February 13th, 2007
First, all the trees are cut or burned or pushed into hollows. Then the blasting (which one elderly resident described as the “yell from hell”) and constant noise of heavy equipment interrupts the peace and quiet of life in the hills and hollows of SW VA. Along with the noise and blasting, comes the invasion of small particles of coal dust created by those blasts and the transportation of the coal. The dust not only covers porches and cars, but seeps into homes eventually destroying electrical boxes, furniture, rugs, appliances, personal health, and of course the quality of life every individual deserves.
The ultimate injustice, other than health issues, may be what happens to the precious mountains of SW VA. These not only provide beauty, subsistence, and fresh water, but as importantly feed the spiritual and cultural soul of the region. What happens is that they are flattened, literally, and only in the rare “poster child” site does the land ever return to productive use. Every working day (289 per year) in the six county coal area of Virginia nearly 1,000,000 pounds of explosives are used to blast away our Virginia mountains. Just in one county, Wise, more than 20% of the private acreage has been mined or is under permit to be mined. Also, according to the 2000 census report, 48.7% of the households in Wise County have less than $10,000 in income. The injustice that these numbers exhibit can’t portray the horror created, but they clearly show that mountaintop removal mining is not advantageous to most residents of Wise County.
Affected residents in SW VA and leaders of the newly formed grassroots group Southern Appalachian Mountain Stewards (SAMS) need your help. If you live close to Wise, please attend one of the meetings which occur the first and third Tuesdays of every month in Appalachia. If distance is a problem contact SAMS by calling the Mountain Link/Sams Office at 276-565-1083 or Kathy Selvage 276-328-1223.
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