News
Voices Of Appalachian Citizens Silenced at US House Hearing
Tuesday, May 10th, 2011
The following email was sent to the 49,000+ supporters of iLoveMountains.org. To sign up to receive free email alerts, click here.
This Wednesday, the House Subcommittee on Water Resources will hold a pro-mountaintop removal hearing called “EPA Mining Policies: Assault on Appalachian Jobs.”
A preliminary hearing was held last Thursday and, despite requests from our allies in DC, panel slots were given exclusively to those who support gutting EPA’s protections for clean water. This week’s hearing will feature four more pro-mountaintop removal panelists, along with just one person from the EPA.
Take action and tell the Chairman that citizens from Appalachia must be heard in these hearings:
http://ilovemountains.org/hearing-inequality
The fact that EPA’s mining policies have led to an increase in mining jobs in Appalachia was just one of many facts that were overlooked by the coal-only panel of witnesses invited by Committee leadership last week. Citizens of Appalachia whose water, land, health, and economies are being destroyed daily were completely shut out of the hearing proceedings. Despite this fact, impacted residents and allies came and filled the hearing room, refusing to be ignored.
These hearings on Appalachian mining issues are being held without the testimonies of impacted Appalachian residents, scientists who have documented the harm mountaintop removal is causing to our air and water, or health experts who can speak to the increasing evidence that mountaintop removal is causing sickness and worse to those who live in the region.
We need you to raise your voices, and demand that the Committee leadership hear from the people of Appalachia:
http://ilovemountains.org/hearing-inequality
As always, thanks for all you do!
Matt Wasson
iLoveMountains.org
