Loose Leaf Notes

~ The following was published in The Floyd Press on August 5, 2010 and online HERE.

About 60 people gathered at the Winter Sun Hall on Thursday evening for a presentation and public discussion on the environmental impact and health effects of mountaintop removal mining. Following a potluck on the Dogtown Roadhouse porch, local organizer Theresa Gigante greeted attendees and thanked local businesses who made donations in support of the event.

Seven guest panelists representing citizen action groups, including Mountain Justice, Climate Ground Zero, and The Southern Appalachian Mountain Stewards explained the practice of strip mining, a technique that began in the 1970’s that uses explosives and large earth moving machinery to extract coal from the ground. Mountaintop removal is a form of strip mining in which the summits of mountains are blown off in order to expose underlying coal seams for extraction. The rubble (overburden) that results is dumped into nearby valleys, covering up head water streams and river systems and drying up wells. Toxic mining byproducts from mountaintop removal and coal processing have poisoned nearby drinking water. Airborne toxins and dust associated with the practice are also a health problem.

A slide show presentation shown at the event outlined strip mining and mountaintop removal operations that have impacted thousands of acres of Appalachian Mountains. A map showed the direct relationship between mining sites and our region’s source of electricity. Panelists shared the work their groups are doing to bring attention to the issue, which includes legislative work, picketing and protesting, non-violent acts of civil disobedience, building coalitions, supporting impacted communities and assisting them to develop economies that don’t rely on jobs from the coal industry.

“How many people know about the Buffalo Creek mining disaster?” a panelist asked. About a dozen in the hall were familiar with the 1972 tragedy that left 118 dead, 1,121 injured and 4,000 people homeless when heavy rains caused a mining refuge impoundment dam to burst. The amount of toxic material spilled from a recent dam break was more than the amount of oil recently spilled in the Gulf, another panelist cited. Toxic slurry from coal processing is also injected underground.

Attendee McCabe Coolidge commented, “Mining disasters come and go. They are every bit as destructive as what’s going on in the Gulf. But it’s not hot news or longstanding news. Why is it so hard to focus attention on this issue?” A panelist responded that New Orleans and Gulf ports are part of the country’s economy, whereas strip mining is done under the radar in poor rural mountain communities. Residents in those communities are often reluctant to speak out. Many of them and their family members are employed by the coal industry because mining jobs are the only good paying jobs available to them.

Responding to remarks about the increase of cancer and other illnesses in communities near strip mines – and after mason jars of dark contaminated tap water from those communities were passed around – a woman asked, “What is the state’s interest if the practice is such a health hazard?”

“States are run like businesses. 60% of the taxes collected in West Virginia come from coal severance taxes (a tax imposed by a state on the extraction of natural resources used in other states),” a panelist replied. Another panelist noted that the coal tax revenue goes to cities and not to the communities affected by mining practices.

“My grandfather was a miner. I remember when the area was beautiful,” said a West Virginia native, who voiced her frustration that the media and the coal companies stereotype those fighting against mountaintop removal as “a bunch of tree huggers” or “ignorant trash.”

Rain Lipson, who brought a supply of organic cotton t-shirts with “end mountain top removal” logos for sale, said when she goes to clothing tradeshows around the country many people out west don’t know what mountaintop removal mining is. Lipson said her company, Green Label Organics, donates a portion of their earnings to Ilovemountains.org and would donate to the groups in attendance.

Panelist Wendy Johnston grew up with coal mining in West Virginia. She became an activist when she inadvertently learned that a coal company in her region was seeking a permit to blast close to her family home. After getting online and finding support from Mountain Justice, she went door to door informing neighbors about the coal company’s plans and organized support for a public hearing. “You can ask for a hearing and they have to provide it but they don’t usually happen because the word is not getting out.”

Although coal companies are required to restore land deforested and damaged by strip mining, only a minimal amount of reclamation is done. Companies frequently apply for and get variances, which allow them to do even less. Often subsidiaries to larger companies go bankrupt before restoration. “Reclamation is a long term problem that will continue even after mountaintop removal is stopped,” a panelist noted.

Resistance to coal mining practices has been going on for 100’s of years and people have given their lives for the right to form unions. More recently, tens of thousands of mining jobs have been lost because of strip mining. “Strip mining is a conscious company strategy to hire less workers. There’s a real connection between strip mining coming in and companies driving unions into the ground,” said Roanoke panelist Jasper Conner, a member of the Southern Appalachian Mountain Stewards.

More publicity, developing alternative energy sources, and changing the climate of government were some of the suggestions raised. Attendees were invited to participate in a mobilization effort to abolish mountaintop removal mining, organized by Appalachia Rising (appalachiarising.org). The weekend of actions will take place in Washington D.C. on September 25 –27. “What does solidarity from Floyd look like?” a panel member asked. “We have resources. We can help you organize. We can get you a bus,” she offered.

“I think it’s pathetic that we can’t fish out of our streams,” said Sid Moye, Wendy Johnston’s father. “I can’t believe I spent 41 years doing nothing about this,” Johnston concluded. ~ Colleen Redman