Only weeks into her new job as administrator of Region 4 of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Heather McTeer Toney has inherited a great responsibility – to protect our water, our health, and our communities.

The recent series of toxic spills, from a coal ash spill in North Carlina to chemical and coal slurry spills in West Virginia, make it clear that the risks our communities face from coal’s toxic life cycle are substantial. Air and water contamination from coal mining, processing, transportation, burning and disposal are a reality, and it is the EPA’s responsibility to protect communities from this pollution.

Administrator Toney needs to hear from her most important stakeholders that protecting Appalachian communities from the dangers of coal must be a top priority.

It is the EPA’s responsibility to protect Appalachian communities from polluted air and water.