News
An Urgent Issue Before Year’s End
Thursday, December 17th, 2009
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Dear Friend of the Mountains,
Dumping mine waste into a valley fill on Kayford Mountain, WV
When the Bush Administration proposed gutting the “Stream Buffer Zone Rule” — a regulation that has prevented surface mining within 100 feet of our nation’s streams for decades — people like you responded in force. More than 75,000 comments were submitted to the Bush Administration, asking that the regulation be left intact.
The Bush administration overrode public opinion, however, and gutted the rule anyway — handing a parting gift to Big Coal before it left office.
Now, we urgently need the Obama administration to reverse this rule and protect our nation’s streams from being buried by mining waste from mountaintop removal coal mining.
Unfortunately, the Office of Surface Mining, Reclaimation, and Enforcement has proposed waiting until 2011 to begin making changes to the Stream Buffer Zone Rule.
Waiting an entire year is unacceptable — we are losing streams in Appalachia every day. Waiting another year means that many more miles of Appalachian streams — the headwaters of streams that provide the drinking water supplies of many eastern cities — will be forever buried.
The Office of Surface Mining, Reclaimation, and Enforcement is accepting comments until December 30th on its proposal to delay addressing Stream Buffer Zone Rule changes for another year. Can you take just a moment today, and tell them that waiting a year is unacceptable?
Click here to submit your comments today.
Please let the OSMRE know that we need to end the dumping of mountaintop removal waste into Appalachian streams immediately.
Thank you for taking action.
Matt Wasson
iLoveMountains.org
PS Please help gather the resources we need for the battles ahead by making a special year end contribution today: https://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/1741/t/6886/shop/custom.jsp?donate_page_KEY=1807
December 17th, 2009 at 10:58 pm
I want the Stream Buffer Zone put back in effect before 2011, It’s a shame that Bush’s antienvironment stand are allowed to stay in effect, This is not the change I hoped and voted for – please help!
Wilma Lee Steele
Mingo County, WV
December 26th, 2009 at 10:51 am
Why is it that Bush could kill the stream buffer zone with the stroke of a pen, but it the current President has to wait until 2011 (or forever) to reverse that action? Why is it that the Appalachian Restoration Act has not progressed? I suspect we all know the reasons. It’s called the power of capitalism.
The great “green” dollar needs to be renamed to the filthy “black” dollar. Also, The State of West Virginia needs to think about changing its name from the Mountain State to the Moonscape State. It obvious what the “Commonwealth” of Kentucky should be renamed to – Coalwealth(?)