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• Kathy Mattea agreed with audience member Greg Goleridge of AFSC when he commented that corporate personhood allows corporate money interest to interfere with democracy.
• Southern Ohio activist Elisa Young is fighting the five newly proposed coal plants that, when added to the four already in her county, will make her community home to the largest concentration of coal-fired plants in the nation--nine in an 11.5 mile radius. Ms. Young told the crowd that the people in her area already have the shortest life expectancy and highest asthma rate in the state of Ohio, which has been given one of the worst air quality ratings in the nation.
• Chuck Nelson was a coal miner for 35 years. He lost his job and his home after protesting the spewing dust and debris from a coal processing plant built in his hometown of Sylvester, W.Va. He is now employed by Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition in Huntington W.Va., working to protect land, water, and people’s lives. He told a story of a man who disagreed with the efforts of environmental activists because he felt loyal to the coal company that employed him. As time went by and the man learned more of the irreparable harm coal processing has on the land and the financial and physical suffering people experience because of it, he started to get active himself. That is until recently, when he died of cancer himself.
• Judy Bonds, whose gun-toting scene in the film leaves quite an impression as she tries to protect herself from the threats of those who oppose her efforts, expressed the absolute importance of replacing coal jobs with green jobs, for the benefit of future generations.
• Shirley Stewart Burns, Ph.D., co-editor of the film’s companion book: Coal Country: Rising Up Against Mountain Top Removal Mining and author of Bringing Down the Mountains: The Impact of Mountaintop Removal on Southern West Virginia Communities, spoke eloquently about the social and political impact mountain-top removal is having on the people in Appalachia.
When the panel discussion ended, throngs of movie-goers gathered around the PDA and Sierra Club tables seeking more information on the many issues upon which both organizations work. From PDA, of course, moviegoers received legislative updates on the healthcare debate, were encouraged to sign the petition to get single-payer healthcare on the ballot in Ohio, were given info on the G-20 meeting in Pittsburgh and were given flyers on antiwar actions to take place in Cleveland and Barberton, Ohio on Oct. 17.
Noting that Sen. Brown has yet to cosponsor S696, the Appalachian Restoration Act, PDAers passed out flyers and encouraged people to write and call Sen. Brown and ask, "If a supporter, why not cosponsor?" There are only seven senators co-sponsors so far. This act would amend language, as it currently stands, in the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to define "fill material" to mean pollutants that: (1) replace a portion of the water of the United States with dry land; or (2) modify the bottom elevation of a body of water for any purpose. It excludes from such definition: (1) the disposal of excess spoil material resulting from coal surface mining and reclamation activities in waters of the United States; or (2) trash or garbage. If passed, this could effectively end mountain-top removal. In the House, HR 1310 will do the same. See here if your congressman is a cosponsor and if not, write them to get on board.
Mari-Lynn and Geller were both very appreciative of the work of the organizing team, the fine atmosphere of the civic center, and the large turnout of the public to see their important film. Mari-Lynn, who is from West Virginia, said it was “wonderful to see so many people get to know about what is going on in a region where my roots run deep. Thank you PDA and Portage Trail Sierra Club for making this possible.”
Mountaintop removal is a modern and cheap form of coal mining. Almost 500 mountaintops have already been blasted off—25 tons of dynamite are used every day in West Virginia. More than 1000 miles of streams have been buried and destroyed. Coal slurry/sludge impoundments--filled with toxic chemicals--are precariously situated, like ominous dark clouds ready to unleash a violent storm, near the schools and homes of small towns. MTR only provides about 3500 jobs, mostly equipment operators—not coal miners, and mostly non-union. All of this is being imposed on one of the poorest regions in the country by the powerful coal industry that receives billions of dollars of government subsidies and boasts of billions of dollars in revenue. In the Coal Country companion book, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., says, “ This is not just a battle to save the environment. This is the subversion of our democracy….”
Now all energy must be focused on getting this documentary shown far and wide in house parties, in churches, and in theaters across the country. We can end this destructive practice and salvage the beauty of Appalachia and stop the polluting of the water, air, and land upon which the people of Appalachia depend. Email your member of Congress.
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