South Georgia Riverkeepers Host Mountaintop Removal Road Show January 25 - 28

Mountaintop removal is an abomination that must be seen to fully appreciate the level of devastation. Instead of traveling to West Virginia or the Appalachian Mountains, why not go to Waycross, Albany or Statesboro (or maybe even author Janisse Ray's house for a potluck!) and hear more about this environmental travesty.

Woven brightly,
Daniel J. Matthews, Jr.

 Date: Fri, 22 Jan 2010 15:21:36 -0500
 From: stewards@altamahariverkeeper.org
 To: stewards@altamahariverkeeper.org
 Subject: South Georgia Riverkeepers Host Mountaintop Removal Road Show January 25 - 28


 After seeing Kayford Mountain in West Virginia get blown up for coal,
 Dave Cooper decided to devote himself to stopping mountaintop removal.
 Dave will be traveling through south Georgia in late January, presenting
 the Mountaintop Removal Road Show.

 This issue is vitally important to Georgians as we fight new
 coal-fired power plants in our watershed proposed for Sandersville(Plant Washington)
in the Oconee watershed and Fitzgerald(Ben Hill)in the Ocmulgee watershed.
 Not only is coal disastrous to human health, the industrial mining of it is
 destroying the Appalachians, among the oldest mountains in the world.
 More than 450 mountains and summits (over 800 square miles) have been
 destroyed so far by mountaintop removal.

 More than 1,200 miles of streams across the region have been buried in
 valley fills or polluted between 1985 and 2001. Over 1000 miles of
 streams have been permitted to be buried -- this is a greater distance
 than the length of the entire Ohio River. Please take an evening to come
 hear about the greatest environmental travesty taking place on the
 American landscape.

 The Mountaintop Removal Road Show includes a stunning 20-minute slide
 show about the impacts of mountaintop removal on coalfield residents,
 communities and the environment, and features traditional Appalachian
 mountain music and shocking aerial photos of decapitated Appalachian
 mountains.

 We encourage you to attend the program nearest to you. The Satilla,
 Ogeechee, and Flint Riverkeepers are sponsoring the program at the
 locations below.

 Monday the 25th , Waycross, Okefenokee Tech Auditorium, 7pm

 Tuesday the 26th , Statesboro, Eagle Theater, Russell Union,
 Georgia Southern, 4:30pm

 Thursday the 28th , Albany, The Bridge House at 112 North
 Front Street (Albany Welcome Center), 7pm
 
 On Wednesday, Jan. 27, ARK members Raven Waters and Janisse Ray will
 host the program at their home near Reidsville, Georgia. The show starts
 at 7 p.m. and lasts about an hour. A potluck supper will immediately
 preceed the show, starting at 5:30. The Waters-Ray family request an
 RSVP for directions, (912) 557-1053.
 
 The Mountaintop Removal Road show in South Georgia is sponsored by
 Satilla Riverkeeper, Flint Riverkeeper, Ogeechee-Canoochee Riverkeeper,
 and the Altamaha Riverkeeper.

 Feel free to bring friends and to pass the word.




 -

Comments

TheDanLovingood said…
The South Georgia River Keepers criticize the development of Plant Washington and another facility planned for Ben Hill County for their use of coal derived by 'mountain-top removal' mining methods. Neither of these plants will utilize coal from West Virginia, Virginia, Tennessee or Kentucky - the areas where coal is mined by mountain-top removal techniques - but rather from deep underground mines in the Illinois Basin (long-wall mining) and Powder River Basin (PRB), Wyoming (deep open pit mining). The PRB coal areas are thoroughly reclaimed to the original topography and re-vegetated. I hope this helps clear things up regarding this discussion as the term "mountain-top removal" has no relevance to either Plant Washington or a similar one in Ben Hill County, both in the planning stages by Power4Georgians.
3:32 PM
Unknown said…
While Power4Georgians may "brag" that they plan to burn dirty coal from the Power River Basin (PRB) or Illinois, these types of coal have the highest imaginable sulfur content. Burning sulfur aggravates the lungs of children and the elderly. And, its trasnportation costs are higher because it's coming from far away.

In addition, Georgia has repeatedly been the #1 user of mountain-top removal coal from Appalachia in the entire country.

Georgia is home to the start of the AT; we are a member state of the Appalachian region. It's time we end our support of dirty coal and use the smart, safe resources our state possesses.

Doing so will be good for the economy and for the health of our children.

It's time that Power4Georgians pack up and call the coal game quits. We don't want your dirty coal in our backyard.
9:59 PM
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