Heather Taylor-Miesle's Blog
West Virginia - Flat-top Mountain Mama
August 23, 2007
Posted by Heather Taylor-Miesle in U.S. Law and Policy
I like to start my morning with a little bit of reading from the Washington Post, the New York Times, Roll Call and the Drudge Report. Not only does reading the news give my body time to absorb my coffee before the sprint of each day begins, it helps me figure out what is going on in the world and what to expect from DC.
I am hoping that this morning was just an off day because today's top stories were about a study that confirms that sex exists beyond 50 (TMI), the food-fight like skirmish between Stephen Colbert and British Billionaire, Sir Richard Branson (which was hilarious), and the sad details of a dog-fighting ring run by a pro-athlete (sick). There were other important stories in the news about Iraq and the Utah mines but they didn't necessarily receive top billing. One story that went largely unnoticed was done by John Broder of the New York Times titled, Rule to Expand Mountaintop Coal Mining.
My family is from West Virginia. When I was little, we spent most summers traveling around from church to church with my grandfather, who was a minister in the state. With its lush forests, beautiful shallow streams and genuinely kind-hearted people, it is a lovely place to visit. Unfortunately, that might not last. The Bush Administration is set to finalize a regulation tomorrow that would expand mining operations that literally blast off the top of mountains in a quest to find coal. More of the debris that is left over will be dumped in the nearest waterway where it will no doubt pollute the very water that most drink from. It is unfortunate that West Virginia is ground zero for this practice and its people and environment are going to be on the raw end of the deal.
What is also unfortunate is that the President is using the timing of a national tragedy to boost this new policy. Most people have been watching with hopeful hearts the horrible events that happened at the Crandall Canyon Mine in Utah. I think most have said a prayer for those miners who are trapped, their families and the rescue teams that have literally lost life in search for their fallen colleagues. The Administration is quick to point out that mountaintop coal mining is safer and cheaper that the type of mining done in Utah. Maybe it is logistically safer in the short run but it won't be safer in the long run if the land and waterways are destroyed.
West Virginia's state slogan used to be "Wild and Wonderful." Now it is "Open for Business." Although this new policy may be good for business in the short run, it lacks any long term thought. What is going to happen when no one wants to fish in your streams? What happens when the mining operations cease and you are left with even higher unemployment and blighted flat-top mountains? What happens when public health is in danger because there is no clean water to drink due to mining-slurry contaminated wells? West Virginia may still be open for business when this happens, but who is going to want to do business there? Not me.
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Comments
Ian — Aug 23 2007 05:27 PM
That story definitely didn't escape my notice.
The mere mention of mountaintop removal makes me so angry I'm sure I shoot steam from my ears, like Yosemite Sam in an old Warner Bros. cartoon. It is such a viscerally stupid tradeoff -- "lets cash in this billion-year-old mountain -- and the communities, rivers, and landscapes around it -- for some short-sighted profit-taking and a commodity that's brought us to the brink of a global climate disaster! Yay!"
Georgia to Maine, I love the Appalachian chain's forests and weathered peaks. What's happening in southern Appalachia -- particularly West Virginia and and Kentucky -- is just outright heartbreaking, and criminal. Here are two must-reads from OnEarth Magazine on the subject. And visit ilovemountains.org to learn more and take some action.