Every Time You Flip the Switch: Western New York Utilities' Role in Mountain Top Removal

<p>&nbsp;</p><p>[[{"type":"media","view_mode":"drupalimc_large","fid":"9922","attributes":{"alt":"","class":"media-image","typeof":"foaf:Image"}}]]</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Roland Micklem and Mike Roselle have been fasting for the past 18 days, consuming only water, coffee, and juice, as a way of publicly expressing their remorse and bearing witness to the wanton destruction of Appalachian lives and culture by coal companies.&nbsp; This destruction comes from a mining practice many of you are already aware of: Mountain Top Removal (MTR), and make no mistake, it's impact in this region goes far beyond aesthetic enjoyment.&nbsp; People are dying, and the purchasing practices of industries like Kodak and utilities like R.G. &amp; E. <a href="http://ilovemountains.org/myconnection/show_connection.php?pcaid=13501&amp;utlsrvid=16183&amp;zip=14615&amp;state=NY">(click here for detailed map of industries in WNY linked to MTR)</a> have made us directly culpable for this destruction in West Virginia.</p><p>[[{"type":"media","view_mode":"drupalimc_large","fid":"9926","attributes":{"alt":"","class":"media-image","typeof":"foaf:Image"}}]]</p><p>The current impetus for Mike and Roland’s public resistance is an impending expansion of a mining site in Kanawha County, just a few miles from the West Virginia capital. From within the Kanawha State Forest you can easily view the outskirts of a massive MTR operation in progress, one that soon will expand right to the border of the protected land.&nbsp; These mining operations all follow the same general pattern.&nbsp; Clear-cut the woods, peel off all of the topsoil, then blast and strip rock down through coal seams using explosives and a 20-story crane with a dragline(essentially a gymnasium-sized backhoe).&nbsp; The purpose of this destructive process is to mechanize coal mining as much as possible, eliminating the labor costs associated with underground mining. &nbsp;Needless to say, in spite of coal company rhetoric about jobs creation, the rise of MTR has coincided with a decline in total mining jobs in West Virginia, as the total amount of coal mined has steadily risen.</p><p>[[{"type":"media","view_mode":"drupalimc_large","fid":"9923","attributes":{"alt":"","class":"media-image","typeof":"foaf:Image"}}]]</p><p>View of active MTR mine from Kanawha State Forest</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>These mines are thousands of acres large and stay active for decades, progressively levelling verdant ridges and filling hollows and valleys where tightly knit communities have lived off the land for hundreds of years.&nbsp; Reclamation efforts, such as soil spreading, seeding, and tree planting, at least when pursued by mining companies, are largely futile, as everything from the topography to type of above-ground vegetative competition for seedlings to the soil chemistry of the mountain is changed by MTR.</p><p>[[{"type":"media","view_mode":"drupalimc_large","fid":"9924","attributes":{"alt":"","class":"media-image","typeof":"foaf:Image"}}]]</p><p>Edge of Kayford Mountain mine, where R.G. and E. and Kodak purchased coal, 10 years after "reclamation."</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>However cheap it is in dollars, MTR coal is astoundingly costly in human, plant, and animal lives.&nbsp; For miles around every MTR site, carcinogenic dust rains down, to the extent that school cafeterias have needed to bag their cooking supplies to keep from poisoning children.&nbsp; Neon orange runoff pools by the side of the highway. &nbsp;Billions of gallons of sludge from coal washing procedures pool in lakes across the mountains, threatening communities below with inescapable toxic flash flood in the case of a containment accident.</p><p>Furthermore, even in the wake of catastrophes that have claimed hundreds of lives, (please watch Debbie Jerrel’s testimonial below) coal interests have skirted regulations regarding basic safety planning in the past, placing a coal silo within a few hundred feet of a school and developing state-mandated “escape routes” that suggest people flee directly through the path of spilled toxic chemicals in the event of an emergency.</p><p>[[{"type":"media","view_mode":"drupalimc_large","fid":"9927","attributes":{"alt":"","class":"media-image","typeof":"foaf:Image"}}]]</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>As &nbsp;Debbie Jerrell says in the video above, every time we switch on a light switch a mountain explodes.&nbsp; It is our responisbility not just to become aware of this, but to do something about it.</p><p>So if you're in Western New York, and you're angry that this is going on in your name, please consider doing one of the following, according to your ability:</p><p>Roland and Mike have announced that their fast will end Friday, in order to give them time to build up enough strength to resist mining with direct action on Coal River Mountain.&nbsp; If you are prepared or can get prepared to join them, they will be announcing further details regarding this action and will be inviting others to do so.&nbsp; I know it's vague right now, but it is what it is.&nbsp; I'll post details here as I can.</p><p>Donate or volunteer with groups that protects mountains: <a href="http://www.crmw.net/get-involved.php">Coal River Mountain Watch</a>, <a href="http://climategroundzero.net/donate/">Climate Ground Zero</a>, <a href="http://www.theallianceforappalachia.org/">Alliance For Appalachia</a></p><p>Consider organizing a solidarity contingent to join Appalachian leaders in Washing D.C. September 8-9, 2014 for Our water, Our Future mobilization.&nbsp; Information <a href="http://ilovemountains.org/mobilize-for-our-water-our-future">here.</a></p><p>Lastly, as Debbie Jerrell said call New York and West Virginia legislators and business owners, requesting they stop buying MTR coal and that the ACHE act be passed, ensuring West Virginians protection from the particulate matter released during extensive surface mining.</p><p>Governor Tomlin of West Virginia: Office Telephone: 304-558-2000 or 1-888-438-2731; Mansion Telephone: 304-558-3588</p>

<p> </p> <p><div class="media media-element-container media-drupalimc_large"><div id="file-9922" class="file file-video file-video-youtube"> <h2 class="element-invisible"><a href="/file/9922">Roland Micklem, &quot;Do Something!&quot;</a></h2> <div class="content"> <div class="media-youtube-video media-image media-youtube-11"> <iframe class="media-youtube-player" width="620" height="480" title="Roland Micklem, &quot;Do Something!&quot;" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ni15c0_GHh8?wmode=opaque&controls=" name="Roland Micklem, &quot;Do Something!&quot;" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen>Video of Roland Micklem, &amp;quot;Do Something!&amp;quot;</iframe> </div> </div> </div> </div></p> <p> </p> <p>Roland Micklem and Mike Roselle have been fasting for the past 18 days, consuming only water, coffee, and juice, as a way of publicly expressing their remorse and bearing witness to the wanton destruction of Appalachian lives and culture by coal companies.  This destruction comes from a mining practice many of you are already aware of: Mountain Top Removal (MTR), and make no mistake, it's impact in this region goes far beyond aesthetic enjoyment.  People are dying, and the purchasing practices of industries like Kodak and utilities like R.G. &amp; E. <a href="http://ilovemountains.org/myconnection/show_connection.php?pcaid=13501&amp;utlsrvid=16183&amp;zip=14615&amp;state=NY">(click here for detailed map of industries in WNY linked to MTR)</a> have made us directly culpable for this destruction in West Virginia.</p> <p><div class="media media-element-container media-drupalimc_large"><div id="file-9926" class="file file-video file-video-youtube"> <h2 class="element-invisible"><a href="/file/9926">Mike Roselle on Human Costs of Mountain Top Removal</a></h2> <div class="content"> <div class="media-youtube-video media-image media-youtube-12"> <iframe class="media-youtube-player" width="620" height="480" title="Mike Roselle on Human Costs of Mountain Top Removal" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/eKIB3tCuDPs?wmode=opaque&controls=" name="Mike Roselle on Human Costs of Mountain Top Removal" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen>Video of Mike Roselle on Human Costs of Mountain Top Removal</iframe> </div> </div> </div> </div></p> <p>The current impetus for Mike and Roland’s public resistance is an impending expansion of a mining site in Kanawha County, just a few miles from the West Virginia capital. From within the Kanawha State Forest you can easily view the outskirts of a massive MTR operation in progress, one that soon will expand right to the border of the protected land.  These mining operations all follow the same general pattern.  Clear-cut the woods, peel off all of the topsoil, then blast and strip rock down through coal seams using explosives and a 20-story crane with a dragline(essentially a gymnasium-sized backhoe).  The purpose of this destructive process is to mechanize coal mining as much as possible, eliminating the labor costs associated with underground mining.  Needless to say, in spite of coal company rhetoric about jobs creation, the rise of MTR has coincided with a decline in total mining jobs in West Virginia, as the total amount of coal mined has steadily risen.</p> <p><div class="media media-element-container media-drupalimc_large"><div id="file-9923" class="file file-image file-image-jpeg"> <h2 class="element-invisible"><a href="/file/9923">kanawha1.JPG</a></h2> <div class="content"> <a href="http://rochester.indymedia.org/sites/default/files/kanawha1.JPG?width=500&amp;height=500" class="colorbox-load" alt=""><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="http://rochester.indymedia.org/sites/default/files/styles/drupalimc_large/public/kanawha1.JPG?itok=WkVG8pXn" alt="" title="" /></a> </div> </div> </div></p> <p>View of active MTR mine from Kanawha State Forest</p> <p> </p> <p>These mines are thousands of acres large and stay active for decades, progressively levelling verdant ridges and filling hollows and valleys where tightly knit communities have lived off the land for hundreds of years.  Reclamation efforts, such as soil spreading, seeding, and tree planting, at least when pursued by mining companies, are largely futile, as everything from the topography to type of above-ground vegetative competition for seedlings to the soil chemistry of the mountain is changed by MTR.</p> <p><div class="media media-element-container media-drupalimc_large"><div id="file-9924" class="file file-image file-image-jpeg"> <h2 class="element-invisible"><a href="/file/9924">kayford1.JPG</a></h2> <div class="content"> <a href="http://rochester.indymedia.org/sites/default/files/kayford1.JPG?width=500&amp;height=500" class="colorbox-load" alt=""><img typeof="foaf:Image" src="http://rochester.indymedia.org/sites/default/files/styles/drupalimc_large/public/kayford1.JPG?itok=FRFc2uVc" alt="" title="" /></a> </div> </div> </div></p> <p>Edge of Kayford Mountain mine, where R.G. and E. and Kodak purchased coal, 10 years after "reclamation."</p> <p> </p> <p>However cheap it is in dollars, MTR coal is astoundingly costly in human, plant, and animal lives.  For miles around every MTR site, carcinogenic dust rains down, to the extent that school cafeterias have needed to bag their cooking supplies to keep from poisoning children.  Neon orange runoff pools by the side of the highway.  Billions of gallons of sludge from coal washing procedures pool in lakes across the mountains, threatening communities below with inescapable toxic flash flood in the case of a containment accident.</p> <p>Furthermore, even in the wake of catastrophes that have claimed hundreds of lives, (please watch Debbie Jerrel’s testimonial below) coal interests have skirted regulations regarding basic safety planning in the past, placing a coal silo within a few hundred feet of a school and developing state-mandated “escape routes” that suggest people flee directly through the path of spilled toxic chemicals in the event of an emergency.</p> <p><div class="media media-element-container media-drupalimc_large"><div id="file-9927" class="file file-video file-video-youtube"> <h2 class="element-invisible"><a href="/file/9927">Debbie Jerrell Talks about MTR</a></h2> <div class="content"> <div class="media-youtube-video media-image media-youtube-13"> <iframe class="media-youtube-player" width="620" height="480" title="Debbie Jerrell Talks about MTR" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8OTRlqe6wN8?wmode=opaque&controls=" name="Debbie Jerrell Talks about MTR" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen>Video of Debbie Jerrell Talks about MTR</iframe> </div> </div> </div> </div></p> <p> </p> <p>As  Debbie Jerrell says in the video above, every time we switch on a light switch a mountain explodes.  It is our responisbility not just to become aware of this, but to do something about it.</p> <p>So if you're in Western New York, and you're angry that this is going on in your name, please consider doing one of the following, according to your ability:</p> <p>Roland and Mike have announced that their fast will end Friday, in order to give them time to build up enough strength to resist mining with direct action on Coal River Mountain.  If you are prepared or can get prepared to join them, they will be announcing further details regarding this action and will be inviting others to do so.  I know it's vague right now, but it is what it is.  I'll post details here as I can.</p> <p>Donate or volunteer with groups that protects mountains: <a href="http://www.crmw.net/get-involved.php">Coal River Mountain Watch</a>, <a href="http://climategroundzero.net/donate/">Climate Ground Zero</a>, <a href="http://www.theallianceforappalachia.org/">Alliance For Appalachia</a></p> <p>Consider organizing a solidarity contingent to join Appalachian leaders in Washing D.C. September 8-9, 2014 for Our water, Our Future mobilization.  Information <a href="http://ilovemountains.org/mobilize-for-our-water-our-future">here.</a></p> <p>Lastly, as Debbie Jerrell said call New York and West Virginia legislators and business owners, requesting they stop buying MTR coal and that the ACHE act be passed, ensuring West Virginians protection from the particulate matter released during extensive surface mining.</p> <p>Governor Tomlin of West Virginia: Office Telephone: 304-558-2000 or 1-888-438-2731; Mansion Telephone: 304-558-3588</p>