This news story originally provided by The Charleston Daily Mail

March 30, 2005

Capitol rallies to reflect divergent opinions on coal

George Hohmann
Daily Mail business editor

Supporters of coal mining and opponents of mountaintop removal mining will hold back-to-back rallies Thursday at the Capitol, but organizers of each event anticipate no problems.

About 2,000 people are expected to attend a Friends of Coal rally from 10:30 a.m. to just before noon on the steps on the north side of the Capitol, said spokesman Bill Bissett.

Bo Webb, a volunteer with Coal River Mountain Watch, said it is not known how many opponents of mountaintop removal mining will attend the Mountain Justice Summer rally from noon to 3 p.m. about 75 yards away.

However, according to an application for a rally permit that Webb submitted, about 200 are expected to attend, said Dave Pentz, director of the state General Services Division.

Pentz said representatives of both groups have given assurances to officials that they will avoid a confrontation.

The state Division of Protective Services, which has jurisdiction over security at the Capitol, has been involved in discussions about the rallies, Pentz said. "I can assure you we will have extra people here that day," he said.

Jay Smithers, acting director of the Division of Protective Services, said, "We think we've got a handle on it."

Bissett said, "If there's a place for people with differences of opinion, it should be the Capitol of West Virginia. We anticipate being pretty much out of there by noon. We don't anticipate any problems. I would hope everyone on both sides of this issue would conduct themselves with respect and courtesy."

Webb said: "We have no intention of starting anything up with ours until they are finished. I heard one of the Friends of Coal say it's the people's Capitol. They have a right to be there. We respect that. We have a right to be there. We wanted to make sure we wouldn't be there at the same time."

The goal of the Friends of Coal rally "is to show that thousands of people support this industry and believe in it," Bissett said. "We want to make certain that state leaders don't forget about the importance of coal and the jobs and revenue that it provides us every day."

Membership in Friends of Coal is free and people can sign up by visiting the organization's Web site at www.friendsofcoal.org. Bissett said more than 15,000 households have signed up.

Financial support for Friends of Coal comes from the member companies of the West Virginia Coal Association. Bissett works for Charles Ryan Associates, which received a contract in January 2003 to provide public relations, advertising and Internet services for Friends of Coal.

Bissett and Webb both said their organizations have been working on their respective rallies for several months.

Webb said: "We've been going on the Internet, calling for action on the Mountain Justice Summer Web site. We've had e-mails from Australia, Russia and just about everywhere in this country from people wanting to get involved. A lot of people seem to want to come and the Coal River Valley seems to be ground zero."

Thursday's rally is one of several events planned this year under the Mountain Justice Summer banner, according to the Web site, www.mountainjusticesummer.org.

Webb said the main goal of the Mountain Justice Summer rally "is to bring national attention to what is taking place in the Appalachian coalfields -- the true price of coal, the true price of America's energy.

"Mountaintop removal mining is making refugees of our very own people," Webb said. "There are families that go back well over 200 years in some of these mountains and hollows and they're being forced off their land."

Pentz said there are four events planned on the Capitol grounds Thursday. The Mountaineer Challenge Academy will conduct a drill from 2 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. on the north side of the Capitol and the West Virginia Nurses Association will lobby legislators during "Nurse Unity Day".

Smithers said 50 to 60 people are expected to attend the Mountaineer Challenge Academy drill. Pentz said 800 to 1,000 people are expected to attend the nurses' rally.

Parking is expected to be a problem.

Friends of Coal will operate a continuous shuttle bus service between the Capitol and NorthGate Business Park beginning at 9 a.m. NorthGate is off Exit 99 of Interstate 64. At the exit, travel up Greenbrier Street to the top of the hill, then turn left into NorthGate and follow the signs to the parking area.

There is parking at metered spaces around the Capitol and free parking at Laidley Field. A shuttle bus connects Laidley Field and the Capitol throughout the day.

When Laidley fills up, "you'll just have to try to find a secondary parking spot," Pentz said. "You might just have to walk a little ways."

Contact writer George Hohmann at 348-4836.