Winds of Change Newsletter, September 2005     See sidebar for table of contents

The Coalfields, Where Water is Considered a Luxury

by Vivian Stockman

	Straight out of the tap and into your drinking glass, a daily dose of heavy metals, coal sludge and who knows what else.

A lawsuit wending its way though Mingo County courts alleges that the Rawls Sales Processing Co., a Massey Energy subsidiary, injected slurry from a coal sludge impoundment underground for at least eight years without a permit.

Massey internal documents subpoenaed by the plaintiffs show that Rawls was injecting as much as 28 million gallons a month of coal slurry into abandoned coal seams!

Many residents of Rawl, Lick Creek and Sprigg, near Williamson, believe their well water – and subsequently their health – has been ruined by the injected slurry.

Person after person will tell you their well water used to be sweet and pure. They believe their water started turning bad after Massey began injecting the slurry underground. Person after person can recite a litany of health problems that they believe stem from using the water. Families have accrued massive medical bills. Children have been hospitalized and at least three recently died. Residents allege it was the water that poisoned them.

While some have been buying water for drinking, even though the cost is a burden, others have not been able to afford the expense. One couple I met spends $60 a week on drinking water. Almost all still use the water for bathing and washing because they have no other choice. Many report rashes, headaches and other problems after showering.

Adding insult to injury, some of the folks in this area suffered flooding on Memorial Day 2004, and again on August 19. Asked what made the floods so bad, some point the finger at all the mountaintop removal in the area.

Plaintiffs’ attorney Kevin Thompson has found a high level of kidney disease, gallstones and other diseases related to heavy metals in area residents.

Because of citizen outcry, Wheeling Jesuit University came to the area this summer and has just completed testing (independent of the lawsuit). One university scientist watched as a woman ran tap water. It went from clear to black within moments. The scientist installed water-testing instruments in her home and the batteries inside them were corroded by the fumes from the water. After finding heavy metals in the water, the university has decided to do follow-up testing.

One man I spoke with moved into an area trailer six years ago. The water tasted and looked bad, but he didn’t realize it couldn’t be used until one of his neighbors, OVEC member Billy Sammons, talked with him recently.

The 38-year-old’s health problems started after he had been living in the trailer a while. He has gallstones, anxiety and breathing problems. His hair is falling out and his memory is failing. His pancreas is at 2 percent of its full function. I met him after he had showered – his eyes were very red and he had a rash, neither of which had been the case before his shower. He was embarrassed to have people visit because the smell from the water stinks up his home.

He worries most about his two young sons, who live with him part-time. “What have I done to them?” he asked, when all he has done is let them drink water.

The trial date is currently set for Oct. 12. As this is written, a motion is pending before Judge Thornsbury which, if granted, would force Massey to supply residents with temporary drinking water.

See www.sludgesafety.org for more information.