Elisa Young’s Recent Comments

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  On White House refuses to disclose information on meetings with coal executives posted 4 months, 4 weeks ago 10 Responses

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  Coal does need to be replaced with renewable resources, and it can be.  They have shown now that renewables are less expensive than coal.  The entire United States could be fueled by wave energy within 10 years.  No coal.  My family has been on solar and geothermal for over 30 years.  They are not rich, but they made the decision to invest in those energies during the Carter administration when renewable energy tax credits were a priority - not fossil fuels. 

  The technology is here, what we need is real, honest political will to make the switch.  Shifting the subsidies off coal and putting them where they belong would be a good start.  Making sure that economic stimulus money does not go on coal (is any one paying attention?  It's going on coal, right now, as we type) is critical. 

  I am a seventh generation Appalachian living on a farm that has been in my family since shortly after the Revolutionary War.  We are surrounded by 4 coal-fired power plants and they want to add 5 more.  Nothing is going off line.  We would become the largest concentration of coal-fired power plants in the nation - 9 in a little over 10-mile radius, knowing that the majority of particulates fall within 15 miles.  We have the highest lung cancer death rate in the state, the shortest life expectancy, highest asthma rate and the air quality around our schools was recently ranked in the top 3rd percentile for the worst air quality in the nation - despite being a remote, rural farming community an hour away from any major city.  I have people come here from New Jersey, New York, Cleveland, you name it, and they can't breathe.  One of the villages near us whose emissions blow across our breathing space regularly was bought and depopulated by the energy industry as a result of "clean" coal technology (scrubbers) gone bad that was supposed to clean up the problem.  We now have different problems, and it's tripled the amount of waste left in our community - creating stepped up demand for more strip mining and more landfills. 

  Here is a video that highlights some of the challenges we are facing:  http://www.vimeo.com/2229549 

  If people are serious about stopping mountain top removal and global warming, you'd better pay attention to where that economic stimulus money is going.  It's not even existing money - it's future tax dollars that have yet to be earned.  Whatever infrastructure is created by that expenditure (which is not even ours to spend), is what our children and grandchildren will be forced to live with.  You can't fight coal mining by building more coal-dependent technologies like power plants, coal-to-liquids, and nuclear. 

  Stand up and demand that no more economic stimulus funding goes to dead end jobs that increase global warming like buildling roads.  We need to be putting construction skills and funding on public transportation.  The two biggest contributers to global warming are coal-fired power and transportation.  Transportation was in the lead the last time I looked.  If we are against global warming, why are we signing up our children and grandchildren to fund the construction of coal-fired power plants?  Or nuclear?  If anyone tells you nuclear is the preferred option to coal, don't join the chorus on our community's account. 

  Even nuclear power runs off coal.  There were 3 coal-fired power plants dedicated to furnishing energy for one uranium centrifuge here alone, and now they have gotten permits to put in another one.  If you think it's any mistake they are concentrating proposals for coal-fired power plants where nuclear facilities are also being proposed, think again. 

  We need renewable, non-polluting energy resources that will not poison future generations or condemn them to problems that we are unwilling to deal with ourselves.  It's absolutely shameful. 

  If we dont' stand up quick instead of waiting to see what those economic stimulus dollars are have been dedicated to, past tense, we are not going to have a planet left to stand on and neither will our children.  

  Elisa Young

  On White House refuses to disclose information on meetings with coal executives posted 4 months, 4 weeks ago 10 Responses

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  I'll say this. 

  I've never seen a resident protesting against MTR perpetrate an act of physical violence, even though the pro-coal people refer to them as environazis and terrorists. 

  I have witnessed repeatedly now physical assaults on peaceful demonstration participants who are attempting to protect their homes and lives.  People have had their faces smashed in, I have witnessed pro-coal people attempt to run citizens off the road, jump out of trucks to attack, gun their trucks up behind them, heard threatening phone calls, all types of physical and psychological abuse and intimidation.

  Yet media always portrays citizens attempting to protect their health and environment as a threat to society.  I'd feel a lot safer with a Judy Bonds to my back than the disgruntled mine workers I've seen, hands down, any day.  Is this culture of coal anything perpetuate?  Perpetration of violence and oppression against those who dare to reach out for something better that does not destroy our homes, land, air, water, health, and communities? 

  It will be interesting to see who's served justice on this one - how and how much. 

  Take note.  People ARE watching. 

   

  On VIDEO: Violent Massey attack on Goldman Prize winner Judy Bonds posted 5 months ago 2 Responses