( - promoted by Carnacki)
Coal issues are very relevant and important to me. It is a very important resource for West Virginia, but not our only means of making money. It has become less of a resource, more of an industry, and even more a political mechanism.
Coal now has a stranglehold on the state's economy and the fatcat coal barons (i.e. Don Blankenship among others) have been padding the pockets the legislature and judicial board for years now.
(If you need reference, look into how much money Blankenship donated to finance Brent Benjamin's campaign against McGraw on the court a few years back)
Pollution from Coal slurries in West Virginia has been a major problem, as well as the environmental effects of MountainTop Removal Mining across the state
Surface Mining has been a major issue across the state and now, a hearing before a chamber of judges will attempt to go over the environmental issues of Selenium deposits from the surface mines
This afternoon in federal court in Huntington, lawyers, scientists and economists will debate deformed fish, water pollution treatment systems and compliance costs ... It's the first day of what is expected to be a week-long hearing that amounts to a major showdown over selenium discharges by surface coal mines in Appalachia.
U.S. District Judge Robert C. Chambers will be hearing testimony and legal arguments in a combined series of cases in which environmental groups - the Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition, the West Virginia Highlands Conservancy and the Sierra Club - are trying to force subsidiaries of Patriot Coal to comply with existing pollution limits for selenium.
Source: Coal tattoo
As mentioned in the rest of the article on Coal Tattoo, Selenium deposits poison fish and cause deformities and other problems with the wildlife, This is only fish..
Coal is huge in West Virginia, but we need to diversify our economy.
These Pictures were taken by me when I ventured down to the Southern part of the state last week. The train cars were numbered in the hundreds stretching for no doubt miles. We need Green Jobs in West Virginia and the United States. Where is coal getting us? I don't disagree that it is crucial to our state's economy and the balance of jobs in West Virginia, but the trouble it brings is becoming more known.
With the Selenium deposits causing much trouble in the waters of the state, and coal slurries getting into the drinking water of residents who live near them... something must be done. |
