November 29 |
OVEC Action
Alert Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition |
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Rulings
Riles Residents, Responsible People Everywhere
If you've been following the
news, you know the big-business-friendly 4th Circuit Court of
Appeals overturned Judge Goodwin's ruling, which had revoked 11
permits for mountaintop removal valley fills. We had
challenged the Army Corps of Engineers rubber-stamp issuing of
these "Nationwide 21" permits. Such permits are only intended for
activities that cause no more than "minimal" environmental damage.
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With "minimal impact" like this, who and what can survive even "medium impact"? |
Don't worry too much--terrible rulings like this usually cause more people to be stirred to action! After all, affected residents and their informed allies everywhere know mountaintop removal is immoral and plain wrong. We do have other lawsuits in the courts, because, just like most valley fills, many aspects of mountaintop removal are illegal.
However, lawsuits are only one prong of the campaign to end mountaintop removal. The main component of the campaign is: you! Organized, outraged people will end this heinous mining practice! Hint--write letters to the editors, call your state, local and national officials. Find contact information for almost any paper in the US by clicking here. And e-mail vivian@ohvec.org or call the OVEC office at 304-522-0246 if you would like to volunteer to help in any number of ways.
Just in case you were wondering how decisions like this get made, why politicians and their appointees can so blatantly pander to the corporations while ignoring the needs of the people--check this out: Coal has given millions to candidates, report says.
So there's another prong of OVEC's work to end mountaintop removal: Fair and Clean Elections. Watch these Actions Alerts! for ways you can advance Fair and Clean Elections, and help to curb both mountaintop removal and coal sludge impoundments during the 2006 WV Legislative Session.
OVEC
Holiday Gift Ideas
If you’re looking for a gift
that gives twice, look no more! Support us by buying a gift
membership to OVEC. Your friend or relative will receive OVEC’s
Winds of
Change to keep him/her informed on OVEC’s efforts to ban
mountaintop removal, the
Sludge Safety Project, our efforts to win
Fair and
Clean Election support, OVEC’s civic engagement efforts and
more! Since we are sensitive to your wallet/purse, membership
ranges from $15 to $30, according to one’s ability to pay. Why not
give OVEC a boost this Christmas and help spread the word that
mountain destruction in West Virginia must be stopped!
And if you want to dig a little deeper, we still have some of the exquisite hand blown West Virginia glass Christmas ornaments designed by glass artisan Kelsey Murphy for OVEC in previous years. These collectibles feature a bird or plant species whose habitat is endangered by mountaintop removal. In stock are Blood Root (white), Jack-in-the-Pulpit (amethyst), Cerulean Warbler (cobalt) and Wood Thrush (amber). Click here and scroll down to see photos of the ornaments, which are $40 each or two for $75. Please add an additional $5 for shipping and handling. Quantities are limited.
We also have the great music CD, Moving Mountains, for $15, as well as the book, Missing Mountains, for $16.
Other items for sale include our 2005 Treehuggers’ Ball T-shirts in several colors—with a fabulous design by W.Va. artist Joe Lung. T-shirt sizes range from small to 2X-large at $15 to $18 (larges are sold out). Some smaller short sleeve shirts are suitable for slender teens or children. We have two styles of tote bags ($10 and $20) and baseball caps ($15) with OVEC’s logo. Call for the OVEC office at 304-522-0246 or e-mail vivian@ohvec.org for sizes, colors and to make purchases. Shipping costs may vary; be sure to allow enough time for mailing!
Dec. 3:
Day of Action for Planet in Peril
December 3 is an International Day of Action on Global Warming, with
worldwide synchronized demonstrations. The actions
coincide with the
UN climate talks occurring now in Montréal. If nothing is
planned in
your area, grab some friends and head out to the sidewalks to
educate passersby about
global warming and the
disgraceful dealings of the Bush Administration.
If that doesn't suit you, how about pressuring your Senators and Representative on global warming? Please go to GlobalWarmingSolution.org, click on "4 Climate Change Questions" in the left column, or click here.
Of course, one day of action, isn't enough. Click here for ideas on what you can do to make a difference!
Survey
Says...
This summer, OVEC staff and volunteers helped with
Coal River
Mountain Watch's health survey of
Marsh Fork Elementary School students. Click
here to read the results of the survey.
Save the
Dates
Jan. 16: Annual
Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial March
in Huntington, W. Va., held
in conjunction with Marshall University’s MLK, Jr. Thirteenth Annual
Symposium. More details coming.
Jan. 25: 7 p.m. at the Cultural Center, State Capitol Complex, Charleston, W. Va., John Hoskyns-Abrahall, the founder of Bullfrog Films, presents “Do social issue films have any influence?” Bullfrog Films distributes films about the environment, including “Razing Appalachia,” about mountaintop removal mining.
Feb. 11 and 12: The West Virginia Energy Gathering for Students and Youth. This statewide summit meets Feb. 11 at St. John's Episcopal Church in Charleston, W.Va. Feb. 12 field trip to Kayford Mountain. Housing assistance is needed; please contact abe@ohvec.org if you can provide shelter to the youth.
Saturday begins with folks from different communities/schools relating to the larger group their local issues and activism around environmental/social justice (especially directly related to energy). OVEC's Abraham Mwaura will give a workshop in basic community organizing. Liz Veazy will lead a workshop on Campus Clean Energy campaigns. Participants will discuss potential collaborative projects.
Many non-student youth from around the state, and students from Shepherd, Marshall and WV Universities as well as Glenville State have committed to attend; students from Wheeling Jesuit, Bethany College and Fairmont and other higher education institutions have also expressed interest. Get your college or friends involved! E-mail abe@ohvec.org for more info.
Help Get
Stamps of Approval for Mother Jones and Eugene Debs
The West Virginia Labor History Association board urges you to
support a nationwide campaign petitioning the U.S. Postal
Service to create commemorate stamps in honor of two American labor
leaders –
Mother Jones and
Eugene Debs.
The board joins this campaign in collaboration with Sanford Berman, an activist librarian who successfully petitioned the Library of Congress to create WV-related subject headings including “mountaintop removal mining,” “West Virginia Mine Wars, 1897-1921” and “The Battle of Blair Mountain, 1921.”
Please send a letter or post card requesting that stamps be printed in honor of Mother Jones and Eugene Debs to:
Citizens’ Stamp Advisory Committee
Stamp Development;
U.S. Postal Service
1735 North Lynn St. Rm. 5013
Arlington, VA.22209-6432
Please also send a copy of your
communication to:
Sanford Berman
4400 Morningside Road
Edina, Mn. 55416
November
Hightower Lowdown on Mountaintop Removal
Jim Hightower's November 2005
Hightower
Lowdown was all about mountaintop removal, and OVEC is proud
to have provided information and contacts for this national
newsletter. Click
here to read the newsletter. In 2006, stayed tuned for more
major national media coverage of the movement to end the massacre of
our mountains! And in the meantime, stay informed on enrgy issues by
checking the
OVEC
news page, which is updated daily.
www.ohvec.org 304-522-0246 vivian@ohvec.org |
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