee Valley Authority over the Kingston coal ash disaster remain stalled following TVA’s claim that citizens cannot sue the agency.

Over 560 plaintiffs are represented in 57 lawsuits against TVA over the December 2008 failure of a coal ash impoundment dam. In April 2009, TVA asked a federal judge to dismiss all the cases, citing a Department of Justice ruling that protects federal agencies from civil suits by citizens. A decision has yet to be made on this request.

“Our primary concern is the health impact of this massive release of toxic materials into our community,” said Levi Giltnane, a Kingston resident who owns both property near the plant and a small real estate business.

“We have a two-year-old daughter, Skylar. For her and for the other children in this area, we want the TVA to give us honest answers about what is in this toxic ash and we want the TVA to fund medical testing for our family and other families who have been exposed to the massive amounts of toxic materials the TVA has dumped in our community.”

In December, nearly one year after the spill, the Environmental Integrity Project (EIP) sent a letter to the White House, asking that President Obama and the Department of Justice to take measures to hold TVA accountable.

“TVA raises issues of federal ‘sovereign immunity’ to avoid penalties in environmental enforcement cases filed by citizens in federal court, yet TVA does not receive federal funds or tax dollars drawn from the U.S. Treasury,” said EIP in their report.

The letter, as well as an in-depth report completed by EIP, states EIP also calls for much more rigorous environmental oversight of the utility, and the elimination of federal protections that allow TVA to keep the grid in a non-competitive lock down.

According to EIP’s letter, “removing these special protections would make TVA more competitive, result in a more energy-efficient grid, and create incentives for TVA to stay ahead of changing environmental and energy regulations.”

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Tennessee’s Valdez

By Megan Naylor

West Virginia lobbyists gather in front of the Capitol during the End Mountaintop Removal Week in Washington. Photo by Dana Kuhline

With the start of the New Year comes a new opportunity for citizens to assemble in the nation’s capital to meet with Congressional leaders about legislation barring mountaintop removal.

The Fifth Annual Week in Washington, hosted by The Alliance for Appalachia, runs from March 6 to 10 in Washington D.C., and brings together citizens from the Appalachian coalfields and across the nation to lobby members of congress about the Clean Water Protection Act and the Appalachia Restoration Act.

Participants engage in an action-packed week full of new friends, training and lobby visits. Training day covers updates on policies affecting mountaintop removal, tips for effective lobbying, and presentations by affected citizens and non-profit organizations involved in the push for legislation against mountaintop removal.

The following three days of the event are dedicated lobby days where participants are given the opportunity to exercise their civic rights and speak with members of Congress and their staff about ending mountaintop removal.

“Attending Week in Washington can change your life in many wonderful ways,” said Stephanie Pistello, National Field Coordinator for Appalachian Voices. “In addition to learning more about the legislative process firsthand, you make special friendships with like-minded people from across the country, including the very people who live in the mountains we are saving.”

This year offers the opportunity to lobby for the passage of the Clean Water Protection Act (H.R. 1310) in the House as well as the Appalachian Restoration Act (S.696) in the Senate. If passed, these bills would play a critical role in stopping the effects of mountaintop removal coal mining.

In 2009, over 150 people from 23 different states attended Week in Washington and engaged in and hundreds of meetings with Congressional offices.

Due to congressional meetings held during Week in Washington 2009, the Clean Water Protection Act now has 164 cosponsors in the U.S. House of Representatives and the Appalachian Restoration Act has 10 cosponsors in the U.S. Senate.

To follow this year’s Week in Washington or to find out how you can become involved in the mountaintop removal campaign, visit iLoveMountains.org.

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Appalachian Advocates Prepare for Fifth Annual Week in Washington

By Bill Kovarik
The fight to preserve West Virginia’s Blair Mountain Battlefield has taken a new turn.

Preservation advocates thought they had won in March 2009 when the site was formally listed on the federal National Register of Historic Places.

However, the site was “de-listed” in December 2009 at the request of state authorities who claimed that re-counted property owners’ opinions supported them.

Preservationists said the recount was flawed and are making plans for a court appeal.

The 1921 Battle

Blair Mountain is the site of a five-day battle between over 10,000 union miners and the coal industry in August 1921. Thousands of shots were exchanged, and an estimated 30 men died.

The battle was “a spontaneous outpouring of rage and grief over conditions in the southern coalfields,” according to Friends of Blair Mountain. The specific spark was the murder of Sheriff Sid Hatfield by coal company detectives on the steps of the McDowell County Courthouse. No one was ever charged in the murder.

The miners marched to Logan, W.Va., to express their outrage and rescue imprisoned miners in Mingo County. They were stopped by thousands of paid coal industry employees who had taken up fortified positions at Blair Mountain.

The battle ended peacefully when federal troops arrived. Union miners surrendered their weapons, and most were allowed to go home. About 200 leaders, including union organizer Bill Blizzard, were tried for murder and treason the next year. But a jury refused to convict, and Blair Mountain became a rallying cry for organized labor in the 1920s and 30s.

The 1989 – 2009 battle

Historians say the Battle of Blair Mountain was the largest insurrection in U.S. history since the Civil War. Hundreds of books and historical papers have been written about the battle.

When a coal company announced plans for a surface mine at Blair Mountain, a grandson of one of the fighting miners who lived near the mountain, Kenny King, began working on preservation efforts.

“I just hated to see it be destroyed,” King said.

The complex process of protecting the historical site began in the 1990s. It became more complex with the state government’s refusal to help King and others, such as, West Virginia University historian Barbara Rasmussen and Appalachian State University archaeologist Harvard Ayers.

For years, the review process bounced back and forth between the West Virginia office of historic preservation and the National Park Service. In 2006, Ayers and King performed archaeological surveys of the battle site. Many others added their support, including the Society for Historical Archeology and the Society of American Archeology.

Cecil Roberts, president of United Mine Workers of America (UMWA), said in 2005: “The UMWA has always believed the Blair Mountain battle site should be preserved…What (the miners) did is a source of pride and inspiration to our families, and helps give us the strength to carry on their fight for justice. We will never forget it, nor should America.”

Finally, on March 30, 2009, the Park Service announced that the battlefield site had won a place on the register. Preservationists believed they had won.

The “de-listing” of Blair Mountain

Historic significance is not the most important criteria for historic preservation under current federal law. Property owners also have to agree to the listing.

Shortly after the formal listing of Blair Mountain on the national register, West Virginia State Historic Preservation Officer Randall Reid-Smith claimed to have discovered eight letters, which had been “unintentionally not counted.” This, Smith claimed, changed the count of landowners to 30 who did not agree with historic preservation and 27 who did.

But in September 2009, Ayers and West Virginia attorney John Kennedy Bailey found serious errors in Reid-Smith’s list. Two property owners who had supposedly objected to historic designation were actually deceased, and ten more property owners had been overlooked. Smith, who is not a trained historian, did not dispute the findings, but refused to reconsider the delisting.

“The West Virginia bureaucracy has ignored any information that contradicts their own cursory and flawed research,” Ayers said.

On Dec. 30, 2009, the National Park Service Interim Keeper of the National Register, Carol Shull, granted the request to delist.
Shull and Smith both refused to comment for this article.

However, a park service web site notes that delisting usually occurs when “property is altered so that it has lost its ability to convey its national significance.” Most examples of delisting include historic houses where there has been a fire or a long period of neglect.

“This action does not stand alone but is part of a deliberate effort to erase Appalachian history,” said Wess Harris, editor of “When Miners March,” a book documenting the union’s side of the battle of Blair Mountain.

“We have been wondering why the State Historic Preservation Officer worked so hard to get the battlefield off the Register list,” said Ayers.

Since it is still eligible for listing, West Virginia state officials said that this status “offers protection from federally funded or licensed adverse actions.”

Not so, according to a February 2010 legal analysis. By law, the state, not the federal government, can decide what should be done with unprotected historical property. This can include issuing mine permits.

The delisting will be appealed in court, and a letter writing campaign to the National Park Service is under way, according to the Friends of Blair Mountain. For more information visit FriendsOfBlairmountain.org.

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The Battle Over Blair Mountain Rages On

Neither Cold nor Snow nor Sleet (nor Ice and Driving Winds!) Can Keep These Hikers Down

The crunch beneath your boots, a calming sense of solitude, a familiar landscape transformed. The world of winter hiking is unlike any other trail season—new vistas open up, new challenges present, even new trails too difficult to traverse in other seasons are suddenly open for exploration.

Roan Mountain in the Cherokee National Forest

Renowned for its exceptional biological diversity and outstanding beauty, Roan Mountain is one of the most magnificent places to explore.

Located on the North Carolina and Tennessee state line, Roan Mountain is a wonderful place to visit and hike any time of the year. Cross country skiing and snow-shoeing are a unique way to explore the trails during the winter as Roan gets more snow than almost any other location in the area. It is one of the highest ranges in the Southern Appalachians, with peaks topping out at over 6,200 feet.

Seventeen miles of the Appalachian Trail cross Roan Mountain, which traverse endangered, high-elevation ecosystems including spruce-fir forests and open grassy balds (the longest stretch in the world). The treeless mountaintops of the balds offer spectacular views and an alpine-like hiking experience.

In addition to the A.T., the Overmountain National Historic Victory Trail, which traces the famous route of mountain patriots during the Revolutionary War, crosses Roan Mountain.

Protected through the partnering efforts of the Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy (SAHC), the Appalachian Trail Conservancy and the U.S. Forest Service, conserving Roan Mountain was the initial effort of SAHC and remains today the organization’s flagship project.

Roan Mountain is located where NC 261 and TN 143 join on the NC/TN state line. Parking is located at Carvers Gap. To view more details about recreation on Roan Mountain visit the Cherokee National Forest website.

Holcomb Creek & Ammons Branch Falls in the Chattahoochee National Forest

This trek to an isolated section of national forest lands in the Cattahoochee National Forest, Rabon County, Ga., serves as introduction to the rich bio-diversity of Southern Appalachia.

A three-mile loop hike to two bold waterfalls, Holcomb Creek and Ammons Branch Falls—rated moderately strenuous for the novice, easy for the experienced hiker—has a total elevation gain of approximately 400 feet.

The trail bisects two crystal-clear trout streams and runs alongside stands of tall pines, hemlocks, rock faces and patches of native plants and ferns, including galax, pipsisewa, yellow root and saxifrage.

Dense stands of rhododendron, mountain laurel and doghobble are replacing the hemlocks falling prey to the current Hemlock Woolly Adelgid infestation and the white pines devastated by the Southern Pine Beetle.

The bonus for doing this hike in the dead of winter—assuming the mercury is at the right frigid temperature—is that both waterfalls and the rock faces will turn to ice, making for a spectacular and unusual display of nature.

Start your hike at the trailhead, located at the intersection of Hale Ridge Road (FS 7) and Overflow Creek Road (FS 86). Approach from Warwoman Road to the South, from North Carolina Route 246 to the North. You will descend on marked Forest Service trail (FS No. 52) to Holcomb Creek Falls will lead to a footbridge across a creek. Follow trail to Y intersection (right leads to Ammons Branch Falls overlook, left leads back a steady uphill to Hale Ridge Road.) Look for bonus cascade on left. Return to vehicles at trailhead (left along Hale Ridge Road.)

A few safety tips before embarking to this remote, but beautiful area: do not count on cell phone coverage, the last gas stations are in Clayton or Dillard, Ga., or Scaly, N.C., and hiking boots are recommended.

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Hiking the Highlands

By Maureen Halsema
Coal has been a keyword in many recent political discussions across the nation as bills addressing mountaintop removal and coal wastes have been submitted to state and national legislatures for review.

Clean Water Protection Act / Appalachia Restoration Act

The Clean Water Protection Act (H.R. 1310) in the U.S. House of Representatives and the Appalachia Restoration Act (S. 696) in the U.S. Senate would amend the Clean Water Act to protect waterways from valley fills associated with mountaintop removal. These two bills have been presented to Congress and continue to gain cosponsors.

As of February 26, 164 congressional cosponsors support the Clean Water Protection Act and 10 senators are cosponsoring the Appalachia Restoration Act.

From March 6 to 10, concerned citizens from the coalfields and across the nation will gather in Washington D.C., to speak to Congress about this legislation.

Kentucky Stream Saver Bill

The Stream Saver Bill (H.R. 104), is a proposal to amend previous legislation which relates to Kentucky’s “Restoration of approximate original contour” regulation. The proposed bill would prohibit permits from allowing the disposal of toxic coal mining wastes into Kentucky waterways. In addition to managing the waste disposal, the bill would also require that surface mined areas be reclaimed to their approximate original contour taking into account both the configuration and the area’s elevation prior to the introduction of mining practices.

According to the Kentuckians for the Commonwealth (KFTC), this bill was the first of its kind when it was originally introduced in 2005.

This year, Sen. Kathy Stein submitted the Stream Saver Bill (S. 139) to the state Senate and Rep. Tom Riner submitted the bill (H.R. 396) to the Kentucky House of Representatives.

“We are also working on drafting legislation that would go beyond this, that would be a ban on mountaintop removal,” said KFTC.

Tennessee Scenic Vistas Protection Act

The Tennessee Scenic Vistas Protection Act (S. 1406/H.R. 899), also known as the Water Quality Control Act, would limit the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) from approving certain types of surface mining permits based on outlined conditions. The bill was introduced to the Tennessee House of Representatives by Reps. Bill Dunn and Michael Ray, while Sens. Bill Ketron and Doug Jackson introduced it to the Tennessee Senate.

According to the text of the bill, permits would not be issued or renewed if the surface mining operation or its waste, fill or in-stream treatment takes place within 100 feet of any Tennessee water system. A permit that would improve the quality of a body of water previously impacted by mining practices would, however, be eligible for issuance or renewal.

Another provision of the bill would prohibit permits that would certify surface mining at and above 2,000 feet elevation from sea level if it would disturb a ridgeline. The exception to this rule would be if the permit required some surface mining in order to conduct underground mining, if approved by TDEC.

The Watauga Lake Triathlon was inspired by the picturesque countryside and pristine waters of Watauga Lake. Watauga literally means “beautiful water” and it certainly holds true to its given name. Watauga holds the distinction of being the highest reservoir (more than 1900 feet above sea level) in the Tennessee river system. Surrounded by the Cherokee National Forest and flanked by the Appalachain Mountains, Watauga Reservoir is arguably the most scenic in the Tennessee River Watershed.

The Seventh Annual event will take place at 8:00am on Saturday, August 6, 2011, at the Sugar Grove Baptist Church and a local family farm perched on the banks of the lake in a scenic, pastoral setting. This will be a low-key festive event with overall and age group awards, and a post-race barbecue. FREE pre-race and post-race sport massages from a local certified sports massage practitioner.

Don’t miss the excitement! For more information, click over to the official website or Facebook page for the Watauga Lake Triathlon.

Photo by Rachael Bliss

Morel Bliss and August Stringer of Mascot, Tenn., have bid vacations good-bye since their honeymoon last October. Days start at 6 a.m. and are wrapped up at about 9 p.m. seven days a week. Important daily tasks, almost all done by hand, include caring for a huge garden, more than 100 chickens (some egg layers and the others for meat), a Jersey milk cow named Crema, two milking goats—Shassafras and Maple—and their kids, a herding dog named Magness and two cats.

Morel and August—both former Tennessean city dwellers—took up farming because of their love of organic fresh food straight from the source. They developed bio-dynamic farming skills through a series of on-site farm care jobs, an internship at Mountain Farm in North Carolina, and through the Twin Oaks Intentional Community in Virginia.

Morel is a full-time farmer, while August also works weekdays as a graphic designer in Knoxville.

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Trading the City for the Farm

June / July 2011

Flip Through the Full Print Version: Issuu viewer • Downloadable PDF

The Hidden Treasures of Appalachia

INTRO•VIRGINIA

WEST VIRGINIA•KENUCKY

TENNESSEE•NORTH CAROLINA

GEORGIA•PA and OHIO

Iconic vistas and gentle mountainscapes, ancient hills and hollows, towering trees and natural springs where the water is so clear that it reflects the seasons as it twists and tumbles across rocks to the valleys below … yes, it is that time of year in Appalachia. This summer, find time to reconnect with the mountains. Explore the Central and Southern Appalachians and absorb their natural beauty and undeniable value. This issue of The Voice offers just a few suggestions for places to enjoy a broad array of interests in one of our nation’s most incredible regions where the people and communities are warm and welcoming. Check out some of our Hidden Treasures, enjoy your summer and embrace all that our mountains have to offer.

The Waterfalls of Appalachia — In this special installment of Hiking the Highlands, we highlight seven (out of the hundreds!) of our favorite waterfalls in central and southern Appalachia. For aficionados and casual waterfall enthusiasts alike.

REGULARS

• This Green House — The Crash Pad, Chattanooga’s newest hostel, promises sweet dreams and green themes.
• The Coal Report — Coal jobs spark controversy, Appalachia rises for Blair Mountain, and more
• Across Appalachia — Pesticides in Shady Valley | Nuclear Dumpsite Threatens Asheville | White-Nosed Syndrome Spreads | and more
• Editorial & Viewpoint — Blair Mountain | Caring for the Earth so that We May Care for Each Other
• Naturalist’s Notebook – Orchids: the Grace, Strength, and Beauty of the Mountains
• Inside Appalachian Voices — “The Last Mountain” movie to tour the U.S., Appalachia Water Watch gains steam, and more!

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The Appalachian Voice, June/July 2011 — The Hidden Treasures of Appalachia

Through underground injections and an alleged faulty slurry pond, Mingo County, West Virginia’s water has been inundated with a “toxic soup” of heavy metals cumulatively amounting to a volume larger than the BP Oil spill.

Rawl Sales and Processing Co., a subsidiary of Massey Energy, began dumping coal slurry—the substance produced from washing coal—into a local slurry pond in the mid 1970s.

The class action suit began in 2004 and represents 732 clients. Because of the complexities of each individual client (effects on property, health, etc.) the case was relabeled as a consolidated class action suit, and lawyers had to build a case around each individual client.

Two years ago, the judge in charge of the case (Judge Thornsbury) was recused from his duties when it was revealed that Rawl Sales and Processing Co. was a former client of his. A mass litigation panel replaced him and was responsible for last week’s out-of-court settlement two weeks before the case was supposed to go to trial.

The settlement amount has not yet been announced publicly, leaving much to be questioned.

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Slurry Lawsuit Comes to an End

Along with celebrating the river, NCNR gathered to present their annual Wallace and Peggy Carroll Vigilance Awards. The awards honor the spirit, dedication, and perseverance that former publisher and editor, Wallace Carroll and his wife Peggy, brought to the battle to save the New River from a massive dam project in the 1970s.  The Wallace and Peggy Carroll Vigilance Awards recognize the efforts of individuals and citizen groups who work to protect and preserve the New River.

This year, the Wallace and Peggy Carroll Vigilance Awards recognized Terry and Suzy Kepple of Riverside Canoe and Tube Rental for their outstanding volunteer efforts for NCNR.  They are steadfast supporters, leaders on the Expedition, and essential in our clean-up efforts.  NCNR also presented a Wallace and Peggy Carroll Vigilance Award to John MacConeell for Lifetime Achievement.  MacConnell has been active with NCNR for more than a decade, serving as a water quality monitor, as Secretary and a member of NCNR’s Board of Directors. John has also made a  planned gift for the future of NCNR.  Most recently he put a conservation easement on his 35-acre property which includes  headwaters of Silas Creek, an important New River tributary.

NCNR envisions a permanently protected New River as a treasured natural resource.  The mission of NCNR is to advocate for successful protection of the New River, to restore eroding river and stream banks and enhance riparian habitat, and to permanently protect land important to the New River.  NCNR works in North Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia’s New River watershed.  The organization has protected nearly 7,000 acres of land important to the River’s water quality, scenic and natural values, and has restored over 70 miles of river and stream bank.

by Rachael Goss

When we think about the 1960s, certain iconic images pop up. From flower children and festivals to fierce protests and racial unrest, the decade was marked by a turbulent change in the social and political fabrics of our nation.

In the late 1960s, many idealistic young Americans turned away from the mainstream and sought refuge in a rustic lifestyle. After an issue of The Mother Earth News waxed poetic about the beauty and value of land in West Virginia, many literally took to the hills.

Back-to-the-landers came to nearly every county in the state. Lincoln, Greenbrier and Pocahontas counties drew particularly large crowds. While hostilities did arise between the old and new West Virginians, many of the state’s newest citizens found that the values associated with their new life on the land–hard work, thrift, community and simple pleasures–were also held by their deeply rooted neighbors.

Many new residents took keenly to traditional crafts and music, establishing a greater bond with the rich Appalachian culture. In fact, the back-to-the-land movement in West Virginia sparked a renaissance for traditional mountain music and art forms.

As elders passed on their knowledge to newcomers, West Virginian arts and crafts traditions were strengthened and revitalized. The movement sparked the creation of Tamarack: The Best of West Virginia, a state attraction that commemorates the state’s cultural heritage and unique history by showcasing traditional arts, crafts and foods.

The simple living crusade forever changed the face of West Virginia. The environmental values espoused by The Green Revolution magazine, published by an intentional community near Hamlin, spoke to a common thread of activism shared by many of the newcomers.

In the 1970s, as the national conscience became more in-tune with a growing environmental movement, West Virginia saw many of its natives and newcomers joining forces to speak up for the land and culture they so valued.

Ultimately, the rural relocation trend served to highlight many of West Virginia’s natural and cultural treasures. In addition to advocating a simpler, more hands-on lifestyle, the new arrivals brought attention to Appalachia’s vast litany of art forms and heritage crafts, creating a niche market for tourists and Americans outside of the region to appreciate.

By celebrating our region’s heritage, vistas and landscapes, we too can see what the back-to-the-landers seized on forty-odd years ago: that Appalachia is a natural and cultural treasure worthy of preservation.

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Forward Thinkers Move Back to the Land

Rays of Solar Progress Peeking Out in Appalachia

By Jeff Deal
While Appalachia has not yet realized the progress made in solar electricity generation in the United States’ West Coast or Northeast regions, solar energy development within our region is slowly moving forward.

The town of Newland, N.C., will host a 900kW solar electric facility that will generate enough electricity to power up to 240 homes.

Not only are electric utilities and large energy developers generating solar electricity in Appalachia—neighborhoods and communities are now joining this burgeoning green energy movement. The First Congregational Church in Asheville, N.C., just installed a 10 kW solar electric system that was financed and developed by community and church members.

This same type of grassroots solar energy development was also utilized in Williamson, W.Va., which recently developed an 11 kW solar electric system on a downtown office building. More good news on the manufacturing front of the Appalachian solar movement: an international manufacturer of solar electric panels, Jetion Solar Corp., will locate its headquarters, and 36 jobs, in Charlotte, N.C.

Activists Protest Nuclear Weapons Facility Expansion

By Paige Campbell
A study by the Army Corp of Engineers released in July estimated a $6.5-$7.5 billion price tag on the proposed expansion of a nuclear weapons complex in Oak Ridge, Tenn. Meanwhile, peace activists and Oak Ridge community members continue their nearly six-year-long protest against the project.

The expansion, which would add a uranium processing facility to the National Nuclear Security Administration’s Y-12 weapons complex, has seen a tenfold increase in estimated costs since the project was first announced in 2005.

Over the years, the Oak Ridge Environmental Peace Alliance (OREPA) has protested the ballooning costs and raised alarms about the environmental impact of the structure. Most critically, according to OREPA coordinator Ralph Hutchison, the group objects to a nuclear-based defense policy that it says actually makes the world less secure. Y-12 officials, on the other hand, call the facility a “key to global security.”

The Department of Energy was expected to announce its official approval of the project, called a record of decision, within a month of its release of an environmental impact study in March. For unclear reasons, that announcement was delayed. At press time, the department planned to release the record of decision by the end of July. Once released, the record will be available at nepa.energy.gov/records_of_decisions.htm.
Speaking to the Appalachian Peace Education Center in May, Hutchison said that the expansion would allow the Oak Ridge facility to produce 80 warheads every year. Hutchison detailed OREPA’s efforts to draw attention to the project and fight nuclear proliferation.

Regardless of the record of decision’s contents, Hutchison said, OREPA’s opposition efforts will continue, beginning with an August 6 ceremony commemorating the day a Y-12-manufactured atomic bomb fell on Hiroshima, Japan, in 1945.

Bill Proposed to Protect Tennessee’s Wild Side

By Jillian Randel
In May, Senator Lamar Alexander and Bob Corker of Tennessee introduced a bill to increase protected lands in the Cherokee National Forest. The Tennessee Wilderness Act of 2011 would protect nearly 20,000 acres along Tennessee’s eastern border in the Appalachian Mountains.

A recent public opinion survey by Tennessee Wild—a non-profit organization dedicated to protecting wilderness in the Cherokee National Forest—showed that “90 percent of East Tennesseans, whether Republican, Democrat or independent, rated the preservation of the proposed new wilderness additions in the Cherokee as ‘extremely important.’”

Tennessee Wild, along with a coalition of other land protection organizations, are working hard to protect the Cherokee National Forest from detrimental logging and mining practices and ensure that the lands will be protected for hiking, fishing, camping and other outdoor recreational activities.
For more information, visit tnwild.org.

EPA Selects PA Sites for Study on Hydraulic Fracturing

Meg Holden
The EPA selected seven sites around the country for a national study on hydraulic fracturing (hydrofracking) that will assess the impacts of hydraulic fracturing on drinking water resources. Two sites in Pennsylvania where hydrofracking has already occurred will be examined for impacts on drinking water. The EPA will monitor two other sites in Pennsylvania throughout the hydrofracking process. The other sites are in Texas, Colorado and North Dakota. According to a press release issued by the EPA, the study will include literature review, laboratory work, computer modeling and collection of data and information from states, industry and communities.

South Carolina Co-ops Develop Efficiency Retrofit Program

Meg Holden
South Carolina electric cooperatives are forming a partnership with the Environmental and Energy Study Institute to develop a program that will help residents save money and energy, according to an article by the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association. The program will provide micro-loans to consumers for home energy efficiency improvements. Consumers would then use a portion of the money they save on electricity to pay off the loans. The program is a response to the state’s growing energy needs, stimulated by population growth, inefficient home systems and high energy usage in winter and summer.

Swamp Angel Energy, LLC Charged with Illegal Dumping

Meg Holden
The EPA states that Kansas-based Swamp Angel Energy has illegally pumped oil brine into wells in the Allegheny National Forest in Pennsylvania. Unauthorized pumping is an infraction of the federal Safe Drinking Water Act as well as EPA regulations on underground injections of fluids. According to a press release from the EPA, unauthorized pumping could pose a threat to underground drinking water sources. The proposed penalty to Swamp Angel Energy is a $157,000 fine.

ASU’s Solar Homestead Nears Completion

Photo courtesy of The Solar Homestead

The open-cell spray foam insulation is in, the plumbing and electrical are installed, and the finishing touches are just weeks away on Appalachian State University’s cutting-edge Solar Homestead. Started in 2009, the student-run project conceptualized, designed and constructed a model solar home for the Department of Energy’s 2011 Solar Decathlon—the world’s largest green building competition. The 1,000-square-foot, 2-bedroom interior (right) will include an additional 900-square-foot outdoor living porch featuring bifacial photovoltaic panels and a living roof (above). ASU is one of only twenty universities from around the globe selected to participate in the Solar Decathlon. The Solar Homestead will be on display on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. from September 23 to October 1 as part of the competition. Prior to that, ASU will host two viewing days for the public: August 17 and 27. For more information, vist thesolarhomestead.com.

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Across Appalachia

By Joe Tennis

A gentle, one percent grade makes the Greenbrier Trail perfect for multiple sports, such as biking, trail running, and skiing in the winter. Photo by Joe Tennis.

Near a quiet place called Renick, W.Va., though the railroad is long since gone, a crossing sign remains. And so does the former path of the Greenbrier Division of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway, now the Greenbrier River Trail.

Stops called Horrock, Beard, Thorny Creek and Stony Bottom line this railroad path, converted into a multi-use trail spanning 78 miles and a century of history in the Greenbrier Valley of West Virginia.

Every mile or two, another wild scene of the Greenbrier River unfolds—inviting, especially on a warm summer day. Here and there are tiny waterfalls; nothing big in the first six miles of the trail in Greenbrier County, near Hopper, but still just as delightful as the river and the picnic tables, ferns, rhododendron and rocky cliffs scattered along the trail.

The Greenbrier River Trail parallels the Greenbrier River for most of its journey, providing not only great scenery but also a quick place to cool off.

About halfway between White Sulphur Springs and the lovely town of Lewisburg, the trail heads northward, breezing past the rocky banks of the Greenbrier. Here, the trains once rumbled past North Caldwell, the trail’s southern terminus, near Stonehouse Road.

The train opened up development in West Virginia in communities like Renick, which bustled with activity in the early 1900s. Now, in Renick, mowed fields border what used to be the railroad.

About six miles north, on either side of the 402-foot-long Droop Mountain Tunnel near Horrock, a young-growth forest provides a lush, green jungle around the path, visited by thousands each year on foot, bicycle, horseback and cross-country skis.

Inside, the Droop Mountain Tunnel appears almost spooky. It’s dark, damp and pitch-black at its center.
The well-maintained trail’s smooth, crushed-limestone surface boasts a one-percent grade; it drops only about 220 feet in elevation from north to south. The trail looks like a quiet county lane with grass growing in the middle; every five or six miles, you’ll find another parking area.

The entrance to the 402-foot-long Droop Mountain Tunnel. Photo by Joe Tennis.

“(The Greenbrier River Trail) is well-maintained and not really crowded,” said David Hungerford, a retired wedding photographer from Port Tobacco, Md. “We could bring our horses down here and ride it, and snowshoe in the wintertime. It’s a good trail.”

On a rainy Friday morning, Hungerford and his wife, Susie, explored the trail on bicycles, tracing about 30 miles in a day.

“It’s more than the trail,” David Hungerford said. “It’s also just the surrounding countryside, the towns, the people. It’s a nice area. It’s some place you feel comfortable.”

Much of the trail itself remains refreshingly remote despite its popularity, as it lies adjacent to the Monongahela National Forest and Seneca State Forest, with both places giving trail-users even more room to roam.

Now overseen in conjunction with Watoga State Park, the Greenbrier River Trail owes a debt to Mark Ligon Hankins, whose continuing efforts persuaded the CSX Corporation to give land for the trail’s development. Hankins then worked with state and federal agencies to turn the rail into a trail. A sign along the trail describes Hankins as “a caring man.”

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Hiking, Biking, Running, and Skiing on West Virginia’s Greenbrier Trail

By Meg Holden
Interested in going “back to the land”? What about “back to the lawn”? Build a self-sufficient salad out of greens available in your own back yard. Here are three plants that grow as weeds in our region, but are edible both raw and cooked.

Lamb’s Quarters
Chenopodium belandieri

Chenopodium belandieri

Lamb’s quarters, also known as goosefoot or pigweed, is a common weed found on the fringes of gardens, fields and riverbanks. The plant can grow to about three feet tall and is identifiable by its triangular, serrated leaves, spiked inflorescence and honeycomb-pitted seeds.

A relative of quinoa, Chinopodium was domesticated by the Aztec in pre-Columbian Mexico, but cultivation of the crop was forbidden by Spanish conquistadors. Now, 400 years later, there is nothing stopping you from enjoying this delicious green.

The taste of lamb’s quarters has been compared to spinach or kale. Steam the leaves with a small amount of water for a quick vegetable accompaniment to any meal, use the raw leaves in a salad, or substitute lamb’s quarters for collards, spinach, kale, or chard in your favorite recipes.

Common Plantain
Plantago major

Plantago Major

Common plantain is one of the most common yard weeds besides dandelions and clover—you probably have it growing in your yard right now. Brought to America by European settlers, the plant spread so rapidly that the Native Americans called it “white man’s footprint.” Plantain is now found across the United States, its oval leaves and flower stalks decorating lawns from mid-spring to late fall.

Much like lamb’s quarters, the young leaves of plantain can be eaten raw in a salad or cooked like greens. As the leaves grow, they become tough, stringy and strongly flavored. Older leaves are better brewed into tea or stock. Flower stalks can be eaten raw or cooked.

Plantain’s medicinal qualities are recorded as far back as Pliny, who claimed the plant could cure a dog of madness. Whether or not that is correct, the leaves can be used as a dressing on cuts, stings and scrapes; the plant’s antibacterial properties are said to reduce scarring. A tea made of plantain leaves is often used as a cold and flu remedy.

Chickweed
Stellaria media

Stellaria media

Chickweed seems to be everywhere once you start looking. This trailing plant grows in lawns, gardens and flower beds. Look for branching stems that grow low to the ground, rooting at every leaf junction; smooth, oval, opposite leaves; and tiny white flowers with five petals so deeply split that they look like ten.

Eurasian in origin, chickweed usually germinates in the fall, lays dormant in the winter and flowers in the spring. In cool climates, chickweed can survive through most of the summer, but hot, dry weather brings an end to its growing season. The best times to harvest chickweed for consumption are in the spring and fall.

Chickens love to eat chickweed leaves and seeds, hence its name. The plant can be fed to pet birds or livestock—if you do not want to eat it all yourself. High levels of vitamin C make chickweed a great pick-me-up ingredient in salads. The leaves can also be cooked like greens, or you can make a pesto with chickweed leaves, garlic, olive oil and nuts.

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Three Weeds to Feed Your Needs

Goats have been used to graze as small a plot as 12 by 60 foot backyards and as large as 20,000 acres. Photo courtesy of Brian Knox.

If you are looking for a new twist on farm life, here is one: using goats to clear brush, mow lawns and remove invasive species.

Brian Knox, founder of Eco-Goats, one of the East Coast’s leading goat clearing companies, became interested in goats when he bumped into a friend who had gotten to know his 50 goats so well that he no longer wanted to use them for meat.

“Goats have a lot of personality,” said Knox. “You either love them or they drive you crazy. But we started looking at the various uses of goats out west and decided to try out the goats clearing a few stewardship properties around here.”

Goats are the perfect lawn mowers for overgrown spaces, roadsides, open fields and woodland areas that need to be cleared. And here’s the real kicker—they have stomachs that can digest poison ivy, and they love eating it. Goats also love invasive species such as kudzu, multi-flora rose, Japanese honeysuckle and Oriental bittersweet.

“When the press got a hold of what we were doing, things got crazy,” said Knox.

Brian Knox

Crazy good, he means. The business has become wildly successful and taken over his summers. Knox is one of three commercial grazers that he knows of on the East Coast using goats to clear areas. His herd is stationed in Maryland, but in the summer he travels as far as Virginia, West Virginia, Pennsylvania and New York. Although Knox loves his seasonal job, traveling with goats from location to location is tough.

“You may spend five hours cutting a path and putting a fence up on a third of an acre,” said Knox. “It’s hot, dirty work through poison ivy, brush and thorns. If you don’t enjoy the work, its not worth the effort.”

Using these sweet, but hard-working animals is becoming a popular way to clear areas. They are agile and light on their feet, which means they are gentle on the land. Knox’s customer base really likes that aspect of goat mowing.

Another benefit is that by using goats to manage weeds and other unwanted vegetation, landowners can avoid toxic chemicals from large machinery. Companies like Google and Yahoo and city and state governments are hiring goat owners to clear and maintain their properties as a way to avoid air and sound pollution from heavy machinery.

With interest in goat landscaping services increasing, more goat owners are looking into profiting from this unique business model.

“It definitely is a way to make money,” said Knox. “If you already have goats and are looking for a way to cut feed costs, you can hire goats out to others and fatten them up by moving goats around on other people’s property to eat up invasive species.”

Full of personality, sweet, cost-effective and hard-working—goats sounds like a good deal for anyone looking to clear some brush, or better yet—diversify their own farming processes. Got your goat?

For more info on eco-goats, visit: eco-goats.com.

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Skip the Lawn Mower This Season, Eco-Goats is On The Way

The following message was sent to 13,000 Virginians this morning from the Wise Energy for Virginia Coalition of which Appalachian Voices is a part. To sign up for alerts form Wise Energy for Virginia click here

The state of Virginia has signed off on destroying Wise County’s Ison Rock Ridge through mountaintop removal coal mining. They have OK’d the leveling of 1200 acres above several communities – home to about 1,800 local residents. Many families’ back yards abut the slopes of Ison Rock Ridge. These families could be forced to live through explosions, dust, for years as they watch their mountain leveled, streams buried and lost forever.

Right now, further review of the permit by the Environmental Protection Agency is the only thing stopping the coal companies from planting explosives uphill of these families. The locals at the Southern Appalachian Mountains Stewards have been fighting hard, and many of you have sent several letters to the EPA, but now it’s time to step up the pressure.

This Wednesday, August 3rd, we need you to call the EPA and ask them to deny this permit and to keep Ison Rock Ridge standing. The EPA needs to hear from as many of us as possible so please recruit friends and family to also make calls.

Early on Wednesday morning you will receive another email with the number to call and some points to bring up. Once you make the call please ask your mom, your spouse, your uncle, your coworkers and your friends to also make the call. It is a simple call to make, no expertise is necessary, and it could help protect the heritage and quality of life for those living near, and downstream of, Ison Rock Ridge.

Thank you for all that you do.

Until Wednesday,

Mike McCoy
Wise Energy for Virginia

To sign up for alerts form Wise Energy for Virginia click here

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Virginia: Call in Day to Keep Ison Rock Ridge Standing This Wednesday

In what some folks would call the “no-duh” factor, the TVA has found contaminated groundwater near some of their coal fired power plant coal ash sites.

Following the 2008 coal ash disaster at TVA’s Kingston Fossil Plant in Harriman, Tenn., the topic of toxicity in coal ash has raged hotter than a coal-stoked furnace.

According to an article by EnergyCentral.com, the TVA Inspector General has found that contaminants in groundwater near the Gallatin plant in Sumner County (50 miles northwest of Nashville) are at “health-hazard levels.”

Pollutants above drinking water standards near the plant include beryllium, cadmium, nickel, arsenic, selenium and vanadium.

Contamination was also found at a coal-fired power plant in Memphis–a plant conveniently nestled directly above the aquifer that supplies drinking water to the city of Memphis and nearby areas.

Prior to the Kingston disaster–which dumped 1.1 billion gallons of coal fly ash into the Clinch and Emory rivers–coal ash was regarded as harmless to humans, namely because the coal companies claimed it was.

Thanks to independent testing and verification by labs, universities, environmental groups and the U.S. government at the Harriman site, we now know that coal fly ash contains toxic minerals such as arsenic, selenium and other delicious minerals that you wouldn’t want to drink with your morning orange juice.

The EPA’s attempts to treat coal ash as a toxic substance have been repeatedly attacked by the current Congress. A bill to strip the agency’s ability to oversee coal ash passed in the Energy and Commerce Committee, and currently awaits a floor vote.

The only Tennessee representative on the committee, Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-Brentwood) voted for the bill.

The real question is, would Blackburn be willing to use that water–now that we know what is in it–to brew her morning coffee?

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A Cup of Arsenic in the Morning Does a Body…Good?

Please join Appalachian Voices, Free Speech for People and Rainforest Action Network in asking that Massey Energy’s corporate charter be revoked

True community exists when neighbors respect each other. Good neighbors are mindful of the impacts that their actions have on the whole. When a powerful neighbor, like a corporation, does not respect their neighbors, communities can become literally endangered.

The corporation is Massey Energy, and this time around, the community is Prenter, West Virginia.

Over 700 people from Prenter are suing Massey Energy in a class-action lawsuit claiming that Massey Energy is responsible for poisoning hundreds of southern wells with coal slurry. Jennifer Massey-Hall, who is featured in the movie The Last Mountain, walks us through her neighborhood, where six people have gotten brain tumors, with most of them now deaceased. The national average for brain tumors is 6.5 per 100,000 men and women per year. The trial is set to begin August 1.

Here is the first of a 3-part video series by WCHS- TV, the local station about the illnesses. You can watch the other two here:
The culprit behind the brain tumors, as well as other illnesses, is believed to be heavy metals from nearby coal slurry impoundments and injections of the slurry into old underground mines that has leaked into the community’s well water. Coal slurry is a dangerous byproduct of the coal life cycle, when coal is “washed” and processed before it is shipped off by train or barge to power plants across the country.

There are over 600 coal slurry ponds dotting the Appalachian landscape.

This is only the tip of the iceberg of the overwhelming damage Massey Energy has caused to communities across southern West Virginia and beyond. They have been the biggest perpetrator of mountaintop removal coal mining, which has destroyed over 500 mountains and buried and polluted over 2000 miles of headwater streams. They violated the Clean Water Act over 4500 times in a six year time period and only paid $20 million dollars, which is less than 1% of the maximum fine. They are responsible for the deadliest coal mining accident in over 40 years. What right do they have to continue to do business?

Why does Massey Energy ex-CEO, Don Blankenship, walks free today, while Tim DeChristophergo to jail? Tim DeChristopher illegally bid on oil and gas leases in Utah in 2008 in order to stop climate change and demonstrate how the federal government was giving away public lands to corporations for next to nothing, (Read more here about this case). In his eloquent pre-sentencing statement, DeChristopher says of Massey,

A West Virginia state investigation found that Massey Energy had been cited with 62,923 violations of the law in the ten years preceding the disaster that killed 29 people last year. The investigation also revealed that Massey paid for almost none of those violations because the company provided millions of dollars worth of campaign contributions that elected most of the appeals court judges in the state… Those crimes committed by Massey Energy led not only to the deaths of their own workers, but to the deaths of countless local residents, such as Joshua McCormick, who died of kidney cancer at age 22 because he was unlucky enough to live downstream from a coal mine.

Another Massey Coal Sludge Impoundment

That’s why we have called on Beau Biden, Attorney General for Delaware (where Massey Energy is incorporated) to investigate Massey Energy’s business practices and consequently revoke their corporate charter. We started this campaign with Free Speech for People, a great organization dedicated to overturning the Citizen’s United Supreme Court decision that declared corporations have rights to “personhood”. Rainforest Action Network has also recently joined the campaign.

So far, over 13,000 citizens like yourself have joined us by signing the petition to Attorney Beau Biden that we intend to to deliver in September. Our goal is 15,000 signatures.

Massey Energy is such as bad actor that their license to do business must be revoked. Although Massey Energy has merged into Alpha as a wholly-owned subsidiary, their corporate charter still remains, and it must be revoked.

Please sign our petition today.

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Massey Energy Gets to Continue Business-As-Usual While Tim DeChristopher Gets Two Years in Prison

Thoughts on Justice in the Coal Bearing Areas of Appalachia

Tim DeCristopher, an native West Virginian, has been sentenced to 2 years in jail plus a $10,000 fine for putting a false bid on an oil lease at a public auction, essentially nullifying the results of the auction. The punishment Tim received is roughly equal to that of a Kentucky company which sent a boulder the size of a mini-van into a nearby house in 2009. The only difference is that when the company allowed that boulder to crash into that house, nobody went to jail. That $10,000 fine obviously didn’t do much to how business is done, as another boulder flew into the home of a Kentucky family with children (2 and 6 years old) again this week.

DeChristopher’s entire statement is below, but in this section he specifically addresses mountaintop removal in a manner that we hear time and time and time again from citizens having to live with the impacts of this horrible practice. I hope his words serve as food for thought for all of us.

…I have openly and explicitly called for nonviolent civil disobedience against mountaintop removal coal mining in my home state of West Virginia. Mountaintop removal is itself an illegal activity, which has always been in violation of the Clean Water Act, and it is an illegal activity that kills people. A West Virginia state investigation found that Massey Energy had been cited with 62,923 violations of the law in the ten years preceding the disaster that killed 29 people last year. The investigation also revealed that Massey paid for almost none of those violations because the company provided millions of dollars worth of campaign contributions that elected most of the appeals court judges in the state. When I was growing up in West Virginia, my mother was one of many who pursued every legal avenue for making the coal industry follow the law. She commented at hearings, wrote petitions and filed lawsuits, and many have continued to do ever since, to no avail. I actually have great respect for the rule of law, because I see what happens when it doesn’t exist, as is the case with the fossil fuel industry. Those crimes committed by Massey Energy led not only to the deaths of their own workers, but to the deaths of countless local residents, such as Joshua McCormick, who died of kidney cancer at age 22 because he was unlucky enough to live downstream from a coal mine. When a corrupted government is no longer willing to uphold the rule of law, I advocate that citizens step up to that responsibility.

This is really the heart of what this case is about. The rule of law is dependent upon a government that is willing to abide by the law. Disrespect for the rule of law begins when the government believes itself and its corporate sponsors to be above the law…

The rest of his statement is below the fold:

____

Thank you for the opportunity to speak before the court. When I first met Mr. Manross, the sentencing officer who prepared the presentence report, he explained that it was essentially his job to “get to know me.” He said he had to get to know who I really was and why I did what I did in order to decide what kind of sentence was appropriate. I was struck by the fact that he was the first person in this courthouse to call me by my first name, or even really look me in the eye. I appreciate this opportunity to speak openly to you for the first time. I’m not here asking for your mercy, but I am here asking that you know me.

Mr. Huber has leveled a lot of character attacks at me, many of which are contrary to Mr. Manross’s report. While reading Mr Huber’s critiques of my character and my integrity, as well as his assumptions about my motivations, I was reminded that Mr Huber and I have never had a conversation. Over the two and half years of this prosecution, he has never asked my any of the questions that he makes assumptions about in the government’s report. Apparently, Mr. Huber has never considered it his job to get to know me, and yet he is quite willing to disregard the opinions of the one person who does see that as his job.

There are alternating characterizations that Mr Huber would like you to believe about me. In one paragraph, the government claims I “played out the parts of accuser, jury, and judge as he determined the fate of the oil and gas lease auction and its intended participants that day.” In the very next paragraph, they claim “ It was not the defendant’s crimes that effected such a change.” Mr Huber would lead you to believe that I’m either a dangerous criminal who holds the oil and gas industry in the palm of my hand, or I’m just an incompetent child who didn’t affect the outcome of anything. As evidenced by the continued back and forth of contradictory arguments in the government’s memorandum, they’re not quite sure which of those extreme caricatures I am, but they are certain that I am nothing in between. Rather than the job of getting to know me, it seems Mr Huber prefers the job of fitting me into whatever extreme characterization is most politically expedient at the moment.

In nearly every paragraph, the government’s memorandum uses the words lie, lied, lying, liar. It makes me want to thank whatever clerk edited out the words “pants on fire.” Their report doesn’t mention the fact that at the auction in question, the first person who asked me what I was doing there was Agent Dan Love. And I told him very clearly that I was there to stand in the way of an illegitimate auction that threatened my future. I proceeded to answer all of his questions openly and honestly, and have done so to this day when speaking about that auction in any forum, including this courtroom. The entire basis for the false statements charge that I was convicted of was the fact that I wrote my real name and address on a form that included the words “bona fide bidder.” When I sat there on the witness stand, Mr Romney asked me if I ever had any intention of being a bona fide bidder. I responded by asking Mr Romney to clarify what “bona fide bidder” meant in this context. Mr Romney then withdrew the question and moved on to the next subject. On that right there is the entire basis for the government’s repeated attacks on my integrity. Ambition should be made of sterner stuff, your honor.

Mr Huber also makes grand assumptions about my level of respect for the rule of law. The government claims a long prison sentence is necessary to counteract the political statements I’ve made and promote a respect for the law. The only evidence provided for my lack of respect for the law is political statements that I’ve made in public forums. Again, the government doesn’t mention my actions in regard to the drastic restrictions that were put upon my defense in this courtroom. My political disagreements with the court about the proper role of a jury in the legal system are probably well known. I’ve given several public speeches and interviews about how the jury system was established and how it has evolved to it’s current state. Outside of this courtroom, I’ve made my views clear that I agree with the founding fathers that juries should be the conscience of the community and a defense against legislative tyranny. I even went so far as to organize a book study group that read about the history of jury nullification. Some of the participants in that book group later began passing out leaflets to the public about jury rights, as is their right. Mr Huber was apparently so outraged by this that he made the slanderous accusations that I tried to taint the jury. He didn’t specify the extra number of months that I should spend in prison for the heinous activity of holding a book group at the Unitarian Church and quoting Thomas Jefferson in public, but he says you should have “little tolerance for this behavior.”

But here is the important point that Mr Huber would rather ignore. Despite my strong disagreements with the court about the Constitutional basis for the limits on my defense, while I was in this courtroom I respected the authority of the court. Whether I agreed with them or not, I abided by the restrictions that you put on me and my legal team. I never attempted to “taint” the jury, as Mr Huber claimed, by sharing any of the relevant facts about the auction in question that the court had decided were off limits. I didn’t burst out and tell the jury that I successfully raised the down payment and offered it to the BLM. I didn’t let the jury know that the auction was later reversed because it was illegitimate in the first place. To this day I still think I should have had the right to do so, but disagreement with the law should not be confused with disrespect for the law.

My public statements about jury nullification were not the only political statements that Mr Huber thinks I should be punished for. As the government’s memorandum points out, I have also made public statements about the value of civil disobedience in bringing the rule of law closer to our shared sense of justice. In fact, I have openly and explicitly called for nonviolent civil disobedience against mountaintop removal coal mining in my home state of West Virginia. Mountaintop removal is itself an illegal activity, which has always been in violation of the Clean Water Act, and it is an illegal activity that kills people. A West Virginia state investigation found that Massey Energy had been cited with 62,923 violations of the law in the ten years preceding the disaster that killed 29 people last year. The investigation also revealed that Massey paid for almost none of those violations because the company provided millions of dollars worth of campaign contributions that elected most of the appeals court judges in the state. When I was growing up in West Virginia, my mother was one of many who pursued every legal avenue for making the coal industry follow the law. She commented at hearings, wrote petitions and filed lawsuits, and many have continued to do ever since, to no avail. I actually have great respect for the rule of law, because I see what happens when it doesn’t exist, as is the case with the fossil fuel industry. Those crimes committed by Massey Energy led not only to the deaths of their own workers, but to the deaths of countless local residents, such as Joshua McCormick, who died of kidney cancer at age 22 because he was unlucky enough to live downstream from a coal mine. When a corrupted government is no longer willing to uphold the rule of law, I advocate that citizens step up to that responsibility.

This is really the heart of what this case is about. The rule of law is dependent upon a government that is willing to abide by the law. Disrespect for the rule of law begins when the government believes itself and its corporate sponsors to be above the law.

Mr Huber claims that the seriousness of my offense was that I “obstructed lawful government proceedings.” But the auction in question was not a lawful proceeding. I know you’ve heard another case about some of the irregularities for which the auction was overturned. But that case did not involve the BLM’s blatant violation of Secretarial Order 3226, which was a law that went into effect in 2001 and required the BLM to weigh the impacts on climate change for all its major decisions, particularly resource development. A federal judge in Montana ruled last year that the BLM was in constant violation of this law throughout the Bush administration. In all the proceedings and debates about this auction, no apologist for the government or the BLM has ever even tried to claim that the BLM followed this law. In both the December 2008 auction and the creation of the Resource Management Plan on which this auction was based, the BLM did not even attempt to follow this law.

And this law is not a trivial regulation about crossing t’s or dotting i’s to make some government accountant’s job easier. This law was put into effect to mitigate the impacts of catastrophic climate change and defend a livable future on this planet. This law was about protecting the survival of young generations. That’s kind of a big deal. It’s a very big deal to me. If the government is going to refuse to step up to that responsibility to defend a livable future, I believe that creates a moral imperative for me and other citizens. My future, and the future of everyone I care about, is being traded for short term profits. I take that very personally. Until our leaders take seriously their responsibility to pass on a healthy and just world to the next generation, I will continue this fight.

The government has made the claim that there were legal alternatives to standing in the way of this auction. Particularly, I could have filed a written protest against certain parcels. The government does not mention, however, that two months prior to this auction, in October 2008, a Congressional report was released that looked into those protests. The report, by the House committee on public lands, stated that it had become common practice for the BLM to take volunteers from the oil and gas industry to process those permits. The oil industry was paying people specifically to volunteer for the industry that was supposed to be regulating it, and it was to those industry staff that I would have been appealing. Moreover, this auction was just three months after the New York Times reported on a major scandal involving Department of the Interior regulators who were taking bribes of sex and drugs from the oil companies that they were supposed to be regulating. In 2008, this was the condition of the rule of law, for which Mr Huber says I lacked respect. Just as the legal avenues which people in West Virginia have been pursuing for 30 years, the legal avenues in this case were constructed precisely to protect the corporations who control the government.

The reality is not that I lack respect for the law; it’s that I have greater respect for justice. Where there is a conflict between the law and the higher moral code that we all share, my loyalty is to that higher moral code. I know Mr Huber disagrees with me on this. He wrote that “The rule of law is the bedrock of our civilized society, not acts of ‘civil disobedience’ committed in the name of the cause of the day.” That’s an especially ironic statement when he is representing the United States of America, a place where the rule of law was created through acts of civil disobedience. Since those bedrock acts of civil disobedience by our founding fathers, the rule of law in this country has continued to grow closer to our shared higher moral code through the civil disobedience that drew attention to legalized injustice. The authority of the government exists to the degree that the rule of law reflects the higher moral code of the citizens, and throughout American history, it has been civil disobedience that has bound them together.

This philosophical difference is serious enough that Mr Huber thinks I should be imprisoned to discourage the spread of this idea. Much of the government’s memorandum focuses on the political statements that I’ve made in public. But it hasn’t always been this way. When Mr Huber was arguing that my defense should be limited, he addressed my views this way: “The public square is the proper stage for the defendant’s message, not criminal proceedings in federal court.” But now that the jury is gone, Mr. Huber wants to take my message from the public square and make it a central part of these federal court proceedings. I have no problem with that. I’m just as willing to have those views on display as I’ve ever been.

The government’s memorandum states, “As opposed to preventing this particular defendant from committing further crimes, the sentence should be crafted ‘to afford adequate deterrence to criminal conduct’ by others.” Their concern is not the danger that I present, but the danger presented by my ideas and words that might lead others to action. Perhaps Mr Huber is right to be concerned. He represents the United States Government. His job is to protect those currently in power, and by extension, their corporate sponsors. After months of no action after the auction, the way I found out about my indictment was the day before it happened, Pat Shea got a call from an Associated Press reporter who said, “I just wanted to let you know that tomorrow Tim is going to be indicted, and this is what the charges are going to be.” That reporter had gotten that information two weeks earlier from an oil industry lobbyist. Our request for disclosure of what role that lobbyist played in the US Attorney’s office was denied, but we know that she apparently holds sway and that the government feels the need to protect the industry’s interests.

The things that I’ve been publicly saying may indeed be threatening to that power structure. There have been several references to the speech I gave after the conviction, but I’ve only ever seen half of one sentence of that speech quoted. In the government’s report, they actually had to add their own words to that one sentence to make it sound more threatening. But the speech was about empowerment. It was about recognizing our interconnectedness rather than viewing ourselves as isolated individuals. The message of the speech was that when people stand together, they no longer have to be exploited by powerful corporations. Alienation is perhaps the most effective tool of control in America, and every reminder of our real connectedness weakens that tool.

But the sentencing guidelines don’t mention the need to protect corporations or politicians from ideas that threaten their control. The guidelines say “protect the public.” The question is whether the public is helped or harmed by my actions. The easiest way to answer that question is with the direct impacts of my action. As the oil executive stated in his testimony, the parcels I didn’t bid on averaged $12 per acre, but the ones I did bid on averaged $125. Those are the prices paid for public property to the public trust. The industry admits very openly that they were getting those parcels for an order of magnitude less than what they were worth. Not only did those oil companies drive up the prices to $125 during the bidding, they were then given an opportunity to withdraw their bids once my actions were explained. They kept the parcels, presumably because they knew they were still a good deal at $125. The oil companies knew they were getting a steal from the American people, and now they’re crying because they had to pay a little closer to what those parcels were actually worth. The government claims I should be held accountable for the steal the oil companies didn’t get. The government’s report demands $600,000 worth of financial impacts for the amount which the oil industry wasn’t able to steal from the public.

That extra revenue for the public became almost irrelevant, though, once most of those parcels were revoked by Secretary Salazar. Most of the parcels I won were later deemed inappropriate for drilling. In other words, the highest and best value to the public for those particular lands was not for oil and gas drilling. Had the auction gone off without a hitch, it would have been a loss for the public. The fact that the auction was delayed, extra attention was brought to the process, and the parcels were ultimately revoked was a good thing for the public.

More generally, the question of whether civil disobedience is good for the public is a matter of perspective. Civil disobedience is inherently an attempt at change. Those in power, whom Mr Huber represents, are those for whom the status quo is working, so they always see civil disobedience as a bad thing. The decision you are making today, your honor, is what segment of the public you are meant to protect. Mr Huber clearly has cast his lot with that segment who wishes to preserve the status quo. But the majority of the public is exploited by the status quo far more than they are benefited by it. The young are the most obvious group who is exploited and condemned to an ugly future by letting the fossil fuel industry call the shots. There is an overwhelming amount of scientific research, some of which you received as part of our proffer on the necessity defense, that reveals the catastrophic consequences which the young will have to deal with over the coming decades.

But just as real is the exploitation of the communities where fossil fuels are extracted. As a native of West Virginia, I have seen from a young age that the exploitation of fossil fuels has always gone hand in hand with the exploitation of local people. In West Virginia, we’ve been extracting coal longer than anyone else. And after 150 years of making other people rich, West Virginia is almost dead last among the states in per capita income, education rates and life expectancy. And it’s not an anomaly. The areas with the richest fossil fuel resources, whether coal in West Virginia and Kentucky, or oil in Louisiana and Mississippi, are the areas with the lowest standards of living. In part, this is a necessity of the industry. The only way to convince someone to blow up their backyard or poison their water is to make sure they are so desperate that they have no other option. But it is also the nature of the economic model. Since fossil fuels are a limited resources, whoever controls access to that resource in the beginning gets to set all the terms. They set the terms for their workers, for the local communities, and apparently even for the regulatory agencies. A renewable energy economy is a threat to that model. Since no one can control access to the sun or the wind, the wealth is more likely to flow to whoever does the work of harnessing that energy, and therefore to create a more distributed economic system, which leads to a more distributed political system. It threatens the profits of the handful of corporations for whom the current system works, but our question is which segment of the public are you tasked with protecting. I am here today because I have chosen to protect the people locked out of the system over the profits of the corporations running the system. I say this not because I want your mercy, but because I want you to join me.

After this difference of political philosophies, the rest of the sentencing debate has been based on the financial loss from my actions. The government has suggested a variety of numbers loosely associated with my actions, but as of yet has yet to establish any causality between my actions and any of those figures. The most commonly discussed figure is perhaps the most easily debunked. This is the figure of roughly $140,000, which is the amount the BLM originally spent to hold the December 2008 auction. By definition, this number is the amount of money the BLM spent before I ever got involved. The relevant question is what the BLM spent because of my actions, but apparently that question has yet to be asked. The only logic that relates the $140,000 figure to my actions is if I caused the entire auction to be null and void and the BLM had to start from scratch to redo the entire auction. But that of course is not the case. First is the prosecution’s on-again-off-again argument that I didn’t have any impact on the auction being overturned. More importantly, the BLM never did redo the auction because it was decided that many of those parcels should never have been auctioned in the first place. Rather than this arbitrary figure of $140,000, it would have been easy to ask the BLM how much money they spent or will spend on redoing the auction. But the government never asked this question, probably because they knew they wouldn’t like the answer.

The other number suggested in the government’s memorandum is the $166,000 that was the total price of the three parcels I won which were not invalidated. Strangely, the government wants me to pay for these parcels, but has never offered to actually give them to me. When I offered the BLM the money a couple weeks after the auction, they refused to take it. Aside from that history, this figure is still not a valid financial loss from my actions. When we wrote there was no loss from my actions, we actually meant that rather literally. Those three parcels were not evaporated or blasted into space because of my actions, not was the oil underneath them sucked dry by my bid card. They’re still there, and in fact the BLM has already issued public notice of their intent to re-auction those parcels in February of 2012.

The final figure suggested as a financial loss is the $600,000 that the oil company wasn’t able to steal from the public. That completely unsubstantiated number is supposedly the extra amount the BLM received because of my actions. This is when things get tricky. The government’s report takes that $600,000 positive for the BLM and adds it to that roughly $300,000 negative for the BLM, and comes up with a $900,000 negative. With math like that, it’s obvious that Mr Huber works for the federal government.

After most of those figures were disputed in the presentence report, the government claimed in their most recent objection that I should be punished according to the intended financial impact that I intended to cause. The government tries to assume my intentions and then claims, “This is consistent with the testimony that Mr. DeChristopher provided at trial, admitting that his intention was to cause financial harm to others with whom he disagreed.” Now I didn’t get to say a whole lot at the trial, so it was pretty easy to look back through the transcripts. The statement claimed by the government never happened. There was nothing even close enough to make their statement a paraphrase or artistic license. This statement in the government’s objection is a complete fiction. Mr Huber’s inability to judge my intent is revealed in this case by the degree to which he underestimates my ambition. The truth is that my intention, then as now, was to expose, embarrass and hold accountable the oil industry to the extent that it cuts into the $100 billion in annual profits that it makes through exploitation. I actually intended for my actions to play a role in the wide variety of actions that steer the country toward a clean energy economy where those $100 billion in oil profits are completely eliminated. When I read Mr Huber’s new logic, I was terrified to consider that my slightly unrealistic intention to have a $100 billion impact will fetch me several consecutive life sentences. Luckily this reasoning is as unrealistic as it is silly.

A more serious look at my intentions is found in Mr Huber’s attempt to find contradictions in my statements. Mr Huber points out that in public I acted proud of my actions and treated it like a success, while in our sentencing memorandum we claimed that my actions led to “no loss.” On the one hand I think it was a success, and yet I claim it there was no loss. Success, but no loss. Mr Huber presents these ideas as mutually contradictory and obvious proof that I was either dishonest or backing down from my convictions. But for success to be contradictory to no loss, there has to be another assumption. One has to assume that my intent was to cause a loss. But the only loss that I intended to cause was the loss of secrecy by which the government gave away public property for private profit. As I actually stated in the trial, my intent was to shine a light on a corrupt process and get the government to take a second look at how this auction was conducted. The success of that intent is not dependent on any loss. I knew that if I was completely off base, and the government took that second look and decided that nothing was wrong with that auction, the cost of my action would be another day’s salary for the auctioneer and some minor costs of re-auctioning the parcels. But if I was right about the irregularities of the auction, I knew that allowing the auction to proceed would mean the permanent loss of lands better suited for other purposes and the permanent loss of a safe climate. The intent was to prevent loss, but again that is a matter of perspective.

Mr Huber wants you to weigh the loss for the corporations that expected to get public property for pennies on the dollar, but I believe the important factor is the loss to the public which I helped prevent. Again, we come back to this philosophical difference. From any perspective, this is a case about the right of citizens to challenge the government. The US Attorney’s office makes clear that their interest is not only to punish me for doing so, but to discourage others from challenging the government, even when the government is acting inappropriately. Their memorandum states, “To be sure, a federal prison term here will deter others from entering a path of criminal behavior.” The certainty of this statement not only ignores the history of political prisoners, it ignores the severity of the present situation. Those who are inspired to follow my actions are those who understand that we are on a path toward catastrophic consequences of climate change. They know their future, and the future of their loved ones, is on the line. And they know were are running out of time to turn things around. The closer we get to that point where it’s too late, the less people have to lose by fighting back. The power of the Justice Department is based on its ability to take things away from people. The more that people feel that they have nothing to lose, the more that power begins to shrivel. The people who are committed to fighting for a livable future will not be discouraged or intimidated by anything that happens here today. And neither will I. I will continue to confront the system that threatens our future. Given the destruction of our democratic institutions that once gave citizens access to power, my future will likely involve civil disobedience. Nothing that happens here today will change that. I don’t mean that in any sort of disrespectful way at all, but you don’t have that authority. You have authority over my life, but not my principles. Those are mine alone.

I’m not saying any of this to ask you for mercy, but to ask you to join me. If you side with Mr Huber and believe that your role is to discourage citizens from holding their government accountable, then you should follow his recommendations and lock me away. I certainly don’t want that. I have no desire to go to prison, and any assertion that I want to be even a temporary martyr is false. I want you to join me in standing up for the right and responsibility of citizens to challenge their government. I want you to join me in valuing this country’s rich history of nonviolent civil disobedience. If you share those values but think my tactics are mistaken, you have the power to redirect them. You can sentence me to a wide range of community service efforts that would point my commitment to a healthy and just world down a different path. You can have me work with troubled teens, as I spent most of my career doing. You can have me help disadvantaged communities or even just pull weeds for the BLM. You can steer that commitment if you agree with it, but you can’t kill it. This is not going away. At this point of unimaginable threats on the horizon, this is what hope looks like. In these times of a morally bankrupt government that has sold out its principles, this is what patriotism looks like. With countless lives on the line, this is what love looks like, and it will only grow. The choice you are making today is what side are you on.

Read the original post here:
Tim DeChristopher Sentenced, Speaks on MTR

The following is a blog post by Betsy Shepard of Surry County, Virginia. The largest coal plant ever proposed for the state is proposed within the small town of Dendron, in Surry County and upwind of nearly 2 million people in Hampton Roads, a region already suffering from poor air quality. Somehow Betsy finds time in between raising her kids, running a business with her husband and living life to fight this proposed coal plant and to write awesome blog posts like this one.

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Recently the issue of “modeling” has come up as it pertains to the proposed Surry Coal Plant.

No, this is not another ad campaign by the “Clean Coal” folks showing scantily clad models pretending to be coal miners—or coal plant operators in this case.

This kind of modeling has to do with making accurate predictions about air pollution from a proposed source —a key component in understanding the impacts of the largest coal-fired power plant proposed for Virginia. And an essential consideration for the 1.8 million Hampton Roads residents who live directly downwind.

According to the EPA, modeling refers:

“. . . to a general technique that uses mathematical representations of the factors affecting pollutant dispersion. Computers are used extensively to help scientists model the complex systems responsible for transport and dispersion of air pollutants.

In modeling air pollution transport and dispersion, specific information is gathered for an emission point. This information includes the location of the emission point (latitude and longitude), the quantity and type of pollutants emitted, stack gas conditions, the height of the stack, and many meteorological factors that include wind speed, ambient temperature profiles, and atmospheric pressure. Using this data as input for a computer model, scientists can predict how pollutants will be dispersed into the atmosphere. Concentration levels can be estimated for various distances and directions from the site of the stack.” Source: EPA

Modeling the pollution from the coal-fired power plant proposed by the Old Dominion Electric Cooperative (ODEC) will provide vital information for these downwind communities as they seek to understand the impacts they could expect from such a proposal.

Recently the Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) released a report predicting rather dire consequences for downwind communities, citing “illnesses, premature deaths, and health-related costs” should the coal plant project come to fruition.

Responding to the Foundation’s report, ODEC’s David Hudgins, director of member and external relations had this to say:

“The report is inaccurate and misleading, and grossly misrepresents the potential environmental and public health . . .”

The Williamsburg Yorktown Daily went on to report:

When asked specifically what was “unreliable” or “unrealistic” about the CBF report, Vice President of Communications for the Virginia, Maryland & Delaware Association of Electric Cooperatives Bill Sherrod told WY Daily that the projected numbers used in the report, “come from a model they ran, and we don’t know about that model – how it was created or where it comes from.” (WY Daily, May 25, 2011)

It is fair enough to question the specifics of the modeling Chesapeake Bay Foundation did, but to dismiss it out of hand? That seems a little radical. How does ODEC know it “grossly misrepresents” the projected impacts when they admit they don’t even know what those projections do or do not include?

Perhaps ODEC is comparing CBF’s modeling to other modeling that’s been done and the results are wildly different. That, in fact, is exactly what Hudgins claims:

“ODEC has performed models in accordance with approved state Department of Environmental Quality and federal Environmental Protection Agency protocol to assess the potential environmental and public health impacts of Cypress Creek. The measured impacts are considered by the EPA and DEQ rules as insignificant to the environment and public health.” (Smithfield Times, May 25, 2011)

So ODEC has done the modeling and the impacts were found to be “insignificant” by the EPA and the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). Sounds great, right? Not so fast.

According to Robert Burnley, former Virginia DEQ Director, ODEC’s modeling could not have been signed off on by the DEQ or the EPA. Why is that? Because ODEC never even finalized their application to the DEQ.

Here’s what Bob Burnley has to say on the matter, including some information on modeling vs. measuring:

ODEC has apparently conducted some in-house modeling which may or may not have been conducted according to the protocols developed based on the data from the original air permit applications for the Surry County site. Modeling based on these applications is problematic because DEQ found six pages of “deficiencies” in them. Rather than address those deficiencies, ODEC withdrew the applications.

Since the modeling has not been reviewed or approved by EPA, DEQ or anyone else, the conclusions that ODEC is claiming cannot be confirmed. The ODEC spokesperson also confuses modeling and measuring. He infers that impacts have been measured and there are no problems. It is impossible, of course, to measure the impacts of emissions that don’t yet exist. I have no confidence whatsoever in any of these conflicting statements. As one with some experience in this arena, I would urge you not to have any confidence either.

ODEC’s response?

“Hudgins speaking to the Isle of Wight Board of Supervisors said it was ‘speculation’ to assume the level of health effects suggested by Burnley, since computer air models have not yet been completed.” (Smithfield Times, July 13, 2011)

Come again?

“. . .computer air models have not yet been completed.”

But…what about this earlier statement from Hudgins?:

“ODEC has performed models. . . The measured impacts are considered by the EPA and DEQ rules as insignificant to the environment and public health.”

How very curious.

So has ODEC done modeling or not?

If ODEC did, in fact, conduct this modeling, what were their numbers for “illnesses, premature deaths, and health-related costs?”

What say we compare ODEC’s numbers to CBF’s.

What say we let downwind communities decide for themselves how many asthma attacks, lost work-days, hospital visits, and deaths they deem as “insignificant.”

If ODEC has not done the modeling, then it’s their charges against the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and Bob Burnley that ought to be deemed, “insignificant.”

Either way, ODEC’s problem with credibility continues to grow. Their past record in this arena is significant:

“The only thing that comes out of the top of the coal plant is water vapor,”
- Jeb Hockman, ODEC. Smithfield Times May 13, 2009

That’s a pretty big, grossly misrepresenting statement. It definitely conflicts with the pages and pages of hazardous and toxic materials that ODEC estimated would, “come out of the top of the coal plant,” in their application to DEQ.

Of course, Hockman would later tell the Smithfield Times that he “misspoke.”

The Smithfield Times said they took his statement “out of context.”

While an attorney for ODEC explained the gaff to the Surry Board of Supervisors as the reporter “misquoting Mr. Hockman.”

Once again, hard to know what the truth is.

Of course, none of that stopped ODEC from photocopying that ridiculous water vapor statement, and the accompanying article (where the reporter claimed that officials from the DEQ and Virginia Department of Health actually supported such an assertion) and passing it out to citizens and members of the Dendron Town Council who would soon be voting to approve or deny the plant.

Somehow ODEC never followed up to tell these good folks that they had misspoken. Or was it: Taken out of context? Or misquoted?

Eh….too many pesky details and disclaimers to get bogged down with, I suppose.

Given this history, how sickly ironic to read an ODEC Op-Ed piece in last week’s Smithfield Times casting stones from their giant glass headquarters in Glen Allen, VA:

In recent days, some have attempted to deceive the public and confuse policymakers by presenting fictitious and erroneous predictions about the impact of Cypress Creek on the environment. (Smithfield Times, July 20, 2011)

It’d be funny if it weren’t so serious.

It’d be funny if we hadn’t heard local proponents of the plant repeat the “water vapor” comment time and time again.

It’d be funny if we weren’t all currently and thoroughly confused by ODEC’s own contradictory and fictitious statements regarding the modeling issue.

I suppose I could ask ODEC to clear up this confusion via their “Contact Us” email address (info@cypresscreek.com), but it seems that local residents don’t tend to get a response.

Hmmm….

Left to draw my own conclusions, I suppose my opinion of this self-described “good corporate neighbor,” isn’t so flattering.

When answers are forthcoming (and most often they are not) they are filled with rhetoric, blatant falsehoods, and/or contradictions of earlier statements.

None of that is my idea of a trust-worthy or welcome neighbor.

A wise friend once told me, “Listen to people; they will tell you who they are.”

When ODEC’s Jeb Hockman told The Virginian-Pilot last year:

“I wish we were as smart and sinister as people think we are,”
-The Virginian-Pilot January 31, 2010

I found it baffling and slightly humorous.

Why would they wish to be, “sinister?” I chuckled.

But I suppose we should listen. It seems they are telling us who they are—or at a minimum who they want to be.

I wish them luck on the smart part.

And I reluctantly congratulate them for being well on their way with the other.

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To help stop the coal plant click here. To learn more, click here.

Read the original post here:
Modeling: Pretty is as Pretty Does

Cross posted from WYMT News:

Federal and state officials are investigating after a boulder came crashing through a Perry County home on July 26.

This was not the first time this quiet community was shaken up.

“It’s shaken in here a many a time, yeah,” said Shirley Campbell, sales clerk at Campbell’s Station in Dice, Kentucky.
“They’ve been letting shots off, but they’ve never been that bad.”

A home on bailey way in dice was damaged when a boulder fell through the bedroom ceiling.

“It was probably about as big as a basketball,” said Orby Dean Campbell, describing the rock that came in through the roof and exited through the bedroom wall. Campbell owns the trailer which was damaged at around 11 a.m.

Campbell said his daughter and her husband were inside the home with their children, 6-year-old and 2-year-old boys, at the time of the accident.

“It could have killed every one of them if they’d been in there,” said Campbell.

Workers in the area said they heard what happened from about a half-mile away. Shirley Campbell was working at Campbell’s Station when she heard that her niece’s residence had been affected.

“I seen all of that smoke and it was all at once, just come right up,” said Shirley Campbell.

Orby Campbell said that the boulder came down from the mountain above the home. He said he believes blasting at a nearby mine is to blame.

“I want them to know to lighten on those shots back there if they are gonna work back there – lighting those shots can kill people,” said Campbell.

He said he was thankful nothing worse had happened. No one was injured in the incident.

The Division Of Mine Reclamation Enforcement, DMRE, surface mine inspectors and the explosives and blasting branch are investigating along with MSHA and the OSM, Office of Surface Mining to determine the cause. Officials from DMRE said it will be a thorough investigation and will likely take several days.

State mining officials are not able to determine if the boulder came from the nearby mining company.

Read the original post here:
Boulder crashes through home in Perry County

Uncle Mountain and Matrimony have joined forces with Appalachian Voices to help raise awareness and inspire action to help end mountaintop removal mining. The event, to be held THIS Thursday, July 28th at Boone Saloon, has been affectionately dubbed “Boone Loves Mountains” and is part of a series of shows happening all along the East Coast since earlier this year. It is the team’s hope that people will leave this show knowing more about the devastating impact that mountaintop removal has on all aspects of life in the Appalachians. You can RSVP and share on Facebook.

“As a band we feel especially connected to this issue because it is happening in the very place that we call home,” said Ryan Lassiter of Uncle Mountain. “In fact, the energy company that provides our electricity uses coal retrieved from mountaintop removal.”

Lassiter learned about his connection to mountaintop removal coal mining from the interactive feature called My Connection on ilovemountains.org. This interactive tool allows visitors to see their connection to mountaintop removal coal mining through their electricity grid. Using Google Maps or Google Earth, users can visit mountaintop removal sites that supply the coal to the user’s local plants.

“At first glance it is impossible to imagine that this practice is even real,” Lassiter said. “It seems like some sort of alien technology that can’t possibly exist! But, unfortunately for you and me, and the 20,000,000 other human and non-human inhabitants of Appalachia, it really does exist, and it has for over 40 years.”

Since moving to Appalachia, Lassiter has discovered the beauty and hidden treasures of Appalachia’s rolling hills, glens, and hollows. Lassiter strikes a chord with all who cherish the delicate streams and secret haunts of our mountain abode when he says, “We live in one of the most diverse ecosystems on the planet. It seems that everything is rare and unique here. Plants and animals, geological formations, weather patterns, and cultural phenomenon—this region is filled with more character and beauty than anywhere else on Earth.”

Uncle Mountain is excited to take the stage at Boone Saloon to share their blend of rock and folk with lively percussion, rich harmonies, and colorful textures from all of their favorite music from around the globe. Appalachian Voices is also excited to introduce Boone-town to Matrimony. They will be taking the stage at Boone Saloon bringing their combination of Americana-rock influences and Irish-folk roots, while blending modern anti-folk and indie rock. Both groups have captured the unique spirit of Appalachia and are a hit with Boone’s local music scene.

So, come out join us for some incredible music, and be inspired to join the fight against mountaintop removal. Learn how you can become more involved with Appalachian Voices, and how you can make your own unique contributions to the fight against mountaintop removal mining. We’ll leave you with some music from Uncle Mountain…

Read the original post here:
THIS THURSDAY: Music and Mountains Converge in Boone, NC!

The EPA has proposed new standards for mercury and other toxic air pollutants from coal and oil-fired power plants. You have until August 4th to make your voice heard at the EPA. Even if you are not concerned about the effects of mercury on your own health, you should be concerned for your future children, grandchildren, nieces and nephews and all unborn children. Here’s why:

Mercury emitted from power plants enters the air and then accumulates in our environment through atmospheric deposition. Atmospheric mercury spreads around the country, which means that concentrations in the air are thankfully not that high. The problem is that mercury bio-accumulates in fish when the mercury settles out of the atmosphere and is washed into our rivers, lakes and oceans. As fish live in mercury-contaminated water, they progressively accumulate greater amounts of mercury in their tissues. When we eat these fish, we consume the accumulated mercury.

The developing fetus is most susceptible to adverse effects of mercury consumption, making fish consumption by pregnant women very dangerous. Mercury exposure in children can lead to neurological deficits, including problems with attention, fine motor function, language skills, visual-spatial abilities and verbal memory.

Coal-fired power plants are the largest source of mercury emissions in the country. The proposal from the EPA would seek to reduce mercury emission by 91%. The additional standards for other toxic air pollutants would, according to the EPA, prevent “as many as 17,000 premature deaths and 11,000 heart attacks a year. The new proposed standards would also provide particular health benefits for children, preventing 120,000 cases of childhood asthma symptoms and about 11,000 fewer cases of acute bronchitis among children each year. The proposed standards would also avert more than 12,000 emergency room visits and hospital admissions and 850,000 fewer days of work missed due to illness.”

Coal companies are fighting the rule by claiming the new regulation would lead to the early closure of coal-fired power plants and the loss of jobs. Can we really claim that preventing the closure of out-dated, dirty power plants outweighs protecting the health of our children? Furthermore, a study by CERES and Political Economy Research Institute of the University of Massachusetts shows that this regulation and the Clean Air Transport Rule (CATR) will create a combined total of over 290,000 jobs.

Tell the EPA you support new mercury and toxic air pollutant standards!

Read the original post here:
Make Your Voice Heard: Support New Mercury Standards To Protect Human Health

Please come join us for some work, some fun, some climbing, food and friends.

Read the original post here:
2011 Western North Carolina Climbers Weekend

After hearing that EPA Would Rely on the Best Science to Protect People from Mountaintop Removal Mining Waste, This Guidance is a Bitter Disappointment

Today, the Environmental Protection Agency released the final draft of their long-awaited surface coal mining guidance.

In light of new information showing a link between mountaintop removal and sickness, birth defects, and cancer clusters, this guidance falls disappointingly short of the “comprehensive” steps necessary to protect Appalachia and its people from what EPA themselves call “permanent” and “irreversible damage” from strip mines. We really, really need an EPA to protect us from a dangerous, dishonest, and often two-faced coal industry. This particular action by the EPA will not even come close to protecting citizens from the actions of these companies, or the most destructive mining practices in America.

We should take a moment to applaud EPA for taking a step in the right direction. Taking action to protect people from mountaintop removal is the right thing to do. They are certainly under seemingly unprecedented pressure from the coal lobby and their Congressional allies. For giving their time and attention to protecting citizens from mountaintop removal, we applaud and thank them.

However, there were several things EPA could have done to properly protect the environment and public health.

Firstly, this is just a guidance, which is a weak regulatory device for pursuing the regulation of deadly and dangerous practices like strip-mining. Ideally, the Administration would have fought for strong permanent protections in the form of a law, such as the bipartisan Clean Water Protection Act (HR 1375), which has over 100 cosponsors in the House, and would keep toxic mining waste out of our streams. At the very least, EPA should have gone through a formal rule-making process.

So not only is there little that is enforceable about this guidance, but in the final draft EPA actually backslides, and presents something that is even weaker than previous drafts. Of particular concern is that fact they are permitting valleyfills at all. Even worse, they went from “sequencing” valleyfills (allowing one at a time) under strict review, to allowing several at a time on particular mine sites.

My colleague Dr. Matt Wasson will have much more on this later, but its interesting to look at which words were changed in the new guidance compared to previous drafts.

There’s not a lot to like in that chart, but if you’re starting to worry that we’re moving backward rather than forward on mountaintop removal it might be reassuring to take a look at the word cloud from the final guidance memo released today.

Despite it’s flaws and the recent backsliding, the EPA’s guidance is a step forward in protecting Appalachian communities, streams and mountains. It’s just not a very big step, nor is it permanent. So we’ve got more work to do.

Appalachian Voices’ full press release is below…

EPA Guidance on Mountaintop Removal Falls Short
Group says that final EPA guidance on water pollution from Appalachian coal mines could allow further devastation of waterways and communities in Appalachia

- – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – -
Contact:
Matt Wasson, Donna Lisenby (828) 262-1500
Kate Rooth (202) 266-0479
- – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – -

WASHINGTON, DC (July 21, 2011) — Today the Environmental Protection Agency released its “Final Guidance on Improving EPA Review of Appalachian Surface Coal Mining Operations Under the Clean Water Act,” which seeks to improve standards for permitting mountaintop removal coal mining in Central Appalachia. Community and environmental advocates, while appreciative of the EPA’s efforts to address water pollution from mountaintop removal mining, were disappointed with the final document, saying it falls far short of what is needed to ensure real protection of waterways and human health in Appalachia.

“We’d certainly rather have this guidance than not have it,” said Matt Wasson, director of programs for the non-profit advocacy organization Appalachian Voices, “But I’m concerned that the Obama Administration is backsliding on its commitment to protect the health of people impacted by mountaintop removal coal mining. It’s striking how the language of this document has been weakened, compared to the initial draft released in 2010, and I’m afraid the end result is that residents are left without any effective protection against the massive amounts of pollution created by the mountaintop removal industry.”

According to an analysis by Appalachian Voices, the words and phrases used in the final guidance, as compared to the draft released last year, there were significant changes in scope, emphasis and tone. The words “recommend,” “consider” and “consistent with” were used twice as frequently in the final guidance, while words “compliance,” “requires” and “prohibit” were used half as often. Similarly, while phrases implying a more limited scope of the guidance, such as “site-specific” and “case-by-case” were used 10 times more frequently in the final guidance, words referencing the environmental impacts of mining such as “impairment” and “adverse” were used half as often.

Environmental and community advocates are particularly concerned about the flexibility given to states in implementing the benchmarks for water conductivity when considering coal mining permits in Appalachia. Conductivity, a measure of salt and/or pollutants in water, is a critical early indicator of stream health. According to EPA’s own studies, released with the initial draft of the guidance, exceeding these benchmarks is likely to result in degraded stream health. Those same studies found that nine out of every 10 streams downstream of surface mining operations in Appalachia exhibited significant impacts to aquatic life.

“The guidance was supposed to provide much greater protection to streams and communities, but I’m concerned that it just takes us back to the good old days of allowing states to give coal companies free reign to pollute” said Donna Lisenby, the director of water programs for Appalachian Voices.

Lisenby, a veteran Riverkeeper and national leader in the Waterkeeper Alliance, has led a high profile investigation of Clean Water Act violations by coal companies in Kentucky. According to Lisenby, “In the last eight months we brought legal action against 3 coal companies for 36, 000 violations of the Clean Water Act because the state of Kentucky did nothing to investigate or enforce the law. This new guidance will simply give overburdened states, who are too captured or weak to stand up to the coal industry, more power to do even less to stop the birth defects and poisoned water in Appalachia.”

The EPA’s announcement comes on the heels of the publication of a new study by Dr. Micheal Hendryx of West Virginia University and Dr. Melissa Ahern of Washington State University, which found a significantly higher number of birth defects in infants born to mothers living in mountaintop mining areas compared to other mining areas and non-mining areas.

Read the original post here:
EPA Guidance Will Not Protect Appalachian Communities

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

EPA Guidance on Mountaintop Removal Falls Short

Group says that final EPA guidance on water pollution from Appalachian coal mines could allow further devastation
of waterways and communities in Appalachia

- – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – -
Contact:
Matt Wasson, Donna Lisenby (828) 262-1500
Kate Rooth (202) 266-0479
- – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – -

WASHINGTON, DC (July 21, 2011) — Today the Environmental Protection Agency released its “Final Guidance on Improving EPA Review of Appalachian Surface Coal Mining Operations Under the Clean Water Act,” which seeks to improve standards for permitting mountaintop removal coal mining in Central Appalachia. Community and environmental advocates, while appreciative of the EPA’s efforts to address water pollution from mountaintop removal mining, were disappointed with the final document, saying it falls far short of what is needed to ensure real protection of waterways and human health in Appalachia.

“We’d certainly rather have this guidance than not have it,” said Matt Wasson, director of programs for the non-profit advocacy organization Appalachian Voices, “But I’m concerned that the Obama Administration is backsliding on its commitment to protect the health of people impacted by mountaintop removal coal mining. It’s striking how the language of this document has been weakened, compared to the initial draft released in 2010, and I’m afraid the end result is that residents are left without any effective protection against the massive amounts of pollution created by the mountaintop removal industry.”

According to an analysis by Appalachian Voices, the words and phrases used in the final guidance, as compared to the draft released last year, there were significant changes in scope, emphasis and tone. The words “recommend,” “consider” and “consistent with” were used twice as frequently in the final guidance, while words “compliance,” “requires” and “prohibit” were used half as often. Similarly, while phrases implying a more limited scope of the guidance, such as “site-specific” and “case-by-case” were used 10 times more frequently in the final guidance, words referencing the environmental impacts of mining such as “impairment” and “adverse” were used half as often.

Environmental and community advocates are particularly concerned about the flexibility given to states in implementing the benchmarks for water conductivity when considering coal mining permits in Appalachia. Conductivity, a measure of salt and/or pollutants in water, is a critical early indicator of stream health. According to EPA’s own studies, released with the initial draft of the guidance, exceeding these benchmarks is likely to result in degraded stream health. Those same studies found that nine out of every 10 streams downstream of surface mining operations in Appalachia exhibited significant impacts to aquatic life.

“The guidance was supposed to provide much greater protection to streams and communities, but I’m concerned that it just takes us back to the good old days of allowing states to give coal companies free reign to pollute” said Donna Lisenby, the Director of Water Programs for Appalachian Voices.

Lisenby, a veteran Riverkeeper and national leader in the Waterkeeper Alliance, has led a high profile investigation of Clean Water Act violations by coal companies in Kentucky. According to Lisenby, “In the last eight months we brought legal action against 3 coal companies for 36, 000 violations of the Clean Water Act because the state of Kentucky did nothing to investigate or enforce the law. This new guidance will simply give overburdened states, who are too captured or weak to stand up to the coal industry, more power to do even less to stop the birth defects and poisoned water in Appalachia.”

The EPA’s announcement comes on the heels of the publication of a new study by Dr. Micheal Hendryx of West Virginia University and Dr. Melissa Ahern of Washington State University, which found a significantly higher number of birth defects in infants born to mothers living in mountaintop mining areas compared to other mining areas and non-mining areas.

# # #

Read the original post here:
EPA Guidance on Mountaintop Removal Falls Short

Its official! 101 cosponsors of the Clean Water Protection Act!

As big coal and their allies in Congress continue to attack, undermine, and gut public health and environmental protections, Appalachian Voices, the Alliance for Appalachia, NRDC and others continue to play offense by promoting the bipartisan Clean Water Protection Act (HR 1375). This bill would make it illegal to dump toxic waste from mountaintop removal mines into our headwater streams in Appalachia.

This week HR 1375 hit 101 cosponsors, and that number is continuing to grow as more Representatives learn about the horrific impacts mountaintop removal is having on the born and the unborn in Appalachia. ! See if your Congressman is a cosponsor below the fold. If they are not, take a moment and ask them to cosponsor of the Clean Water Protection Act (HR 1375).

…

H.R.1375
Latest Title: Clean Water Protection Act
Sponsor: Rep Pallone, Frank, Jr. NJ-6 (introduced 4/5/2011) Cosponsors (100)
Latest Major Action: 4/6/2011 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment. COSPONSORS(100), ALPHABETICAL followed by Cosponsors withdrawn: (Sort: by date)

Rep Ackerman, Gary L. NY-5 – 4/5/2011
Rep Berman, Howard L. CA-28 – 4/5/2011
Rep Blumenauer, Earl OR-3 – 4/5/2011
Rep Braley, Bruce L. IA-1 – 6/22/2011
Rep Butterfield, G. K. NC-1 – 6/22/2011
Rep Capps, Lois CA-23 – 4/8/2011
Rep Carnahan, Russ MO-3 – 7/15/2011
Rep Carson, Andre IN-7 – 4/8/2011
Rep Castor, Kathy FL-11 – 4/5/2011
Rep Chandler, Ben KY-6 – 4/5/2011
Rep Chu, Judy CA-32 – 4/8/2011
Rep Clarke, Yvette D. NY-11 – 5/31/2011
Rep Cleaver, Emanuel MO-5 – 6/22/2011
Rep Cohen, Steve TN-9 – 4/15/2011
Rep Connolly, Gerald E. “Gerry” VA-11 – 4/5/2011
Rep Conyers, John, Jr. MI-14 – 4/8/2011
Rep Cooper, Jim TN-5 – 4/5/2011
Rep Crowley, Joseph NY-7 – 4/5/2011
Rep Cummings, Elijah E. MD-7 – 7/15/2011
Rep DeGette, Diana CO-1 – 5/11/2011
Rep DeLauro, Rosa L. CT-3 – 4/5/2011
Rep Deutch, Theodore E. FL-19 – 4/15/2011
Rep Doggett, Lloyd TX-25 – 6/22/2011
Rep Ellison, Keith MN-5 – 4/5/2011
Rep Engel, Eliot L. NY-17 – 6/3/2011
Rep Fattah, Chaka PA-2 – 6/22/2011
Rep Filner, Bob CA-51 – 4/5/2011
Rep Frank, Barney MA-4 – 4/5/2011
Rep Grijalva, Raul M. AZ-7 – 4/5/2011
Rep Gutierrez, Luis V. IL-4 – 7/15/2011
Rep Hanabusa, Colleen W. HI-1 – 7/15/2011
Rep Hastings, Alcee L. FL-23 – 4/5/2011
Rep Higgins, Brian NY-27 – 5/11/2011
Rep Himes, James A. CT-4 – 5/11/2011
Rep Hinchey, Maurice D. NY-22 – 4/5/2011
Rep Holt, Rush D. NJ-12 – 4/5/2011
Rep Honda, Michael M. CA-15 – 4/5/2011
Rep Inslee, Jay WA-1 – 4/8/2011
Rep Jackson Lee, Sheila TX-18 – 7/15/2011
Rep Jackson, Jesse L., Jr. IL-2 – 4/8/2011
Rep Johnson, Henry C. “Hank,” Jr. GA-4 – 4/5/2011
Rep Kildee, Dale E. MI-5 – 4/5/2011
Rep Kissell, Larry NC-8 – 4/5/2011
Rep Kucinich, Dennis J. OH-10 – 4/5/2011
Rep Langevin, James R. RI-2 – 4/5/2011
Rep Larson, John B. CT-1 – 5/11/2011
Rep Lee, Barbara CA-9 – 4/5/2011
Rep Levin, Sander M. MI-12 – 4/5/2011
Rep Lewis, John GA-5 – 5/31/2011
Rep Lofgren, Zoe CA-16 – 5/31/2011
Rep Lowey, Nita M. NY-18 – 4/5/2011
Rep Lynch, Stephen F. MA-9 – 4/5/2011
Rep McCarthy, Carolyn NY-4 – 6/22/2011
Rep McCollum, Betty MN-4 – 4/15/2011
Rep McGovern, James P. MA-3 – 4/5/2011
Rep McNerney, Jerry CA-11 – 4/5/2011
Rep Meeks, Gregory W. NY-6 – 6/22/2011
Rep Michaud, Michael H. ME-2 – 4/5/2011
Rep Miller, Brad NC-13 – 7/15/2011
Rep Miller, George CA-7 – 4/5/2011
Rep Moran, James P. VA-8 – 4/5/2011
Rep Murphy, Christopher S. CT-5 – 4/5/2011
Rep Nadler, Jerrold NY-8 – 7/15/2011
Rep Napolitano, Grace F. CA-38 – 4/5/2011
Rep Norton, Eleanor Holmes DC – 5/31/2011
Rep Olver, John W. MA-1 – 4/5/2011
Rep Owens, William L. NY-23 – 6/3/2011
Rep Pingree, Chellie ME-1 – 4/5/2011
Rep Polis, Jared CO-2 – 4/5/2011
Rep Price, David E. NC-4 – 6/3/2011
Rep Quigley, Mike IL-5 – 4/5/2011
Rep Rangel, Charles B. NY-15 – 6/22/2011
Rep Reichert, David G. WA-8 – 4/5/2011
Rep Richardson, Laura CA-37 – 4/5/2011
Rep Rothman, Steven R. NJ-9 – 4/5/2011
Rep Roybal-Allard, Lucille CA-34 – 5/31/2011
Rep Ryan, Tim OH-17 – 4/8/2011
Rep Sanchez, Linda T. CA-39 – 4/8/2011
Rep Sarbanes, John P. MD-3 – 4/5/2011
Rep Schiff, Adam B. CA-29 – 4/5/2011
Rep Schwartz, Allyson Y. PA-13 – 4/5/2011
Rep Scott, Robert C. “Bobby” VA-3 – 7/15/2011
Rep Shuler, Heath NC-11 – 4/5/2011
Rep Sires, Albio NJ-13 – 4/8/2011
Rep Slaughter, Louise McIntosh NY-28 – 4/5/2011
Rep Smith, Adam WA-9 – 4/5/2011
Rep Speier, Jackie CA-12 – 4/5/2011
Rep Stark, Fortney Pete CA-13 – 4/5/2011
Rep Tierney, John F. MA-6 – 4/8/2011
Rep Tonko, Paul NY-21 – 4/5/2011
Rep Towns, Edolphus NY-10 – 5/31/2011
Rep Tsongas, Niki MA-5 – 4/5/2011
Rep Van Hollen, Chris MD-8 – 4/5/2011
Rep Velazquez, Nydia M. NY-12 – 4/5/2011
Rep Watt, Melvin L. NC-12 – 5/31/2011
Rep Waxman, Henry A. CA-30 – 4/15/2011
Rep Welch, Peter VT – 4/15/2011
Rep Woolsey, Lynn C. CA-6 – 4/5/2011
Rep Wu, David OR-1 – 4/8/2011
Rep Yarmuth, John A. KY-3 – 4/5/2011

Read the original post here:
Stopping Mountaintop Removal: 101!

Become a member of Appalachian Voices —
you name the price!

Donate what you can, or what our work is worth to you, and become a part of the Appalachian Voices community today!

It might seem impossible to put a price tag on our most precious of natural resources. While we think that the true value of clean air and water are far, far beyond any dollar amount, the fact of the matter is that if we are to save our rivers, streams and skies from corporate greed and toxic pollution, then we need to fund the fight.

We need you as a member, and right now, membership comes at the right price: any price is right. Donate to Appalachian Voices today at whatever level you can, and join a movement committed to clear air, clean water and something that is truly priceless: a healthy environment for generations to come.

Donation form below!

Read the original post here:
Your Price is Right membership drive

EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT
OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20503

July 12, 2011
(House Rules)

STATEMENT OF ADMINISTRATION POLICY
H.R. 2018 – Clean Water Cooperative Federalism Act
(Rep. Mica, R-FL, and 39 cosponsors)

The Administration strongly opposes H.R 2018 because it would significantly undermine the Clean Water Act (CWA) and could adversely affect public health, the economy, and the environment.

Under the CWA, one of the Nation’s most successful and effective environmental laws, the Federal Government acts to ensure safe levels of water quality across the country through the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Since the enactment of the CWA in 1972, the Federal Government has protected the waterways our citizens depend on by using its checks and balances authority to review and adjust key State water pollution control decisions, where necessary, to assure that they reflect up to date science, comply with the law, and protect downstream water users in other States. H.R. 2018 would roll back the key provisions of the CWA that have been the underpinning of 40 years of progress in making the Nation’s waters fishable, swimmable, and drinkable.

H.R. 2018 could limit efforts to safeguard communities by removing the Federal Government’s authority to take action when State water quality standards are not protective of public health. In addition, it would restrict EPA’s authority to take action when it finds that a State’s CWA permit or permit program is inadequate and would shorten EPA’s review and collaboration with the Army Corps of Engineers on permits for dredged or fill material. All of these changes could result in adverse impacts to human health, the economy, and the environment through increased pollution and degradation of water bodies that serve as venues for recreation and tourism, and that provide drinking water sources and habitat for fish and wildlife.

H.R. 2018 would disrupt the carefully constructed complementary CWA roles for EPA, the Army Corps of Engineers, and States in protecting water quality. It also could eliminate EPA’s ability to protect water quality and public health in downstream States from actions in upstream States, and could increase the number of lawsuits challenging State permits. In sum, H.R. 2018 would upset the CWA’s balanced approach to improve water quality across the Nation, risking the public health and economic benefits of cleaner waters.

If the President is presented with this legislation, his senior advisors would recommend that he veto the bill.

* * * * * * *

Amelia Salzman
Associate Director for Policy Outreach
White House Council on Environmental Quality
730 Jackson Place, NW
Washington, DC 20530
202-456-3621

Read the original post here:
Expect the President to Veto H.R. 2018 – Clean Water Cooperative Federalism Act

Read the original post here:
Last Mountain invite

The document can be found by accessing this link

read more

Read the original post here:
CRSP Master Plan released

Memory loss. Muscle weakness. Mood swings. Kidney failure. Death.

It sounds like a doctor’s report on an aging patient, and it could well be. But these are also symptoms of mercury exposure, which affects everyone—especially children.

We all know that coal is the single biggest contributor to air pollution in the United States. We’ve read the pamphlets, watched the videos, and heard the statistics. We’ve been shocked, appalled, and disgusted—but we don’t have to be resigned to watching coal-fired power plants poison our air, water, and families. We can take action.

The EPA has recently proposed stronger regulations for mercury, arsenic, and lead—all poisonous to humans—as well as acid gases and other air pollutants. The new national standards would keep 91 percent of the mercury in coal from polluting our air and water.

A coal-fired power plant in Virginia

In a world where one coal plant can produce 170 pounds of mercury in a year, this is not only desirable, but crucial to our national health. The amount of mercury in an old-fashioned thermometer—1/70th of a teaspoon—can contaminate a 25-acre lake. Limiting the amount of mercury and other pollutants that coal-fired power plants can release into our air is a vital step toward ending coal’s black grip on our lives.

The EPA’s proposed regulations will prevent huge amounts of toxic gases and particulates from entering our air and waterways. According to the EPA, the regulations will prevent

“as many as 17,000 premature deaths and 11,000 heart attacks a year. The new proposed standards would also provide particular health benefits for children, preventing 120,000 cases of childhood asthma symptoms and about 11,000 fewer cases of acute bronchitis among children each year. The proposed standards would also avert more than 12,000 emergency room visits and hospital admissions and 850,000 fewer days of work missed due to illness.”

But coal companies don’t want to regulate emissions, and they’re doing everything they can to keep this legislation from passing. Some groups with special interest in coal are saying that the pollution from coal power plants aren’t harmful humans. American Electric Power claims that the new regulations will result in the closure of five power plants and a loss of 600 jobs.

“…We will have to prematurely shut down nearly 25 percent of our current coal-fueled generating capacity, cut hundreds of good power-plant jobs, and invest billions of dollars in capital to retire, retrofit, and replace coal-fueled power plants,” AEP chairman and CEO Mike Morris said. “The sudden increase in electricity rates and impacts on state economies will be significant at a time when people and states are still struggling.”

That’s right, Mike, people and states are still struggling. Struggling to breathe the heavy metal- and particulate-laden air that coal-fired power plants emit daily. Struggling to pay the medical bills for their parents, siblings, and children who have been exposed to mercury and other poisons. Struggling to find a safer, cleaner way to provide for their families.

Help stop the struggle. Show your support for the EPA’s regulations on air pollutants.

Read the original post here:
Struggling for Clean Air

We’re hitting the road and we’ll be headed to the Chicago area in July! We need your to help raise awareness about mountaintop removal in your community.

To get involved click here!

From July 17th- July 23rd we will be giving presentations on mountaintop removal and the life cycle impacts of coal. We’ll be accompanied by citizens impacted by mountaintop removal, including Kathy Selvage and Ann League.

With the stories of Kathy and many others, we’ve created a multimedia presentation, Appalachian Treasures, to highlight the impacts of mountaintop removal which we are excited to bring to your area. With your help we can build support in key Congressional districts across the country to gain support for the Clean Water Protection Act and the Appalachia Restoration Act. Along the way, we have traveled to over 20 states and talked to over 7,000 people directly. Next stop, Illinois!

So that’s where you come in! We want to meet with congressional representatives while we’re there. Would you like to come with us to tell your representative to support clean water and put an end to mountaintop removal?


To get involved click here!

Or email us at: Chicago@ilovemountains.org

Stay tuned for more information on presentations once the dates are finalized!

More about Ann League and Kathy Selvage:

Ann League has been a member of SOCM (Statewide Organizing for Community empowerment) for several years, including serving a term as Vice-President of the SOCM Board, before joining the staff as an organizer in 2009. She was born in Seneca, S.C., the youngest of five, and moved to Tennessee when she was seventeen. Ann quickly fell in love with the mountains and people of east Tennessee, especially the Cumberland Mountains. She was first made aware of the devastating coal mining process called Mountaintop Removal (MTR) when the 2200 acre Zeb Mountain mine site was permitted not far from her then home in Campbell County. She has been fighting against MTR and other destructive mining practices and for a sustainable Appalachia ever since. Ann staffs the Campbell/Anderson chapter of SOCM and she staffs the E-3 (Energy, Ecology, Environmental Justice) Issues Committee. Ann is also an active member of The Alliance for Appalachia, a coalition of 13 groups across central Appalachia working to abolish MTR. Ann lives in Knoxville with her infinitely patient and understanding spouse equivalent, Jeff, and a pack of rescued dogs. No really, a pack of dogs.

Kathy Selvage is a lifelong resident of Wise County, VA, where her father was a coal miner and a proud member of the United Mine Workers of America. When mountaintop removal mining operations began to tear her community apart, however, Kathy could not remain silent and has since worked to bring local, regional and national exposure to the destruction that mountaintop removal coal mining is wreaking on the land, people, and culture of Appalachia. Kathy is the recipient of the 2006 S. Francis Ecological Award for innovative work promoting the interconnectedness of all life and was listed as one of 14 individuals and organizations making a difference in the future of Appalachia in Blue Ridge Country.

Read the original post here:
Appalachian Treasures hits Chicago!

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Just a few weeks ago citizens of Blair, WV climbed to the crest of Blair Mountain with over 1,000 new allies. Movement leaders from surrounding states, union workers, students, archaeologists, activists, and friends from neighboring counties and across the country all came together for Appalachia Rising: March on Blair Mountain.

This rally, this stand, was the culmination of a week long march to save the historic Blair Mountain, end mountaintop removal, strengthen labor rights, and demand sustainable jobs for all of central Appalachia. Click here to see footage of the march!

300 marched the 50 miles through the 100 degree heat to meet another 700 on top of Blair Mountain. Thousands joined us for a virtual march online, and across the nation, people heard our stories from over 300 articles covering the march.

We are proud to have been a part of this historic event with you, it would have not been possible without the growing grassroots presence around the US supporting these efforts. See the video here.

This week opens new doors in Blair and new doors for our movement. We have shown that we can struggle through intimidation, we can forge new alliances, we can overcome obstacles and that we will be stronger in the end.

Let’s move forward together! More details on the event and what’s next for Blair can be found at iLoveMountains.org/Blair-Mountain and MarchOnBlairMountain.org.

Thank you for your continued dedication: what we accomplished with the March on Blair is representative of what we are doing throughout the entire region impacted by mountaintop removal, and we couldn’t do that without you!

For the mountains,

Matt Wasson
iLoveMountains.org

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1,000 Rednecks Marched on Blair Mountain!

We’re hitting the road and we’ll be headed to the Chicago area in July! We need your to help raise awareness about mountaintop removal in your community.

• To get involved click here!

From July 17th- July 23rd we will be giving presentations on mountaintop removal and the life cycle impacts of coal. We’ll be accompanied by citizens impacted by mountaintop removal, including Kathy Selvage and Ann League.

The Appalachian Treasures tour travels to a mountaintop wind farm in Maine.

With the stories of Kathy and many others, we’ve created a multimedia presentation, Appalachian Treasures, to highlight the impacts of mountaintop removal which we are excited to bring to your area. With your help we can build support in key Congressional districts across the country to gain support for the Clean Water Protection Act and the Appalachia Restoration Act. Along the way, we have traveled to over 20 states and talked to over 7,000 people directly. Next stop, Illinois!

So that’s where you come in! We want to meet with congressional representatives while we’re there. Would you like to come with us to tell your representative to support clean water and put an end to mountaintop removal?


To get involved click here!

Or email us at: Chicago@ilovemountains.org

Stay tuned for more information on presentations once the dates are finalized!

More about Ann League and Kathy Selvage

Ann League has been a member of SOCM (Statewide Organizing for Community empowerment) for several years, including serving a term as Vice-President of the SOCM Board, before joining the staff as an organizer in 2009. She was born in Seneca, S.C., the youngest of five, and moved to Tennessee when she was seventeen. Ann quickly fell in love with the mountains and people of east Tennessee, especially the Cumberland Mountains. She was first made aware of the devastating coal mining process called Mountaintop Removal (MTR) when the 2200 acre Zeb Mountain mine site was permitted not far from her then home in Campbell County. She has been fighting against MTR and other destructive mining practices and for a sustainable Appalachia ever since. Ann staffs the Campbell/Anderson chapter of SOCM and she staffs the E-3 (Energy, Ecology, Environmental Justice) Issues Committee. Ann is also an active member of The Alliance for Appalachia, a coalition of 13 groups across central Appalachia working to abolish MTR. Ann lives in Knoxville with her infinitely patient and understanding spouse equivalent, Jeff, and a pack of rescued dogs. No really, a pack of dogs.

Kathy Selvage is a lifelong resident of Wise County, VA, where her father was a coal miner and a proud member of the United Mine Workers of America. When mountaintop removal mining operations began to tear her community apart, however, Kathy could not remain silent and has since worked to bring local, regional and national exposure to the destruction that mountaintop removal coal mining is wreaking on the land, people, and culture of Appalachia. Kathy is the recipient of the 2006 S. Francis Ecological Award for innovative work promoting the interconnectedness of all life and was listed as one of 14 individuals and organizations making a difference in the future of Appalachia in Blue Ridge Country.

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Appalachian Treasures Visits Chicago

The coal industry’s war on water got another boost on June 22nd, when the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee passed the Clean Water Cooperative Federalism Act (HR 2018). The bill, resonant with blatant disregard for scientific data and human health, would effectively remove the federal government’s ability to regulate water, and place that regulatory power firmly in the hands of the state.

Just this week, leading figures in the US House of Representatives have added insult to injury by attempting to fast-track HR 2018, pushing forward a motion to “suspend the rules” and thus refusing to let the democratic process play out fairly. A little known loop in the legislative process, the House’s ability to issue a rule suspension removes procedural and other regulations that would stop or slow the House from considering a piece of proposed legislation. In order to suspend the rules, 2/3 of the House’s Members must be present, and if this majority votes in favor, the bill is considered passed.

For HR 2018, with 435 members currently in the House, only 145 Representatives would have to be present to vote against the motion and stop the fast tracking of a direct attack on Americans’ right to clean, healthy water. You can help us protect the EPA’s ability to protect our water: call your Congressperson (202)-224-3121 today, and ask him/her to vote against The Clean Water Cooperative Federalism Act (HR 2018) when it comes up for a vote on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives. You can also take action against HR 2018 HERE.

Let’s start holding the coal industry accountable for polluting our most vital of resources, and show them – and their supporters in Congress – that corporate interests will not be allowed to supersede our democratic process.

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Cheating Democracy: Suspending Your Right to Clean Water

Not only did Max and Dan utilize local craftsmen in the construction, The Crash Pad is tracking for LEED certification, and should be the first hostel in the country to be LEED Gold certified! Check out a few pictures below, and be sure to stop in if you’re in the area.  If you can’t get to Chattanooga anytime soon, you can still keep up with The Crash Pad on their website and facebook page.  Congratulations, Max and Dan!

The latest episode in the saga known as Big Coal’s Watergate began today when environmental and citizen groups filed a second notice of intent to sue the two largest mountaintop removal mining companies in Kentucky. Appalachian Voices, Kentuckians For The Commonwealth, Kentucky Riverkeeper, and Waterkeeper Alliance notified ICG and Frasure Creek Mining of their intent to sue the companies for more than 4,000 violations of the Clean Water Act — these on top of more than 20,000 violations the groups already sued over back in October.

As an editorial in the Lexington Herald-Leader wrote about the previous lawsuit against these same companies:

The environmental groups uncovered a massive failure by the industry to file accurate water discharge monitoring reports. They filed an intent to sue which triggered the investigation by the state’s Energy and Environment Cabinet. Also revealed was the cabinet’s failure to oversee a credible water monitoring program by the coal industry.

In some cases, state regulators allowed the companies to go for as long as three years without filing required quarterly water-monitoring reports. In other instances, the companies repeatedly filed the same highly detailed data, without even changing the dates. So complete was the lack of state oversight it’s impossible to say whether the mines were violating their water pollution permits or not.

This time around, none of the evidence that mines were violating pollution limits is in question. Moreover, the notice of intent to sue came at a particularly bad time for the coal industry and for Kentucky’s regulatory agencies, right when their momentum to hamstring the EPA’s authority was really starting to gather steam. Examples of recent anti-EPA efforts include:

1. Passage of a bill by the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee designed to eviscerate EPA’s authority to enforce the Clean Water Act;
2. Recent calls from at least three Republican presidential candidates to abolish the EPA altogether;
3. A bill that was introduced in the Senate last February that really would abolish the EPA.

In the midst of Big Coal’s anti-regulatory crusade, however, Kentucky coal companies have given Americans another unmistakable reminder of exactly why it is that we really, really need an EPA — and why polls show that the agency enjoys the overwhelming support of Americans pdf from across the political spectrum.

The new evidence that was provided by environmental and community groups of fraudulent reporting of pollution discharges by companies — allegations that were written off by Kentucky regulators as “transcription errors” — is beyond embarrassing for a state that is complaining to Congress, judges, and anyone else who will listen about how the EPA is overstepping its authority to protect waterways. The premise of the most recent anti-EPA bill is that a bunch of jack-booted thugs from the EPA are coming in and mucking things up for the state agencies, who already have their regulatory houses well in order.

In testimony before the House committee that passed the bill last week, Len Peters, the secretary of the Kentucky Environment and Energy Cabinet (the agency that enforces environmental laws in Kentucky), told members of Congress:

“Coal can be and is being mined in an environmentally responsible manner—we continue to make improvements, and the industry has been willing to do things better… We strongly believe the EPA’s objections to recent proposed draft permits for Clean Water Act 402 permits for surface mining operations in Kentucky were arbitrary.”

Furthermore, it was Peters’ agency that refused to sanction one of these same companies for dumping waste into streams without even bothering to obtain a permit pdf and called allegations by environmental groups that the state did a poor job of investigating their complaints “bordering on specious“.

But the new analysis of reports submitted by coal companies over the last few years leaves the coal companies and state regulators with a lot of explaining to do.

In a previous analysis, the water team at Appalachian Voices showed how monthly reports provided by coal companies of specific conductivity measurements in the discharge from mountaintop removal mines were extremely suspicious (specific conductivity is a measure of salt in water and is an indicator of a host of pollutants such as toxic metals and other dissolved solids). In brief, reports submitted after the April 1st announcement by the EPA of a new guidance on conductivity levels in the discharge from coal mines (shaded red in the chart below) showed a remarkable drop from levels reported before the EPA announcement (shaded green). In fact, standard statistical tests showed that the chance that these trends could be explained by random transcription errors or natural variation was nearly one in a googol (that’s a 1 with a hundred zeros after it).

After the previous lawsuit filed in October led the state to require companies to use new labs to monitor their mine discharge, the reports from these new labs (shown in blue), revealed even more stunning changes from the previous measurements. Moreover, conductivity was far from the only water quality measurement that showed jaw-dropping changes after the new water testing lab was hired — reported levels of manganese and total suspend solids showed similar trends. The previous reports were particularly hard to believe for anyone who has seen the water coming off of these mountaintop removal sites (see video from the Appalachian Water Watch team below).

Fortunately, this time the reported values pass the smell test, as they reflect the characteristics of independent measurements taken by scientists at universities and federal agencies. Unfortunately for the coal companies, these more realistic measurements reveal an enormous number of violations of all required monitoring parameters. Exceedances included everything from average monthly total suspended solids (TSS) levels up to 15 times higher than allowed by the permit, average monthly manganese and iron levels more than three times higher than allowed, as well as numerous pH, alkalinity and acidity violations.

No Laughing Matter

By almost any standard, the actions of Kentucky politicians and agency officials since the EPA first began its more stringent reviews of mountaintop removal permits have been absurd. For instance, the Lexington Herald-Leader reported this story on one Kentucky politician’s efforts to exempt the state from EPA enforcement:

“The EPA don’t understand mining,” House Natural Resources and Environment Chairman Jim Gooch, D-Providence, said at his committee’s hearing.

Gooch’s committee unanimously approved his House Bill 421, which would exempt coal mining from the federal Clean Water Act and other EPA regulation if the coal is used inside Kentucky and does not cross state lines. The lone critic at the hearing, environmental lawyer Tom FitzGerald, told lawmakers that about 20 percent of the sediment produced by coal mining goes into rivers that flow outside Kentucky’s borders.

Gooch went on to provide his opinion of just who should be considered the real experts on water quality, which, of course, is not scientists at the EPA but politicians like himself:

“The EPA — these are not elected officials,” David Gooch said. “They are career bureaucrats who sit in their ivory tower in Washington, D.C., and decide what the science should be.”

Things got even wackier when another Kentucky politician introduced legislation to declare Kentucky a “sanctuary state” for coal mining after hearing about “sanctuary cities” declaring themselves exempt from federal immigration law.

These shenanigans from Kentucky politicians and regulators would be hilarious were the stakes not so high for the people who live in communities impacted by mountaintop removal mines. But as more and more science comes out on the health impacts of living near mountaintop removal mines, the picture for residents of Appalachian coal communities get more and more bleak.

Just last week, researchers at Washington State University and West Virginia University published a peer-reviewed study entitled, “The Association between Mountaintop Mining and Birth Defects among Live Births in Central Appalachia, 1996-2003.” The study showed that six types of birth defects occurred more frequently in areas near mountaintop removal mines, as compared to non-mining areas. The main types of birth defects included: circulatory/respiratory, central nervous system, musculoskeletal, gastrointestinal, urogenital and problems from “other” types of defects.

Melissa Ahern of Washington State University, one of the authors, explained:

“The study shows that places where the environment — the earth, air and water — has undergone the greatest disturbance from mining are also the places where birth defect rates are the highest.”

This study came on the heels of another study published last month in the American Journal of Public Health that concluded, “Residents of mountaintop mining counties reported significantly more days of poor physical, mental, and activity limitation and poorer self-rated health compared with the other county groupings.”

And just yesterday, a study was published in the journal Population Health Metrics that helps put these health impacts in perspective as they relate to the lawsuit filed today against ICG and Frasure Creek. An analysis of life expectancy data released with the study showed that:

1. All of the eight counties in Kentucky where ICG and Frasure Creek operate mountaintop removal mines are among the bottom 10% of US counties in terms of life expectancy
2. All but two have seen a decrease in life expectancy over the past 10 years
3. Two of the counties, Perry and Pike, which happen to be the two biggest coal producing counties in Kentucky, were both among the bottom 10 (out of 3,147 counties) for trends in life expectancy between 1997 and 2007. While nationwide life expectancy increased by 1.5 years over the decade, average life expectancy in these two counties actually decreased by about a year.
4. All eight of the counties have lost population over the 20 year period of the study

Finally, while coal companies and supporters in Congress argue that EPA regulations are destroying jobs, while mountaintop removal mines create them, any objective analysis of actual data reveals that the opposite is true. Because underground mines employ more miners than mountaintop removal mines for every ton they produce, it turns out that EPA’s stricter enforcement appears to be leading to an increase in mining jobs — far from the alleged “Assault on Appalachian Jobs” that the EPA is accused of by members of Congress. As shown in the chart below, the number of mining jobs in Appalachia has increased by 3.5% since the EPA first began its enhanced review of mountaintop removal permits and that number is up by a whopping 8.5% since the start of the recession. By comparison, the overall US economy shed 5% of its workforce over that same period.

Americans Say: Let the EPA do its Job!

A poll pdf released earlier this year by NRDC found that:

1. Americans want the EPA to do more, not less. Almost two thirds of Americans (63 percent) say “the EPA needs to do more to hold polluters accountable and protect the air and water,” versus under a third (29 percent) who think the EPA already “does too much and places too many costly restrictions on businesses and individuals.”
2. Americans do not want Congress to kill the EPA’s anti-pollution updates… More than three out of four Americans (77 percent) — including 61 percent of Republicans – say “Congress (should) let the EPA do its job.”
3. The majority of Republicans – and all Americans – oppose the former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich’s plan to dismantle the EPA.

What today’s action by environmental and citizens groups shows is that the EPA needs to do a lot more to protect water quality of Appalachian streams and the health of Appalachian communities, not less. While some members of Congress and politicians in Kentucky and West Virginia will no doubt continue to make a fuss, the EPA would be neglecting its core responsibility if it backed off its recent enforcement actions one iota. The evidence that the state of Kentucky is unwilling or unable to enforce the Clean Water Act is overwhelming and cannot be ignored.

Fortunately for the EPA, two thirds of Americans support them doing a better job of holding polluters accountable. The EPA should listen to Americans and to their own scientists, not coal companies or disgruntled politicians. And beyond the EPA’s enforcement of the Clean Water Act, it’s time for the Obama Administration to strengthen its spine, stop playing politics, and put an end to mountaintop removal forever.

Click here to send a message to your member of Congress asking him or her to let EPA do its job and to oppose any efforts to roll back the agency’s authority.

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Kentucky Coal Companies Remind Us Why We Really, Really Need the EPA

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USFS Peregrine closures lifted

Wise Energy for Virginia is a growing coalition of national, regional and local organizations committed to securing a clean energy future for Virginia. Since 2007 Appalachian Voices, the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, the Sierra Club’s Virginia Chapter, the Southern Environmental Law Center and the Southern Appalachian Mountain Stewards joined together to fight against newly proposed coal-fired power plants in Virginia and raise awareness of the benefits of clean, renewable and efficient energy choices.

Job Description:

Reports to Campaign Organizing Manager(s)

Builds grassroots power by educating, recruiting and mobilizing citizens of the Hampton Roads and Northern Neck regions of Virginia to oppose the construction of the state’s largest coal-fired power plant in Surry County. Builds public engagement among members of the Northern Neck Electric Cooperative, and targeted downwind communities, specifically.

In Northern Neck, engagement will focus on customer electricity rates as well as transparency and accountability within the cooperative. Public engagement in Hampton Roads will focus on those that would receive the brunt of the economic and health effects of the proposed coal plant.

With direction from Campaign Managers, works independently to execute a campaign plan and carries out the tactics necessary to meet campaign objectives. Tracks timelines and reports on progress to Campaign Managers. Manages a varied and high volume workload.

Requires initiative and excellent time-management to work in the field, meet deadlines and accomplish goals.

The hire will be either: 1) a single full-time position with travel between Northern Neck and Hampton Roads; or, 2) two part-time positions fulfilling at least 25 hours/week; one in Hampton Roads and one in Northern Neck.

Applicants must indicate which position(s) they are applying for.

Terms: This is a contract position that will be full or part-time for three months, and will include a travel stipend.

Responsibilities:

• Collect petition signatures at relevant events and farmers markets; possibly canvass door to door
• Call petition signers and others about volunteering and attending events
• Recruit and work with volunteers to expand petition collection and turn out community members to events
• Get letters to the editor published in community newspapers
• Track and report activist engagement

Experience Necessary: At least 1 year of community organizing, campaign or related professional experience. Demonstrated ability to get members of the public excited about a campaign.

Location: Location convenient to both Hampton Roads and Northern Neck, such as Richmond or Williamsburg is ideal. For part time applicants the ability to live in Hampton Roads or Northern Neck during the time of employment is a plus. A history of living in either of these areas for both the full-time and part-time options is also a plus. Other locations within Virginia considered.

Salary: $2,000 a month for a single hired organizer (full-time), or $1,000 a month for part time positions in both Hampton Roads and Northern Neck plus travel expenses.

Deadline to Submit Application: Friday, July 8th.

Please send letter of inquiry, resume, and three references to:

Mike McCoy
Virginia Campaign Coordinator
Appalachian Voices
408 E. Market St. Suite 201C
Charlottesville, Va 22902
mike@appvoices.org

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Job Offer: Virginia Coal Campaign Organizer for the Wise Energy for Virginia Coalition

Enjoy biking, walking, running, stroller pushing, and many fun activities!

So decorate your bike, bring your family, and experience Boone Cyclovia!

Click over to cycloviaboone.org for more information…

In 1921, more than 10,000 coal miners marched through southern West Virginia for their right to unionize, for their right to a decent wage, for reasonable hours and other rights that we take for granted today. On Blair Mountain the march erupted into a violent skirmish between the marchers and local authorities and hired coal company union busters. The violence finally ended when federal troops were called in but not until bombs were dropped from planes on miners, an estimated million rounds were fired and over 100 people died.

Good evening!!

My name is Betsy Shepard and I am here to talk about my community’s fight against the largest coal fired power plant in the state of Virginia—and I will, but first…..can we talk about mountains for a minute?

I grew up in the mountains and being here in the West Virginia mountains is making me feel very nostalgic.

I haven’t lived in the mountains for many years, but I can still close my eyes and imagine the bright green fiddleheads of mountain ferns and know exactly what they smell like.

I can picture that spot driving up our mountain to my childhood home–where my ears would pop and the temperature would drop a glorious 10 degrees. The way the air smelled. The way the water sounded coming down the rocks.

I’ll never forget going on vacations as a child and my whole family commenting on how bad the “city water” tasted compared to our delicious well water.

And I will never, ever forget the magic of walking through the forest, stumbling upon the magnificent lady slipper orchid, and feeling like the luckiest person in the whole entire world.

So I don’t know about you all, but I love mountains!

Today, I live in a different kind of God’s Country. I live in Virginia Farmland, in a little place called Surry County.

Surry is just across the James River from Jamestown and Colonial Williamsburg. We’re home to the plantation that was given to Pocahontas as a marital dowry, and we’re about 15 miles from the glorious—and very polluted—Chesapeake Bay.

Until recently, our big claim to fame in Surry County was that we were the last county in Virginia with no traffic light.

Most of you, however, probably know Surry County for one of our more famous residents—a certain football player involved in dog fighting. Yes, Michael Vick. That’s us.

We are also home to a large nuclear power plant and its two million pounds of spent radioactive waste. That plant is about 8 miles from my house.

We are not NIMBYs. We don’t hate electricity. We accept the risks of living near a nuclear power plant. We believe in jobs and businesses.

My husband is a self employed plumber. He’s also a volunteer firefighter, and a town councilman.

I do the books and office work for our business. I home school our children and am the outgoing Vice President of our Chamber of Commerce.

We believe in jobs and we know first-hand what it’s like to live hand to mouth. To juggle the bills, to stand in the aisle at Wal-Mart and try to figure how many diapers you can afford for your baby, and hope that the work is still there next week, next month, next year.

All so you can live in a small town, and raise your kids with small town values, and not live in a loud, dirty city. (No offense to those who like cities.)

And I have a lot of respect for the hard working miners. Can we please take a minute and acknowledge how hard these folks work at jobs most people could not hack, so they can provide for their families?

So now to my situation: Two years ago they announced plans to build a massive coal fired power plant in my community. It would be the biggest coal plant in the state of Virginia. Eight miles from my house in the other direction.

Suffice to say, most of us were not real impressed.

First of all, the electricity from the coal power plant is not for us. The company that wants to build it serves Northern Virginia, Maryland and Delaware.

And, of course, this company plans to use Appalachian coal obtained through mountaintop removal coal mining.

This coal will be trucked into our community by the ton.

It will be burned by the ton.

And, according to the company who wants to build it, it will send toxic and carcinogenic pollutants into our air by the ton.

12,000 pounds of soot per day is what the company is proposing.

12,000 pounds of soot falling on our kids, in our rivers, on our gardens, on the food y’all will eat from our farms.

There’s also lead, arsenic, mercury, and about a million other things most of us can’t even pronounce.

What doesn’t go up smokestacks will be captured in the ash.

Ash that will be piled seven stories tall, over hundreds up acres, literally in people’s back yards, in floodplains, and over the town’s well water supply.

The plant and ash piles will occupy 2/3rds of the small town.

It will become the town.

It will be 3 miles from our schools; upwind of Norfolk, Virginia Beach, and all of Hampton Roads; and of course, on the same planet as the rest of you.

Our livelihoods depend on it not being built.

Our crops can’t take the ozone.

Our fish and crabs can’t take the nitrogen.

And should our water table become contaminated, our livestock can not survive on city water.

The company, Old Dominion Electric Cooperative seems to think we are rather dumb. They tell us things like, “The only thing coming out of the smokestacks is water vapor.”

We know that’s not true. We read their application. We may be rural, but we can read.

They tell us things like, “Don’t worry; you won’t be able to see the 650 foot smokestacks because we will plant 100 foot trees.”

We can also do basic math.

And my personal favorite: “The landfill will never leak.”

Of course, when my husband asked, “So you’ll put a lifetime guarantee on it?”

The response was, “Don’t be silly, Nothing lasts forever!”

Now I’m not saying we don’t have some dull knives in our drawer.

The Mayor of the town who approved this project did ask if they were going to make the coal at the coal plant. And the Chair of our County Supervisors said that if we didn’t take it, our neighboring county would, and we would get all the pollution and they would get all the money.

Our elected officials and these companies are fully prepared to sell out us and our children.

Most people in my community do not want to sell out our children.

Most people in my community do not want to sell out your children.

When I told them I was coming here, they asked me to tell you…

…that the children in your community do not deserve any less consideration than our own children!

They asked me to tell you that we are in this together. And we stand in solidarity with the people of Appalachia.

Before this coal plant fell in our laps we did not know about mountaintop removal.

We did not know.

And now we do.

And we want no part of it.

Let me be clear: We don’t want to take jobs from anyone!

We know what it’s like to try to provide for your family with the best alternative you’ve got.

But there has got to be a better choice for my community and your community than the choice between flipping burgers and flat out destroying where we live so we can feed our kids and pay our bills!

Of course we need electricity.

Of course, my community needs jobs.

Of course this community and all Appalachian communities need jobs.

But, we do not need jobs that pay in disease and destruction.

Now, there are those who say, “We need to take one for the team.”

They say electricity needs to remain “affordable” and without mountaintop removal and coal fired power plants, electricity rates would skyrocket.

Newsflash: When you are robbing Peter to pay Paul, it’s only a good deal if you’re not Peter!

And when we say that we’re not willing to take one for the team, what is it that they call us? Socialists.

Isn’t that the opposite of a socialist?

No thank you on volunteering to take one for the team. Because as far as I can tell, we’re not really on the team.

I lived in Northern Virginia for a few years. I saw how those folks lived. I cleaned their houses—their huge houses.

We don’t live that in Surry County.

We don’t have home theaters.

We go to the library to get online.

We hang our laundry and we run woodstoves.

In Surry County a “Blackberry” is a crop.

We don’t have “security systems.” We have dogs and we have guns.

And I can assure you the guys at the hunt clubs aren’t charging iPods, iPads, or iPhones.

I’m sure not one of our farmers has a Nook or a Kindle, and I’d bet good money if you asked them, they wouldn’t have a clue what you were talking about.

We don’t do all this because we’re environmentalists, we do it b/c we’re country. And we’re cheap.

When this all started they were showing us pictures of all the electronics and things that they were saying we needed all this power for. We sat there looking at each other asking, “What is all that?”

And when we told them we didn’t want this coal plant, they asked us, “Well, what’s your alternative?”

Excuse me? What’s our alternative? To what?

To making sure that the rest of the state—the rest of the country—continues to get cheap electricity on the backs of poor communities?

So they can live in ways that is so full of waste and extravagance?

We’re not saying folks have to live like us.

But, likewise, we shouldn’t have to eat it so they can live like that.

Lately I think about that big Firestone Tire recall that happened about 10 years ago: the tires were shredding off SUVs and people were getting injured and dying. Turned out the Firestone workers were on strike and non-union workers were the ones on the lines creating these malfunctioning tires.

Could you imagine if Firestone Tires turned to the American people and said, “Look. We need to keep tires affordable. What’s your alternative?”

Instead, we all understood that injury and death were not an acceptable outcome.

Not an acceptable side effect.

We understood that this company was going to be the one to eat the costs—no matter what they were.

And furthermore, we all understood that the company was going to have to figure out how to create a product that did not result in injury and death.

The coal companies and the electric companies need to be held to these same standards!

We need to stand together and demand that these companies go back to the drawing board to figure out an alternative.

And if they are unable to create jobs and create a product in a safe and affordable way, then maybe they are in over their heads.

Maybe they need to stop giving millions of dollars to politicians and start spending that money on hiring some people with the ability to think outside their one-trick-pony box.

Before I end, I must say “thank you” to some of the women who have not only been instrumental in the fight to save mountains, but have inspired and motivated us to fight to save our community.

Women like Kathy Selvage, Maria Gunnoe, and the late Judy Bonds.

As we sat in our homes, freaking out about our future, we saw amazing footage of these women. We wept as we watched their stories and their fights.

And we realized we could no longer entertain the thought of not fighting.

We could no longer tell ourselves, “It can’t be done.” That David could not walk straight up to Goliath and kick him in the junk.

Because, obviously, these brave mountain women were doing it.

They are doing it.

And now, we’re doing it.

You all are doing it.

And tomorrow we will meet up the brave folks who’ve been doing it in earnest for this last week.

We are in this together!

We are going to fight to keep MY community from being a sacrifice zone.

We are going to fight to keep THIS community from being a sacrifice zone.

We are going to fight so that generation after generation after generation can experience the magic of walking through the forest and stumbling upon the magnificent lady slipper orchid.

We are going to fight for real jobs and real choices!

We are going to fight for the Appalachian Mountains!

And we’re going to start right here, right now with Blair Mountain!

Click here for more information and more images of the Blair Mountain March.

Click here to learn more about, and to take action on, the coal-fired power plant proposed for Betsy’s home in Surry County, Va.

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Coal: From Surry, Va to Blair Mountain, Wv

“… a passionate and personal tale that honors the extraordinary power of ordinary Americans when they fight for what they believe in.”

Join Appalachian Voices in spreading the word about mountaintop removal coal mining – invite your friends to see The Last Mountain movie.

This highly visual and personal documentary is making waves across the nation, with many cities and venues holding the movie over for another week.

Directed by Bill Haney, the film chronicles the impact that mountaintop removal mining has on the Coal River Valley in West Virginia, and includes powerful interviews with local residents whose lives and livelihoods have been affected by mountaintop removal.

Appalachian Voices’ staff, representing iLoveMountains.org, will be present at numerous screenings this summer. Please support the fight to end mountaintop removal by attending a showing at a theater near you (dates where we will be in attendance at selected shows are highlighted in yellow below).

For more information about The Last Mountain, visit thelastmountainmovie.com

Make a pledge to see the Movie and or request the movie to come to YOUR area

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The Last Mountain movie

Coal plants = #1 source of mercury into our air. Bonding with water and falling from the air, mercury deposits in our lakes, rivers, streams, and other water bodies that provide drinking water, fish, recreation and ecological habitats. Read here & learn about mercury’s toxic effects. Right now, you can take a stand to reduce mercury emissions from coal plants across the country.

Click here to take action.

This past March, the EPA submitted stronger regulation standards for mercury, acid gases, and other toxic air pollutant emissions from power plants. Through July 5th, 2011, you can send a public comment to EPA Administrator Jackson in support of this progressive measure. There will be public hearings in Chicago (May 24), Philadelphia (May 24), and Atlanta (May 26). Comments can come in the form of letters, emails, or videos to be shown at public hearings.

A local example of mercury’s far reaching toxicity is Watauga Lake in Tennessee. As shown in the video below, Watauga Lake is a pristine, high elevation mountain lake with no direct pollution sources. Yet, the lake is listed under the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation’s precautionary fish advisory due to high mercury levels in fish tissue. Women who are nursing or pregnant and young children are advised not to eat these fish so as to reduce the risk of developmental and neurological deficiencies in children.

Clean air and water are human rights that must be protected from coal industry pollution. Your comment will only take a few minutes, but can help prevent years of environmental destruction from air toxins.

Voice your support for stronger EPA regulation of mercury and other air toxins HERE.

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Voice Your Support for Cleaner Air!

By Jillian Randel

Alpha Natural Resources announced on June 1 that it will acquiesce Massey Energy—a much anticipated move that has left many outraged.

Massey Energy—one of the largest coal operators in the nation—is also one of the most shameful players in the coal industry. Violations of human safety and environmental health get kicked around their coal fields faster than a soccer ball.

Controversy over the transfer of Massey executives, who will maintain management roles on the merged company, has simply added insult to injury. Many of them are believed to be responsible for the inadequate safety measures that resulted in the death of 29 miners during the Upper Big Branch mine disaster last year.

The announcement came after an attempted challenge in court by Massey shareholders who wanted the merger blocked. The same shareholders brought an initial suit against Massey executives for failing to monitor mine safety properly after the Upper Big Branch disaster. The merger, claimed shareholders, was a way for top executives to avoid paying for the losses—in the hundreds of millions of dollars—incurred from the disaster.

Union leaders and mine safety workers are fired up about the transfer. There were 71 deaths from mining incidents in the U.S. in 2010, a sharp increase from the previous year, and 28 of those deaths were Massey workers. Mine safety is a recurring topic and it is hard to believe that Alpha can step up its game on safety and health standards while acquiescing one of the biggest culprits in the industry.

Commenting on Massey, an Alpha report cited, “The Massey culture is driven by a strong focus on production and its associated components with other facets of the operations such as employee safety and regulatory compliance receiving minimal consideration.”

Ironic that Alpha would merge with a company it so clearly sees fault in—or not? Alpha itself does not have a clean record. In 2007, it was cited for safety violations following a roof collapse that killed two workers. Another of Alpha’s mines was cited for ventilation and coal dust violations. It seems the pot is calling the kettle black here, then hopping in bed with it as an afterthought.

Last year’s Upper Big Branch disaster sent Massey’s stock tumbling from $54 per share to below $30 per share. Selling the company has not only allowed top officials to possibly avoid lawsuits, but avoid further financial loss that resulted from the disaster.

Allowing high ranking officials to escape from their offenses is no unfamiliar accomplishment for Massey. Former CEO Don Blankenship was excused from his duties last year after a ten year stint running what many have dubbed “the deadliest coal company in America.”

While Blankenship was in “power” safety violations flew off the handle. It was under his leadership that the Upper Big Branch disaster occurred, one which he referred to as “an act of God” and “unavoidable,” despite the fact that in the year leading up to the incident, the Mine Safety and Health Administration cited Massey for over 500 violations.

Upon retirement, Blankenship received a $12 million dollar package to walk away from his war on Appalachia. He is like the Latin American dictator we never knew we had in our honeymoon version of a democracy. Justice seems to be buried so far below the earth’s surface in Blankenship’s world that victims of big coal have no hope of ever finding it.

The latest actions on behalf of Alpha prove that careless, reckless and greed-driven qualities are resume-standard skills for big coal leaders. Stuart Grant, a lawyer serving on behalf of the shareholders, commented to The New York Times, “These people are just going to walk. This ruling says you can be the worst C.E.O., you can violate all the laws you want, then you can arrange a sweetheart merger and just walk away.”

Well, merge they have. The public is still unsure whether or not Massey executives will have the opportunity to wipe their dirty hands clean and strut away from this mess. As of today, the suits will proceed in court, both for the Upper Big Branch disaster and a January 2006 fire that killed two Massey workers. Hold your breath though, Blankenship may still have the courts bought, and if so, there may be little in the way to stop him.

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Massey and Alpha: The Great Merge or a Buyout Splurge?

Adelind Horan performs Cry of the Mountain

Not to be overly dramatic, but one person portraying 13 characters in one performance sounds like a theatrical disaster waiting to happen. I’ve known actors to have mini-meltdowns over filling one role , so filling 13 just seems crazy.

But maybe Adelind Horan is crazy — crazy committed.

Cry of the Mountain, Horan’s masterful play about mountaintop removal coal mining, will run at Live Arts in Charlottesville, Va. from June 23 to 26. Join Appalachian Voices at the June 26 performance, followed by a discussion about coal mining, and a portion of your ticket sale will support Appalachian Voices’ efforts to stop mountaintop removal.

During the performance, Horan portrays 13 real people, speaking in their own words — taken verbatim from personal interviews — about how they have been affected by mountaintop removal coal mining. The video preview does not do Horan’s performance justice. Her versatility and attention to detail — every accent, pause, or stutter is perfectly reenacted in the play — gives Cry of the Mountain the strength and power that only a true story can have.

Called “must-see theater” and “enlightening, seamless, and wonderfully unique,” Horan’s crazy commitment to showing the true impacts of coal means that she portrays miners, scientists, mining executives, and everyone in between. As playwright David Mamet said, “That which comes from the heart goes to the heart,” and Cry of the Mountain certainly does.

Watch the video preview.

Buy tickets here.

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The Cry of the Mountain Continues