Appalachian Public Interest Environmental Law (APIEL) conference 

University of Tennessee College of Law
Knoxville, Tennessee
October 20th-23th 2011

 APIEL brings together activists, attorneys, students, scientists and concerned citizens working for environmental justice throughout Appalachia and surrounding states. The conference features a series of workshops and dialogues led by activists, lawyers and scientists with the goal of exchanging information, sharing skills, and fostering collaboration between the grassroots, the bar, and future lawyers and policy-makers.
Workshops address the region's most pressing ecological problems, as well as the underlying laws, policies and institutional dynamics that have enabled these issues to occur. 
 
THIS years topics include: 

Tennessee's Life Cycle of Coal Field Trip
Mountaintop Removal and strip mining 
Taxation of Mineral Lands & Energy Justice
Energy Production and Public Health  
The Cherokee National Forest Landscape Restoration Initiative 
Environmental Health in Appalachia
Enforcement of the Clean Water Act 
Citizen Lands Unsuitable for Mining Victories
Appalachia in Transition
Basic TN Water Quality Laws
Attorney-Activist Organizer
Justice & American Activism: Role of the Jury
Economics for Advocates
And others!                                      

APIEL is modeled on the Public Interest Environmental Law Conference (PIELC) established in Eugene, Oregon, where once a year lawyers, law students, activists, scientists, funders, and media come from around the planet to be a part of the nation's leading annual environmental law convergence.

See the full schedule at the APIEL website www.apiel.com

Register Today to attend APIEL 2011!




 
Pumpkins Are Coming to Messiah Lutheran Church!

Buy Pumpkins to Support United Mountain Defense!


Messiah Lutheran Church is holding their annual Pumpkin Sale from now until the end of October 2011 and a portion of the proceeds is being donated to United Mountain Defense. We are so EXCITED!! Messiah Lutheran Church is located at 6900 Kingston Pike in Knoxville, TN near Papermill Road in West Knoxville. 
They have all sizes of pumpkins from little bitty to two arms full. Please stop by from 10am to dusk and pick up a free copy of the Mountain Defender newspaper and sign up for the United Mountain Defense email list serve when you purchase a pumpkin or join us every Tuesday night @7pm for our weekly volunteer meetings upstairs at Barley’s Restaurant at 200 East Jackson Ave in the Old City, Knoxville, TN.








 

Monitoring begins at Davis Creek Research Station
Scientific Research Station Camp

On Friday Sept 16, 2011 volunteers with United Mountain Defense and Mountain Justice set up a scientific research station in Campbell County, TN adjacent to Davis Creek Energy Mine Area #1 (OSM permit #3207, NPDES #TN0069248) on private property. This station was established in an effort to collect data about several coal mines in the immediate vicinity and their impacts on air and water quality. Volunteers at the station will record rain fall, wind speed, wind direction, blasting, and water quality along Davis Creek, Wolf Branch, Hogcamp Branch and other locations as well. Volunteers plan to be in the field each day collecting data and will be recording it on our blog, coalmineresearch.blogspot.com.



Elevation 1379 feet


GPS location

36 29 18.5
-84 03 12.8



Approximate location of Davis Creek Research Station on a map:


(scale is 1" for 400 feet)



For more information, including some of the data collected so far, visit the Davis Creek Research Station Blog.



We are also looking for volunteers to help out with staffing the research station. If you would like to help out please contact mattlandon2001@yahoo.com or umdvolunteerhouse@gmail.com or come to the United Mountain Defense weekly volunteer meetings every Tuesday night at 7pm upstairs at Barleys Resturant located at 200 East Jackson Street in Old City, Knoxville, TN.

Demand stronger oil and gas regulations in Tennessee!

at the

Oil and Gas Board meeting

August 25, 2011

New regulations governing oil and gas drilling in Tennessee will be reviewed and voted on by the Oil and Gas board on August 25. Come out and voice your support for more protection for people and the environment!

The Tennessee Department of Environmental Conservation worked closely with the industry (see the link below) to write the first draft of the regulations. United Mountain Defense and other groups worked hard to turn out nearly 200 people to public hearings this spring - all of whom spoke in favor of stronger environmental regulation.

After reviewing the comments, TDEC actually weakened the proposed rules.

Tennessee currently has no restrictions on hydrofracking. TDEC’s first set of revised regulations did not address this issue and instead of listening to public concerns about hydrofracking, TDEC has chosen to further weaken the rules.

We need everyone to come speak with one loud voice at the Oil and Gas board meeting!  We want more, stronger protections for worker safety, community health, and the environment.


What: Press Conference and Oil and Gas Board Meeting

When: Thursday, August 25 starting at 8:30 a.m

Where: TDEC office at  3711 Middlebrook Pike Knoxville, TN


How to Participate: Please come speak at the Oil and Gas Board Meeting – show the board that the public will not be ignored!  Talking points will be available - but even if you don't plan to speak, it's important to show up and let the Board know that the public is watching!  
More info here:  

TDEC asked the industry to help the write these rules: 


Here are the amended rules.  The text in red is the original proposed changes.  The blue text represents the changes TDEC made after the comment period:


More info about the Oil and Gas board.  They are all appointed by the governor.  Current board members include:

Jim Washburn:  President of the industry lobbying group TOGA (Tennessee Oil and Gas Association).  He's also a geologist who consults with the industry, and he's been an active opponent of more environmental protections in Tennessee.

Derek Gernt:  of the Bruno Gernt estate, a land company with at least 60 oil and gas wells on their property. 

Ken Haislip, a representative of the mineral industry.

More info about the board here:  http://www.tn.gov/


Open call/public exhibition: The Mountain Defender, an annual publication of United Mountain Defense, announces a call to artists for public showing and possible publication in our next issue (circulation: 20,000).

We’re looking for 2D work that speaks to our theme, “Breaking the Chains, Building the Future.” This edition will focus on moving beyond dirty energy and looking to a clean energy future in Tennessee. Our publication has a local focus, with a wider regional focus of
the Appalachian region. Our mission is to protect Tennessee’s watersheds, air, mountains and people. Particularly, we focus on issues of mountaintop removal coal mining, but we also work on oil, gas and nuclear issues, as well as promote clean energy.

We’d like highly evocative original work in any 2D medium. All submissions will be exhibited at a local gallery in a public showing, and we will hold a public voting for our centerfold, cover and back cover images. We ask that all submissions be received in physical format. If you must submit digitally, please include a $10 submission fee; checks should be written to United Mountain Defense.

We encourage artists to donate their work for a public auction fundraiser.

Please adhere to the following dimensions: for consideration for front or back cover, 10 ½” x 11 1/8” with no more than ½” border (photography is encouraged for front cover). For consideration for centerfold, 21” by 11 1/8” with no more than ½” border.

Deadline: August 31

To submit, please contact Holly Haworth to schedule a drop‐off. She can be reached at olmountaingal@gmail.com or (865) 266.9376. You may also call or e.mail with questions.



Please donate to help support the United Mountain Defense Volunteer House!

 
United Mountain Defense has been working in East Tennessee and across Appalachia on coal related issues since 2005 and oil and gas issues since November 2010. Nearly 300 visitors and interns have come through the volunteer house since we've had it, starting in November 2007.

The United Mountain Defense Volunteer House provides an office space, a storage space, a meeting space and a living space for people to come to East Tennessee to help United Mountain Defense protect the people and environment of Tennessee.   

Since the house is a home for interns and an office, there are bills that need to be paid. These bills include phone, electricity, water, internet, and general house repairs.

We need $3,300 per year to cover the expenses of running the volunteer house/office.  Can you please help?

Telephone--$720 per year
Water--$420 per year
Electric-- $1,200 per year
Internet-- $840 per year.   

Thanks! 


Action Alert – Oil and Gas Rally and Hearing
April 28, 2011



Tell the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) to regulate the oil and gas industry in Tennessee and protect us from Hydro Fracking.
Why: 

  • There is no regulation or reporting of fracking in Tennessee
  • The industry claims that hydrofracking is not used in Tennessee - but we have documentation of wells being fracked with up to 170,000 gallons of water and 4500 gallons of hydrochloric acid.
  • The industry claims that hydrofracking is completely safe - but how can any process that poisons hundreds of thousands or millions of gallons of water at one time be safe or smart?
  • The industry claims that natural gas is a clean fuel - but recent studies have shown that it might have a bigger effect on climate change than coal.
United Mountain Defense believes that the US should be pursuing policies that reduce our energy consumption, and we should be developing renewable energy sources instead of investing in dangerous and polluting technologies to meet our energy needs. 

If you want to get more involved in the fight against fracking come to the United Mountain Defense meetings, every Tuesday at 7 pm, upstairs at Barley's in the Old City, Knoxville.  Or get in touch with williamrwilson@gmail.com.
 

Check out this video.  It's a trailer for the beautiful and terrifying documentary, Gasland:

 



TAKE ACTION: Turn the New River watershed into a National Park

PROTECT OUR CULTURAL AND NATURAL HERITAGE WHILE CREATING AN ECONOMIC ENGINE FOR TENNESSEE.
 
 
United Mountain Defense calls for the designation of the New River watershed as a National Park.

On October 1, 2010, Governor Bredesen filed a Lands Unsuitable for Mining petition with the U.S. Department of Interior, Office of Surface Mining that would protect 65,000 acres of ridgeline in Anderson, Campbell, Morgan and Scott County. The area encompasses all the units that comprise the North Cumberland Wildlife Management area, including both the Royal Blue and Sundquist areas, as well as the New River watershed, which lies on the northern Cumberland Plateau, just northwest of Knoxville.

United Mountain Defense proposes that we not only protect the ridgelines but the entire New River Watershed from logging and mining. This area contains some of the most biologically diverse forest in the world and supports many rare and threatened species.

There are a host of reasons to designate the New River watershed as a National Park. Here are just a few:
  • A National Park would create jobs and a vibrant eco-tourism economy for the surrounding counties, which currently have some of the highest unemployment rates in the state.
  • Currently the area is ravaged by logging and strip mining, which results in severe erosion and landslides. The New River drains into the Cumberland River, which flows through Nashville. When heavy rains hit, flash flooding occurs, causing massive floods like the one that hit Nashville in May 2010, which caused millions of dollars of damage and ruined many lives. If we do not protect the New River watershed, we can expect to see Nashville suffer the consequences again in the future.
  • The area is already flanked by Frozen Head State Natural Area, Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, Obed Wild and Scenic River, the Cumberland Trail State Park, Lone Mountain State Forest, Catoosa State Wildlife Area, and the Royal Blue State Wildlife Management Area. The National Park designation, then, would unify a large network of areas that are already under various levels of protection, adding up to an acreage amount close to that of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GSMNP).
  •  More than one third of the US population lives within a 1-day drive of the Smokies—the same would hold true for the New River National Park.

United Mountain Defense has submitted a proposal to Governor-Elect Haslam. We need your help to encourage Governor-Elect Haslam to take action on this proposal. To read the full proposal click here.


Get behind this exciting vision today.
 
  1. Set up an appointment today to visit the Governor-Elect and talk to him about this proposal
  2. Call the Governor-Elect office today and ask Haslam to read the proposal.
  3. Send a letter to Haslam in support of the proposal to turn the New River watershed into a national park.
  4. You can also email the Governor-Elect by visiting the link below.
Organizations can sign on to the proposal by sending an email to Bonnie Swinford at umdvolunteerhouse@gmail.com. Please include your organization's name and contact person.

Contact his Transition office at:

1701 West End Avenue
Suite 300
Nashville, TN 37203
615-254-4799

or you can contact the Mayor's office until he is sworn in:

Janet McGaha, Office Manager
jmcgaha@cityofknoxville.org
Room 691, City County Building
Phone: 865-215-2040
Fax: 865-215-2085

Mailing address:
P.O. Box 1631
Knoxville, TN 37901

You can use the sample letter provided below but your letter will have much more impact if you personalize it, so take some time to add your own words and ideas.

Governor Haslam,


Hello, my name is __________________, and I am currently a resident of ___________________. I am writing to request that you read the New River National Park proposal that has been submitted to you by the Knoxville-based nonprofit, United Mountain Defense. I know that you must be very busy as governor elect, and I wish you luck. I hope that you find the time to read this proposal. The idea should be pursued, as it would greatly benefit our beautiful state of Tennessee.

Thank you,
________________________

Send to:
Janet McGaha
Office Manager, Mayor Haslam
P.O. Box 1631
Knoxville, TN 37901




Citizen's Voice: New River area ideal for national park

by Chris Irwin
www.knoxnews.com

Directly northwest of Knoxville lies the New River watershed. It should become a second economic engine like the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. United Mountain Defense calls for the establishment of the New River National Park for the following reasons.
The New River National Park would be worth hundreds of millions each year for Tennesseans - and employment in the economically challenged surrounding counties. www.knoxnews.com


Update from the EPA Coal Ash hearing
 
Knoxville, TN played host to the 8th and final EPA hearing on the proposed coal ash regulations. It seems only fitting that the circuit of hearings would end with a hearing hosted only miles from the site of the 2008 TVA Kingston spill. The hearing was a great success with strong coalition work to turnout an impressive grassroots showing of speakers and supporters for stronger regulations of coal ash.

The day was filled with powerful testimony from health experts, technical experts, concerned citizens, college students, residents from affected communities, 0environmental groups, elected officials, and much more. The EPA’s unofficial tally had 288 speakers throughout the day, and roughly 175+ of those speakers delivered comments in support of Subtitle C or stronger to regulate coal ash as a hazardous waste. During the day there were many coal ash recycling industry employee’s being paid to speak about the stigma of a hazardous waste designation and then after work hours concerned citizens and students showed up in great numbers to show how ordinary people feel about the dangers of coal ash.  

Highlights from the day included:
- An impressive morning vigil organized by Greenpeace and supported by volunteers with UMD and SOCM. Volunteers lined the entrance to the hearing with displays of graphic images of the TVA disaster showing industry participants the real impact on people’s lives.

- The delivery of over 6,500 comment postcards collected by sierra club staff and volunteers across the country to the EPA.

-A lunch time press conference with speakers including health experts, water experts, and citizens impacted locally by coal ash.

-A showing of the film “Perry County” with Q and A time with the film’s featured reporters and producer.

- “Coal ash is scary” Halloween themed rally organized by United Mountain Defense, Sothern Alliance for Clean Energy, Students Promoting Environmental Action,  and Greenpeace. Nearly 100 people turned out including students from around the region for a rally where they chanted "I am a young person, I care about my future, do better than option C."  Following the rally, many of those students marched right into the hearing late in the day to testify about how this mess shouldn't be left to them to clean up.


The press conference and hearing garnered strong media coverage on the proposed regulations. Today’s Knoxville News Sentinel ran front page, top of the fold coverage of the hearing and the need for tighter regulations and media coverage poured in throughout the day including live coverage on the 5 pm news of the evening rally. See the preliminary list of media coverage below.

Thanks to everyone who helped make this day a huge success.

Press Coverage:

- Knoxville News Sentinel- multiple stories, photo slide show and video of the coal is scary rally   
 http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2010/oct/28/epa-gathers-public-input-coal-ash-hearing/


-WBIR
http://www.wbir.com/news/article/139934/2/EPA-hears-passionate-pleas-on-both-sides-of-coal-ash-regulation-issue

-WVLT- Live coverage of the rally and all day hearing coverage  

-Roane County News

-WATE http://www.wate.com/Global/story.asp?S=13394458 and television coverage on 5 pm and 11 pm news

-WUOT coverage on morning radio and evening

- AP
 

67,000 acres of ridgeline off King Coal's chopping block????


Tennessee Governor, Phil Bredesen has filed a land’s unsuitable for mining petitions with the Federal Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement.

Ann Paine at the Tennessean has a story on this here, and a press release from the state Department of Environment and Conservation describes the action this way:

On October 1, 2010, the state of Tennessee filed a Lands Unsuitable for Mining petition with the U.S. Department of Interior, Office of Surface Mining. The petition signed by Governor Phil Bredesen requests the Office of Surface Mining find ridgelines on land managed for public use on the Northern Cumberland Plateau unsuitable for coal surface mining. Much of the property covered by the petition is part of Tennessee’s landmark 2007 “Connecting the Cumberlands” conservation initiative and is located in Anderson, Campbell, Morgan and Scott counties.

The Governor’s press release adds:

The areas covered by the petition include the Royal Blue, Sundquist and New River – also known as the Brimstone Tract Conservation Easement – units that comprise the North Cumberland Wildlife Management area. The petition area also includes the Emory River Tract Conservation Easement, which is managed by Frozen Head State Park for public use. A portion of the Cumberland Trail also traverses the property.

If approved by the Secretary of the Interior, the petition would prevent surface mining of coal for 600 feet on each side of the ridgelines in the designated area, creating a 1,200 foot ridgetop corridor encompassing approximately 67,000 acres. This area contains most of the older growth forest that exist in the area as well as a diverse array of habitats and wildlife, some of which are considered rare or threatened. The ridgelines covered in the petition include about 40 percent of the total North Cumberland Wildlife Management Area and Emory River Conservation Easement Tract.

What this means is that some of Tennessee's mountains will be protected where the state owns surface rights--but not all. Governor Bredesen is going to be forced to defend his decision during the comment period where we need to get as many voices as possible out to support this petition. All this is happening during the race for the governorship of the State of Tennessee. The battle between Governor Bredesen and the coal industry has the potential to force the debate past the state lines into other coal field states. This is what happened in the 70's when the Tennessee assembly debated the limitations to the broad form deed--which they passed. The impact of this petition goes beyond 65,000 acres. Its political impact will influence who the next Governor of Tennessee is and the very debate over strip mining and MTR. The debate during the broad form deed struggle here in Tennessee impacted strip mining nationwide in the 70's and is about to do so now once again over strip mining.

This is not the end of MTR in Tennessee. Entire ridges for miles are being ground into pulp while this process plays out as a freighting rate. But it is the first shot in what may be the final battle for the hills, mountains and watersheds of Appalachia.



The Appalachian Public Interest Environmental Law (APIEL) conference
University of Tennessee College of Law
Knoxville, Tennessee
November 19-21


APIEL is designed to unite activists, attorneys, students, scientists and concerned citizens working for environmental justice throughout Appalachian and surrounding states. The weekend conference will feature a series of workshops and dialogues led by activists and lawyers with the goal of exchanging information, sharing skills, and fostering collaboration between the grassroots and the bar in addressing the most pressing ecological problems of the Appalachian bioregion and the surrounding states. Topics include: mountaintop removal and strip mining, air and water pollution, coal combustion waste and coal plants, the Broadform Deed, chemical weapons disposal and the precautionary principle, wetlands protection in the Gulf region, forest protection and ecological restoration and experiencing the criminal system for activist.  
APIEL is an opportunity for activists and lawyers to learn from each other and to reach across state and regional lines to meet and network with others who share common interests and goals.

APIEL is modeled on the Public Interest Environmental Law Conference (PIELC) established in Eugene, Oregon, where once a year lawyers, law students, activists, funders, and media come from around the planet to be a part of the nation's leading annual environmental law convergence.

Weekend Overview:

Friday, November 19: Meet upstairs at Barley’s Tap room in the Old City for registration, dinner and socializing.
Saturday, November 20: Conference workshops and panels at the University of Tennessee Law School followed by evening social events.
Sunday, November 21: Morning workshops at the University of Tennessee Law School. Optional lunch out (not included in registration fee) and departure.


Registration
All conference participants must register by completing and submitting the registration form found on the APIEL blog at http://apielforms.blogspot.com/
 The attendance fee for the conference is $45 for Friday through Sunday which includes pizza on Friday night. All other meals, transportation and lodging are the responsibility of the participant. Participants who are only attending part of the conference may pay by the day, according to the prices listed below.
·         $45 Full weekend conference admission
·         Friday night $10, Saturday $25, Sunday $10
·         CLE credit is being organized and will be available as affordably as possible.
A limited number of scholarships are available by completing and submitting the fee waiver form found on the APIEL blog at http://apielforms.blogspot.com/

Workshops
We are currently accepting workshop proposals from lawyers and activist for the APIEL conference. To submit a workshop proposal please complete and submit the application found on the APIEL blog at http://apielforms.blogspot.com/

Sample workshops include the Endangered Species Act (ESA), National Pollution Discharge and Elimination System permits (NPDES), Section 404 of the Clean Water Act, Administrative law and procedures, The Broadform Deed,  Legal observing, Collecting Air and Water field data, How to work with your lawyer (for activists), How to work with your activist client (for lawyers), Mountain Top Removal mining (MTR), Water testing on strip mine sites, etc.

For More Information
Please visit the APIEL blog at http://apielknoxville.blogspot.com/ for more information.
Facebook event page:
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=101827116534567&ref=mf

For questions email: apielconference@yahoo.com

Or Call (865) 257-4029

FAX- 1-888-201-1104

Write: APIEL CONFERENCE
POB 20363
Knoxville, Tennessee
37920


APIEL registration download pdf at:
http://www.mediafire.com/?zmdigvenuaz

APIEL fee waiver request download pdf at:
http://www.mediafire.com/?gwnmtrdfzmd

APIEL workshop request download pdf at:
http://www.mediafire.com/?ni5jznzo02n

 
 Appalachia Rising
A mass mobilization to end mountaintop removal
"We will not stand idly by as we see mountaintop removal blast our heritage to rubble, eliminate our communities and mountains, and poison our neighbors, as coal executives and their shareholders grow rich. Appalachians are not, and never will be, collateral damage for our nation's energy consumption!" Vision Statement, Appalachia Rising.  This cry is echoing from every corner of Appalachia – will you respond?
 
Announcing the nation's largest summit and day of action to end mountaintop removal:
Appalachia Rising
September 25 to 27, Washington DC.
 
Mountaintop removal has already destroyed over 500 of the world's oldest mountains, more than 2,000 miles of streams, and has contaminated our nation's waters. Stand for the abolition of mountaintop removal with the named and unnamed heroes of coalfield organizing and celebrities Woody Harrelson, Ashley Judd, Gloria Reuben, Ed Begley Jr., Kathy Mattea, Kyra Sedgewick, Kevin Bacon Darryl Hannah, author Silas House, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and climate scientist James Hansen on the Monday, September 27 Day of Action!
 
Register Now! Click here or go to www.appalachiarising.org/registration/reg1.php
 
Get involved and join people from across Appalachia and America in building the movement to abolish mountaintop removal and create sustainable economies from the ground up: mobilize your friends, family, and community for Appalachia Rising by filling out this 5 question form by clicking here.
 
Appalachia is Rising video!
 
Stories from the Mountains
Mickey and Nina McCoy live in Inez , Kentucky , in the heart of eastern Kentucky 's coal-industry-ravaged mountains. "Our streams were killed and people's homes flooded by over 300 million gallons of toxic coal sludge from a breach in Massey Energy's Martin County sludge dam on October 11, 2000. We are yet to see the full extent of the devastation. Cancer rates are rising in the toxic flood's wake – now is the time for action, before it is too late," said Mickey McCoy.
 
In Wise County, Virginia, retired underground miners and residents are uniting to defend Ison Rock Ridge from obliteration at the hands of A & G Coal. Virginia's Department of Mines, Minerals, and Energy approved the company's application for a 1,230 acre mountaintop removal site. "This is another permit being railroaded by state regulatory agencies," said Jane Branham, vice-president of Southern Appalachian Mountain Stewards. "We have significant concerns about the impact of this permit on our waterways, our community and quality of life for those of us who live in the shadow of this permit."
 
Judy Bonds was the last woman out of her mountain holler, Brushy Fork, when Massey Energy moved in to build a 9-billion-gallon coal slurry dam on Coal River Mountain. After being forced to abandon her home and watching her holler transform into a ghost town, she joined Coal River Mountain Watch, a community group in the Coal River Valley, to fight to protect other communities like hers. "Stop Bombing Appalachia. We demand an end to the blasting of our ancestral mountains and homes and an end to the poisoning of our streams," she said. "On September 27, we will stand with all Americans to demand clean water for all our children and grandchildren."
 
Appalachia Rising is 100% funded by grassroots donations. Please make it possible, make a donation by clicking here.
 
See you in Washington DC!
Appalachia Rising Organizing Team
 
Appalachia Rising is Endorsed By:
 Organizations:
Coal River Mountain Watch, On Coal River, Coal Country, Burning the Future, Rainforest Action Network, Student Environmental Action Coalition, Mountain Justice, Climate Ground Zero, Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition, Rising Tide, Chesapeake Climate Action Network, West Virginia Labor History Association, Progressive Democrats of West Virginia, Progressive Democrats of America, United for Peace and Justice, Mountain Keepers, Great Turning, Appalachian Institute for Renewable Energy, Topless America Project, Earth Savers, Heartwood, Kentucky Heartwood, CLEAN, United Mountain Defense, Green America, Beehive Collective, WildEarth Guardians, NY Loves Mountains, Church of Life After Shopping, WV Mountain Party, Northern Virginia Greens, Earth Justice, Presbyterian Earthcare, Social Justice Committee of the UU Ohio-Meadville District, 2/3 Goat, Demolition String Band, Nuclear Information and Resource Services, The Great Turning
 
Celebrities:
James Hansen, Judy Bonds, Maria Gunnoe, Bo Webb, Chuck Nelson, Gloria Reuben, Ashley Judd, Ed Begley Jr., Woody Harrelson, Kathy Mattea, Darryl Hannah, Silas House
 



 

  One Year After the Tennessee Valley Authority Disaster in Roane County, TN  

Environmental Integrity Project (EIP) released a report on December 14, 2009, titled “Outside the Law: Restoring Accountability to the Tennessee Valley Authority” that details the TVA’s poor environmental track record at its 11 coal-fired power plants and reveals How TVA Avoids Compliance with Federal Environmental Laws.

United Mountain Defense, EIP and leading national and southeastern U.S. environmental organizations urged the Obama Administration and Congress to take action to reform the TVA in a letter to the White House.

You can find both documents at: http://www.environmentalintegrity.org/



TVA Coal Ash Disaster,1 year later by Delano Williams -  November 11, 2009


Delano Williams is very concerned about the long term health impacts of living near the world's largest coal fly ash disaster. The Tennessee Valley Authority who is responsible for this disaster has not come to Delano's home or his neighborhood. Delano lives less than 1 mile from the disaster.

Pam and Gary Topmiller talk about living next to the TVA coal ash disaster 1 year after the disaster

Pam and Gary Topmiller live directly across the Emory River from the TVA Coal Ash Disaster site. Most of their neighbors have taken a loss on their property by selling to TVA and leaving the area. Many of the houses stand vacant, a modern day ghost town with toxic coal ash in the air. The Topmillers are staying strong and want TVA to do the right thing.


Cumberland County Coal Ash Landfill Public Hearing
Say Yes to Protecting Cumberland County and Our Smith Mountain Neighbors


The Office of Surface Mining will have a public hearing on the proposal to put newly generated coal ash from the TVA’s  Kingston Fossil Steam Plant on top of a coal mine valley fill on Crossville Coal Turner Surface mine also know as Smith Mountain.  Show up and show your opposition to using Cumberland County as an ash dump.  The public hearing is at Stone Memorial High School. 2800 Cook Road, Crossville, TN on November 5 at 6:00 p.m.
 
OSM can stop the coal ash landfill!  Show up and tell OSM why you don’t want coal as in Cumberland County.

If you wish to speak you will have three minutes. 

You can also submit written comments at the public hearing. 

Or submit written comments by email at:
Or submit written comments by mail to: 
Office of Surface Mining
 710 Locust Street, 2nd Floor
 Knoxville, TN 37902.
 
 


OSM Mine site visit 10-27-09 Crossvillie Coal Turner Surface Mine
A drive over the valley fill.

Water testing 10-27-09 Crossville Coal Turner Surface Mine

 

Save Coal River Mountain!

Across the country a coalition of environmental groups are calling for the EPA to stop recent blasting on Coal River Mountain, WV. Find out what you can do.
What you can do right now: Call EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson and ask her to stop the blasting at Coal River Mountain.
 
Mountaintop Removal Protest Go Nationwide
On Oct 30 2009 protest where held across America at EPA regional headquarters, JP Morgan Chase branches and other pillars of support for mountaintop removal strip mining.
 
Click here for more information about the different events, and to see photos, videos, and media links.


 


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