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I am not a very political kinda lady. I like to think about the issues, discuss them with friends and family, and maybe even form a strong opinion now and again (beware the absolutes). But over the last few days I have become aware of a travesty that has gone without discussion in the political arena.
Last month, my husband and I were looking all over the Internet for our future homestead. (More on our dream later) After a massive search yielding little in our price range, we found a seeming diamond in the rough. A Victorian farmhouse from the late 1800's with 14 rolling acres in a cute town in West Virginia. The best part is that it was CHEAP!
I called my fellow blogger and best friend over at mama goes green and she said- "Oh Lindsay, that is beautiful now, but not for long. By the way, it is not safe to live there." I was shocked that there could be ghettos or crime rates higher there than in my metro area in Florida. But of course that was not what she was saying. She was referring to this largely covered up issue of MOUNTAINTOP REMOVAL.
Mountaintop removal is a radical form of coal mining in which entire mountains are literally blown up -- and it is happening here in America on a scale that is almost unimaginable.
Mountaintop removal is devastating hundreds of square miles of Appalachia; polluting the headwaters of rivers that provide drinking water to millions of Americans; and destroying a distinctly American culture that has endured for generations. (taken from ilovemountains.org)
If you check out you tube you will see so many heartbreaking videos of deaths, suffering and destruction due to the problem of mountaintop removal. I do feel angered by the fact that our mountains and our people, American people, are being forced to comply with these injustices.
This situation reminds me of Hurricane Katrina. There were people who were suffering and everyone was turning a deaf ear. Entire communities were devastated and an eerie silence followed because, poverty and race kept them from a platform to have a strong voice. The difference is that Katrina was a NATURAL disaster, while mountaintop removal for the purpose of cheap and easy energy, is a PREVENTABLE disaster.
It does not have to happen. A 3 year old does not have to die because a boulder rolls onto him as he sleeps. 15 year olds do not have to drown because of flooding in the valleys that normally had creeks and springs. And we do not have to blow up mountains to get at the coal. We don't even need coal if we use alternative forms of energy.
"Clean coal: Never was there an oxymoron more insidious, or more dangerous to our public health. Invoked as often by the Democratic presidential candidates as by the Republicans and by liberals and conservatives alike, this slogan has blindsided any meaningful progress toward a sustainable energy policy". (Jeff Biggers from the Washington Post penned this statement.)
When we buy our future home and land, we may not have an Appalachian mountain dream after all. We may have to plant our roots elsewhere for our own safety. This is not only disturbing, it is appalling and my rights have been limited once again.
Last month, my husband and I were looking all over the Internet for our future homestead. (More on our dream later) After a massive search yielding little in our price range, we found a seeming diamond in the rough. A Victorian farmhouse from the late 1800's with 14 rolling acres in a cute town in West Virginia. The best part is that it was CHEAP!
I called my fellow blogger and best friend over at mama goes green and she said- "Oh Lindsay, that is beautiful now, but not for long. By the way, it is not safe to live there." I was shocked that there could be ghettos or crime rates higher there than in my metro area in Florida. But of course that was not what she was saying. She was referring to this largely covered up issue of MOUNTAINTOP REMOVAL.
Mountaintop removal is a radical form of coal mining in which entire mountains are literally blown up -- and it is happening here in America on a scale that is almost unimaginable.
Mountaintop removal is devastating hundreds of square miles of Appalachia; polluting the headwaters of rivers that provide drinking water to millions of Americans; and destroying a distinctly American culture that has endured for generations. (taken from ilovemountains.org)
If you check out you tube you will see so many heartbreaking videos of deaths, suffering and destruction due to the problem of mountaintop removal. I do feel angered by the fact that our mountains and our people, American people, are being forced to comply with these injustices.
This situation reminds me of Hurricane Katrina. There were people who were suffering and everyone was turning a deaf ear. Entire communities were devastated and an eerie silence followed because, poverty and race kept them from a platform to have a strong voice. The difference is that Katrina was a NATURAL disaster, while mountaintop removal for the purpose of cheap and easy energy, is a PREVENTABLE disaster.
It does not have to happen. A 3 year old does not have to die because a boulder rolls onto him as he sleeps. 15 year olds do not have to drown because of flooding in the valleys that normally had creeks and springs. And we do not have to blow up mountains to get at the coal. We don't even need coal if we use alternative forms of energy.
"Clean coal: Never was there an oxymoron more insidious, or more dangerous to our public health. Invoked as often by the Democratic presidential candidates as by the Republicans and by liberals and conservatives alike, this slogan has blindsided any meaningful progress toward a sustainable energy policy". (Jeff Biggers from the Washington Post penned this statement.)
When we buy our future home and land, we may not have an Appalachian mountain dream after all. We may have to plant our roots elsewhere for our own safety. This is not only disturbing, it is appalling and my rights have been limited once again.
2 comments:
You remind me of a lost friend of mine. Thanks for writing this.
Friend,
I'm glad you're talking about it! Spread the word, and we'll try to make a difference.
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