Comments cisco has made

grew up there

from around 1975 to 85 i lived in a trailer on the side of a hill directly across from a strip mine, with only a creek, road and railroad in the divide. my father and grandfather, as well as guys i went to elementary school with all worked in the mines. ive seen the people, the equipment, and the damaging results up close.

the people there consider coal mining to be second nature- their very lifestyle for a hundred years or more, tradition. they see the damage, but see no other way to break the mold. luckily my family was an exception.

my grandparents live in a state park region in WV. as a boy i remember all the mountaintops being untouched- now it's rather blantant, many peaks are no longer there.

sometimes the mining companies give the land back to the owners, or the community. they build small airstrips, farming areas or even the odd golf course. but it in no way can repair the damage that has been done.

not only to the environment- you'd really have to visit and speak with the people. coal truck drivers are notorious for speed, both physical and ingested. drivers are usually paid by the load, so the more 'motivated' they are the more they earn. many of them are responsible for importing drugs into the very poor and ignorant communities deep in the hills there.

i used to be able to drink from the creek at my grandparents house. we'd swim, fish- whatever. now- the water is muddy, trashy.. and there are many floods during hard rains. the mountain tops are bare in many places, allowing rainwater to rush down into the valleys.

it's a big deal to me. i'm interested in finding out what more i can do to halt or at least slow these trends. if anyone has a tip - i hope they'll get in touch, and i hope this topic stays alive for awhile.On Harper's article on Appalachian mountaintop-removal mining causes outbreak of despair, depression posted 4 years, 6 months ago 6 Responses