Dixie Transforming

The Lexington Herald-Leader published an interesting article on the prevalence of surface and MTR mining in KY.

Graphic credit: The Lexington Herald-Leader

The EPA issued groundbreaking new regulations to limit water pollution caused by mountain top removal mining practices.  This kind of mining is actively practiced in Eastern KY and West Virginia.

The new regulations on water pollution will in effect make it very difficult for mining companies to deposit blast material into adjacent valleys  (the material is termed as  “overburden” by the mining industry).   Limiting valley fills will make it very difficult to practice mountaintop removal mining.

There are many people in Eastern Kentucky who have worked diligently to organize around the issue of mountaintop removal mining and bring it to the attention of their Congressional representatives and government administrators.   People living in these parts of Appalachia do not object to mining in general – it is their historic livelihood.  But the practices of MTR do more than just harvest coal – streams are choked by valley fills, people’s homes are rocked by persistent blasting, and mountains are literally dissolved into rubble.  I appauld the efforts that made these regulations happen today.

Click here to read the NY Times’ article.  Click here to read the Washington Post’s article.

Last week was extremely busy.  I drove from Tennessee to Kentucky twice in the span of 4 days.  The third leg on this journey involved a two-night stop over in Kingston, TN.  I’ve already posted photos from Kingston on my photos page, so if you haven’t seen them you’ll want to click here.

Kingston is one of several stops on this trip where my focus is the the wastes of coal-fired energy and its detrimental impact on the landscape.   In December of 2008 an estimated billion gallons of coal ash slurry broke out of a containment pond at the TVA’s Kingston Coal Fire Plant.  The wall of toxic sludge overwhelmed several homes, deposited enormous “icebergs” of coal muck into recreational waterways, and forever changed patterns of daily life for hundreds of people who lived under the ominous shadows of the plant’s two towering smoke stacks.

Home along Swan Pond community engulfed in coal ash sludge.

This containment pond filled with 50 years worth of sludge ruptured (left edge) sending a billion gallons of liquid coal waste into the surrounding community of Kingston, TN.

Since early last year, TVA has been depositing the coal sludge into rail cars bound for rural Perry County, Alabama.  The clean up continues today, more than 15 months after the initial spill.  Trains will continue to depart from Kingston for another 6-9 months.

These rail cars filled with ash stored in plastic "burrito" wrappers are sent daily to rural Alabama.

In the wake of this disaster, all the bad things you can expect have happened.  People’s homes, some worth upwards of a million dollars, have no value on the open market.  The homes are uninsurable.  Waterfront uses on the properties of Swan Pond (boating, docks, catch-release fishing, etc.) are prohibited.   The patterns of daily life and rituals the community developed living so close to the water may bypass the next generation.  People who have refused the unfavorable government buyouts are scared – community trust is low.  Access in and out of the area is tightly controlled in order to keep the media at bay.  There is weak confidence that the TVA will complete the clean up and repairs in a way that will prevent such an event from happening in the future.

Kingston community members remain hopeful despite the struggles of the last year.  The long-term outlook for the Kingston-Harriman community, ironically, may very well be not too bad if the TVA cleans up the waterways, helps to resolve the community’s real estate quagmire, and radically considers changing the ways it stores coal ash.  Many changes to the status quo are needed from an agency not well-known for its flexibility, adaptability, or sympathy for the natural world.  Even if TVA commits to improve coal ash management practices, it will be a steep, painful and uphill battle for Kingston.

There is hope for the Kingston community despite the challenges before it.

Photo credits: photos 1 and 2 were taken from the Carbon Free Economy blog site.

If you’ve never made the time to spend a day with a retired underground coal miner, then I suggest you look at your calendar and block out a date to do it.  I did so myself a few months back.  Last week I finally met Carl Shoupe in person.

For the last several years, Carl has become an outspoken representative for the Tri-City community (Cumberland, Lynch and Benham, KY) in the fight to hold coal mining companies accountable for the harm inflicted on Eastern KY’s signature mountain landscapes.  New forms of mining developed to achieve efficiencies for mining companies have created immeasurable ecological, safety, and public health issues.  The biggest issue debated today is the present and future of mountain top removal mining.  It keeps Carl busy most days.

Carl’s network of friends in and around town was astonishing.  His past as an individual advocating for miners’ livelihoods lends to the sense of conflict within him in his newest role promoting sustainable energy initiatives and responsible mining practices in Harlan County.  Right now there is talk  about pilot wind power projects.  The problem with getting a wind project online in a place like Harlan is that all the best sites (mountain ridge lines) are owned by coal interests.  The ridge lines may not be there for much longer, so the sense of urgency grows with time.

Carl spent last Friday afternoon with me.  The next day he was headed to Washington, DC as a member of Kentuckians for the Commonwealth (KFTC) to do a variety of lobbying activities around town.  I hope all went well for Carl and friends in our nation’s capital.

After my visit with Carl, I met some other people involved in eastern KY’s social and economic advocacy network and even got to go up to a retired surface mine to plant some native hardwoods.  My neck and shoulders are still in pain from that one, but it was well worth it.  I just hope some of those little trees survive come 10 years.  Click here to see my surface mine photos.

Later, my friend Nathan Hall suggested some other places where development and mountain top removal mining have come face to face, peak to peak, toe to toe, so to speak.  On my way out of Kentucky, I passed through Hazard County and visited the Lowe’s and Walmart complex.  This generic strip mall was created by the obvious blasting away of several small mountains.

Building inside the mountains - click photo for enlarged image.

The mining industry argues that flat land created by MTR is needed for economic development.  While the community of Hazard now has a Walmart, in the process it probably lost some local, family-owned businesses in the process – local businesses that one could have possibly walk to and from their home.  Now residents of Hazard County personally foot the bill for gas and the inconvenience of traffic in order to have the privilege to shop there.  Seems like an interesting deal.

A mountain was unbuilt to make room for Lowe's.

It’s 8:30 PM and I am getting comfortable in my room.  This inn happens to be a converted school building, where children of coal miners went to both elementary and high school.  The place reminds me of Portland’s Kennedy School, minus the big crowds, bars, and outdoor seating.  In Washington, DC, an old grade school on Capitol Hill was converted into a fitness gym.  Both are extremely successful private investments.  While I shake my head at the closing of urban schools, I do welcome the fact these buildings are getting a second chance to contribute to urban life in two of America’s finest cities.   (Er, three finest cities, including Benham!)

I believe locals see the Benham School House Inn with the same degree of success.  With this inn, the town has the capability of hosting larger gatherings or meetings, weddings, and the odd out-of-towner such as myself.  Heck, I’d be staying off the interstate in a SleepInn if not for Benham’s fine centrally located accommodations.  My only complaint is that there wasn’t an obvious shop I could buy a snack from when I rolled in around 4:30pm.  You get what you can, I guess!

Tomorrow I meet with Carl Shoupe, a retired coal miner and currently a member of Benham’s city council.  His work is promoting sustainable initiatives in Benham, as well as campaigning against mountain top removal mining.  Look forward to having breakfast with him in the A.M.