1/2/2003

Statue Will Stay As-Is

Staff
Charleston

Members of the Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition and other environmental groups voiced their complaints to the Capitol Building Commission today. The environmental groups are concerned about a plaque on the base of a statue intended to honor coal miners.

The full statue is not up yet however the base has been in place for several weeks. The base features four panels that indicate the history of coal mining. One of those panels features surface mining. That is what has the environmental groups upset.

The Building Commission allowed citizens to sign up and voice their concerns. Vivian Stockman with OVEC says they do not have a problem with a statue honoring coal miners. Stockman says their concern is with the depiction of a mining procedure she says is illegal and takes miner's jobs. Denise Giardina also spoke to the Commission. She says the statue with the dragline included is a disgrace to the memory of her grandfather and uncle.

Other speakers say they should have been involved in the planning of the statue and been allowed to comment earlier in the process.

Chris Hamilton with the West Virginia Coal Association also spoke to the Commission. He says the statue does what it was intended to do and that is illustrating the history of coal mining. Hamilton claims many people in West Virginia's coalfields were involved in planning the statue.

The Building Commission did not take any action on the complaints. The complaints were noted for the record and will available for public consideration.

The statue is born from legislation passed in 1999 for a coal-mining statue. However the word and interpretation of that legislation was also debated at the Building Commission meeting.