Emergency trip to DC!

STILL ON! Emergency trip to DC! May 14-15

Update: (4-12-02) We have a couple of open seats on the bus, because a few of the folks scheduled to be on board had to cancel--they are dealing with the after math of the recent deadly floods. Please call the office at 304-522-0246 if you would like to fill the vacant seats. 

Update:  (4-10-02) The bus is now full! If you have to cancel, let us know ASAP, as we have people on standby. Call 304-522-0246, leave a message.

(4-09-02) Now that Judge Haden has made his awesome ruling that valley fills are illegal (see news articles on home page), our trip to DC takes on important new meaning. Note that Judge Haden's ruling emphasizes there are still procedures the coal industry can follow that would allow for valley fill permits. Also note that some members of Congress will today (Thursday, May 9) introduce legislation that would overturn Bush's rule change that legalized valley fills. This legislative move will further bolster Haden's ruling. We coalfield residents need to be in DC to publicly support Judge Haden, bolster congressional efforts regarding Bush's rule change and to help legislators connect the dots between mountaintop removal and the most recent round of disastrous floods. Please join us on the trip to DC! 

(4-07-02) OVEC (with DC help from Earth Justice and the Clean Water Network, Friends of the Earth, and Citizens Coal Council) is organizing a bus trip to DC on May 14 - 15 (next Tues. and Wed.) to talk to politicians who are sympathetic to mountains, streams and coalfield communities, since the Bush Administration has changed a Clean Water Act rule,  t making valley fills legal. A May 4th editorial in the New York Times urged Senators Jeffords, Lieberman and others to look into this rule change with an eye to reversing it. We need to make sure we have a strong presence in DC to let them know that West Virginia will no longer be the nation's sacrifice zone for "cheap" energy! With the most recent floods, West Virginians are paying the cost with their lives and homes.

Here is the latest information on the bus trip to Washington DC.  You may wish to print this and keep for reference.  You must pre-register ASAP to ride the bus. Call Dave at 304-522-0246 or e-mail dave@ohvec.org.

The bus will leave at 1:00 p.m. Tuesday, May 14 from the Nitro, WV Park & Drive, exit 45 on I64, about 10 miles west of Charleston. The Park & Drive lot is located almost directly underneath the Interstate, and has space for about 25 cars. Please carpool to the meeting place if possible, it may be a little tight. If the Park & Drive lot is full, proceed on the highway (not the interstate) towards Nitro and there is an Econo Lodge about 1/2 mile down the road. The manager of the Econo Lodge has agreed to let us park extra cars there Tuesday and Wednesday for free, and we can shuttle people back to the bus. Some may wish to stay there Wednesday night when we return, the motel number is (304) 755-8341 for reservations.

We will proceed north from Charleston on I79, make a quick stop in Weston WV to pick up some folks, possibly meeting at the Weston McDonalds restaurant.

There are tentative plans to make an additional stop in Morgantown. If anyone has a suggestion for a place to meet there, or if you would like to suggest an alternate stop, please advise by replying. We want to try and limit the number of stops on the way, but we will try and accommodate you!

The bus will travel east on Interstate 68 to Washington, DC..

The bus will arrive in DC around 9 p.m. Tuesday night. We will stay at the Washington Seminar Center of Capitol Hill Presbyterian Church, 201 4th Street S.E. (pay phone for guest use:202-544-8909). The church has a basement room that they are providing us. Note: All transportation and lodging costs have been taken care of by Earthjustice, Friends of the Earth, and the Clean Water Network. Your only cost will be for meals. You may wish to bring a sandwich or snack on the bus for Tuesday lunch, we will stop for dinner somewhere along the way. The church room has bunkbeds and cots, 4 showers and a kitchen with refrigerator and stove, but you will need to bring SLEEPING BAG or BED LINENS, PILLOW, and a TOWEL, as these items are not provided. If you do not own a sleeping bag, they can be purchased for less than $20 at your local KMart or Wal-Mart, or contact the OVEC office and we can help you with this. There are two separate dorm rooms, one sleeping 14 and one sleeping 18 in bunk beds, additional folks will sleep in the common area or lounge.

We plan to have a group breakfast at the church at about 8:00 on Wednesday morning. I am told that the church is very close to the Capitol and that we will be able to walk to the Capitol. If there are people who need help with transportation we will arrange to take public transportation or taxi for those individuals. It is possible that we will visit the EPA building, which is approximately 10-15 blocks away.

Don't forget that we may need to bring some rain gear.

The day's events for Wednesday are primarily being scheduled by the Washington groups, Earthjustice, Friends of the Earth, Clean Water Network, and Citizens' Coal Council. However, it is sure to include a press conference, photo ops, lobbying and meeting with elected representatives and staff, etc. It would be great if you could bring stories of how mountaintop removal and flooding have impacted you personally, plus photos of flooding damage (this year or last July), gallon jugs of black water, dried sludge, etc. Even though the DC groups are arranging the schedule, they feel that our stories from the coal fields will have the greatest impact.

One of our main goals is to help the Congress and the media make the connection between MTR, the Bush rule change on fill material, and the horrific floods in West Virginia and Kentucky.

The bus is scheduled to leave DC at 6:00 p.m. Wednesday night; we plan to stop for dinner on the way back, and will arrive in Nitro late Wednesday night. Again, for those who still have a long drive to get home, please consider staying in Nitro at the Econo-Lodge. We want you to get home safely!

Thanks for your flexibility! Let's have a great trip and give 'em hell in DC!

Dave

Dave Cooper, Organizer Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition PO Box 6753 Huntington WV 25773-6753 (304) 522-0246.