August 30 |
OVEC Action
Alert Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition |
 |
Sept. 25 - 27:
Hey Masses, Come to DC to Show the Mountains Some Love
If you are an OVEC
member, you should have received our snail-mailing about
Appalachia
Rising: Voices from the Mountains,
a weekend conference culminating in a day of mass mobilization
calling for the abolition of mountaintop removal and surface mining.
Register today by clicking here. The $50 registration fee for the conference covers housing, food, workshops, and trainings. Scholarships are available, but organizers ask that you try to raise your own funds. There is no fee for the day of mass mobilization, but donations for the entire event are, of course, most welcome.
OVEC is helping to organize travel to the conference and the permitted rally; volunteers are driving vans from points in West Virginia to the event. We still have a few open spaces. Please contact Stephanie Tyree right away if you want to help drive a van, help fill a van or need a ride. Call Stephanie at 304-574-6121 or e-mail her at stephanie@sludgesafety.org. Or, we highly encourage you to grab some friends and organize your own car pool to DC.
On Sept. 26, Sierra Club is sending a bus from Charleston, through Morgantown and on to DC. The bus will return after the mass mobilization on Monday, Sept. 27. If you want to ride that bus, you will need to reserve a seat and arrange overnight accommodations, which include options such as floor space for $5, bunk beds for $30. You can reply to this e-mail with SC Bus in the subject line and we will pass that along to Sierra Club organizers.
Do more than just sign a petition; show the mountains some love. This event can only be success with your participation. Help Recruit: Mobilize Your Community for Appalachia Rising. See you in DC!
Appalachia Rising depends on grassroots funding. Please donate to Appalachia Rising.
By the way, OVEC board member Regina Hendrix and OVEC volunteer Chuck Nelson are joining Coal River Valley resident Bo Webb and others today in DC for an Appalachian Rising press conference. We will post news coverage here tomorrow.
Coal Ash
Hearings Begin, Comment Period On
People, people, people, when will you ever learn that toxic sludge
is good for you? Wait! Don't swallow the coal industry's propaganda
- comment about coal ash regulation. 1Sky has this succinct
summary (with some links we've added, too) of what is up and how to
take action:
Time to crack down on toxic coal ash
Coal power plants are by far the biggest sources of greenhouse gas
emissions in this country. Their pollution is making our planet a more
dangerous place to live. But these coal plants also produce a by-product
waste called "coal ash."
Coal ash contains toxic chemicals like arsenic, mercury and lead
that can poison the water supplies of entire communities and are known
to cause birth defects and premature deaths.
The Obama Administration is planning to regulate coal ash as "hazardous waste" - and as you'd expect, Dirty Coal and their allies plan to fight these regulations tooth and nail to protect their profits. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) needs to hear from you today. Tell the EPA you support cracking down on Dirty Coal and their dangerous coal ash.
On December 22, 2008, a ruptured ash dike at the Kingston Fossil Plant in Eastern Tennessee released 1.1 billion gallons of coal ash -- enough to fill 1,660 Olympic-sized swimming pools. The spill covered nearly 400 acres of land, causing major property and environmental damage. The sludge contained high levels of heavy metals like arsenic, lead and selenium that can cause cancer and neurological problems. This is exactly the kind of disaster that the EPA needs to prevent in the future with tough regulations.
The EPA will hold public hearings in seven cities about these coal ash regulations over the next few weeks, so it's critical that they hear from you right now. If you live near any of the following cities, please sign up to attend an EPA hearing on coal ash regulations near you:
* Today, August 30: Arlington, VA at the Hyatt Regency Crystal City (till 9 p.m. today)
* Thursday, September 2: Denver, CO at the Grand Hyatt
* Sept. 2: People's Hearing in Roane County, Tennessee (this one by the people, not EPA)
* Wednesday, September 8: Dallas, TX at the Hyatt Regency Dallas
* Tuesday, September 14: Charlotte, NC at the Holiday Inn Charlotte (Airport)
* Thursday, September 16: Chicago, IL at the Hilton Chicago
* Tuesday, September 21: Pittsburgh, PA at the Omni Hotel
* Tuesday, September 28: Louisville, KY at the Seelbach Hilton
The more they hear from concerned citizens like you, the harder it will be for Dirty Coal to block these regulations. Let's protect the health of our families and communities - send your comments to the EPA today and sign up to attend a hearing near you.
Stunning
Visual Aid to Understanding the True Cost of Coal
If you haven't seen it yet, do go check out the
Beehive Collective's
True Cost of Coal poster.
Viewing the poster might stoke your comments
on coal ash regulation and move you to DC for
Appalachia
Rising, where you can see a giant version of the Bees' poster
in person.
Sept. 4:
Learn the True History of Coal Industry Abuses
We hope you can join us on Saturday, Sept. 4 from noon to 5 p.m.
at the
Whipple Company Store for some Labor Day Doins. The
Whipple Company Store offers a fascinating look at what life was
like in the coal camps - and helps you understand why we are still
fighting for justice. This event is sponsored by the
Friends of Blair Mountain and will feature music, food, free
tours of the store and Blair Mountain artifacts. Bring your
musical instruments, join in the fun and fellowship.
Supporting sponsors include OVEC, Appalachian Community Services, Appalachian Voices, MountainWhispers.com, Radford University Appalachian Regional Studies Center and Appalachian Studies Program, Sierra Club, Talking Across the Lines, UMWA Local 8843 (Cannelton), UMWA Local 1440 (Matewan), WV Highlands Conservancy, WV Labor History Association. Info: call 304-465-0331.
Sept 13:
Recycle Mountain at the WV State Capitol
Pick
Up America is in West Virginia right now, seeking volunteers
to
help pick up trash and recyclables along our roadways.
Several members of the group attended OVEC's membership and
supporter picnic, held Friday in Barboursville. At the picnic, one PUA Up America
volunteer donated $10 to OVEC - $10 found while picking up trash.
PUA has collected a mountain of recyclables while here. On Monday, Sept. 13, PUA is asking for help in building a mountain out of those recyclables on the State Capitol grounds. Recycle Mountain is as an environmental art project intended to encourage the passage of a Bottle Bill for the great state of West Virginia. Meet at Hadadd Riverfront Park at 11 a.m. Reply to this e-mail, and we will send along the complete schedule for the 13th. PUA notes, "Just like in nature how all things breakdown and provide nourishment for others, Recycle Mountain will be disassembled and recycled at the Kanawha County Solid Waste Authority."
www.ohvec.org 304-522-0246 vivian@ohvec.org |
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