"We All Live in the Coal Fields": West Virginians Step Up Protests as EPA OKs New Mountaintop Removal

Democracy Now by Jeff Biggers, Juan Gonzalez, Amy Goodman | May. 29, 2009 (News Analysis)

(Video) The protests came just a week after the Obama administration gave the green light for forty-two more mountaintop removal permits, dealing a victory for the coal industry. The Environmental Protection Agency’s decision shocked many activists in Appalachia, who have been campaigning to end the practice of mountaintop removal that’s already destroyed over 450 mountains in West Virginia, Virginia and Kentucky. Full Story »

Posted by Dwight Rousu

See All Reviews »

View

Review

Dwight Rousu
4.4
 by Dwight Rousu - May. 31, 2009

The story and interview looks at the money of the coal lobby leading to the destruction of the environment and the civil disobedience rising up in opposition to the devastation. The Obama administration approval of more mountaintop removal has fed the outrage.

We need publicly financed elections to begin to counter this control of government by corporations.

in the past thirty years, since Jimmy Carter signed the surface mining bill, we’ve lost over 500 American mountains. You know, a land mass the size of Delaware has been wiped out. Over 1,200 miles of streams have been sullied and jammed.

if you come from a coal state, it’s been very hard to shake from the stranglehold of the coal industry on our politics.

Dwight posted this story.

See All Reviews »

Dwight's Rating

Overall
4.4

Good
from 15 answers
Quality
4.3
Facts
4.0
Fairness
4.0
Sourcing
4.0
Style
4.0
Context
5.0
Depth
3.0
Enterprise
5.0
Relevance
5.0
Popularity
5.0
Recommendation
5.0
Credibility
5.0
More How our ratings work »