It's February: Show the Mountains Some Love

February means oodles of activities for mountain lovers.

Today, Monday, Feb. 6: Energy Efficient West Virginia is encouraging all West Virginians to call in support of two bills that would save money and save energy.  Click here to learn more and obtain the info you need to make the call.  Once you have made the call, please fill out this form. 

Wednesday, Feb. 8:  E-Day expands: ONE WV Lobby Day at the WV State Capitol. Progressives Unite as One WV Supporting Justice for All.

8:30 - 10:00 a.m. - Advocacy training at Asbury United Methodist Church, 501 Elizabeth St., Charleston, WV.

9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. - Displays and exhibits by WV progressive organizations, lobby visits with your legislators, and more at the WV State Capitol.

All Lobby Day events are free, and breakfast and lunch are provided. More info here.

6 - 9 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 8: Join us at WVEC's Annual E-Day! Award and Benefit Dinner, at the Woman’s Club of Charleston. Congratulations to all the award winners, including OVEC’s Carol Warren and E-Council’s Leslee McCarthy, both of whom are receiving the Mothers Jones award.  Details here.

6 p.m., Thursday, Feb. 9: MU SEAC brings Larry Gibson and Chuck Nelson to speak on campus. Details here.

Tuesday, Feb. 14: I Love Mountains Day 2012 in Frankfort, KY. Kentuckians For The Commonwealth’s annual event really shows the mountains some love - especially when you join the march. Click here for more info.

3:00 - 5:00 p.m., Sunday, Feb. 19: “Hawks Nest: Blood Beneath Our Feet” at the WV Culture Center. Details here.

There's also quite a bit going on this month with Tennessee Loves Mountains. See United Mountain Defense’s website for info.

And remember: Save the Date - April 21 is OVEC's Victory Celebration Dance on the Eve of Earth Day. Details coming.

For more upcoming events, check our online calendar page often.

Mingo Mine "Scoping Meeting"

4:30 - 7 p.m., Thursday, Feb. 16: At the Mingo County Central High School, the US Army Corps of Engineers and the WV Department of Highways hold a “public scoping meeting” on the King Coal Highway Delbarton to Belo Project and Buffalo Mountain Surface Mine. More details here.

As reported in a Coal Tattoo entry: EPA said that this permit — a 2,308-acre proposal for the area between Belo and Delbarton in Mingo County — “is among the largest single mining projects ever proposed in Appalachia” and that “the scale and magnitude of environmental and water quality impacts from the mine as currently proposed are as significant as any mining operation we have reviewed in the past 20 years.”

Your Calls Need for Pilot Project

A root cause of so many of the social/ environmental problems OVEC has tackled over the years is special interest money in politics. That’s why OVEC leads the WV Clean Elections coalition.

Help the coalition by contacting members of the House Judiciary Committee. Ask them to support house bill 4416, to extend the Supreme Court Public Financing Pilot Project through the 2016 election cycle. It is important to give the program a fair trial, which is not possible in 2012, due to court decisions affecting the program’s matching funds provision.

Washington's Calling You

OVEC is a member group of The Alliance for Appalachia, which has some big plans in 2012.

If you are interested in any of the following, please contact OVEC staffer Robin Blakeman at 304-522-0246 or rbrobinjh@gmail.com.

Join us for “Mini-Lobby” days in Washington, D.C. We spend 2-3 days lobbying for legislation that will help end mountaintop removal and/or lobbying against legislation that would allow more MTR.  We’ll likely head to D.C.  for a couple of days in late April, July, and September.

The main event will be the June 2-6 End Mountaintop Removal Week in Washington. Politicians there need to hear from folks like you that our health, our water and our mountains matter. This year, we need participants who are willing to not only meet with their Congresspeople and agency officials, but also to stand up and take action to stop mountaintop removal coal mining. Yup, a Day of Action to End Mountaintop Removal will be part of this year’s End Mountaintop Removal Week in Washington.

Bird-dogs' paradise! The 2012 election campaigns offer a chance to publicly ask candidates where they stand on mountaintop removal.   Get involved with the "bird-dogging" (trying to catch candidates at times where you can ask them questions directly). There will be chances to bird-dog at local district offices, political rallies, including the RNC and DNC conventions.