Ison Rock Ridge, VA: mining in the town of Appalachia, VA

America's Most Endangered Mountains - Ison Rock Ridge, VA

Pledge to Help End Mountaintop Removal. Visit:
www.iLoveMountains.org


- - - COMMUNITY STORY - - -

Just like the region that bears its name, the town of Appalachia, Virginia, is being threatened by new permits for mountaintop removal mining.

Appalachia and nearby Andover are small communities in southwest Virginia. At one time these towns were nestled in the low-lying mountains of the region, but in the last decade or so mountaintop removal has destroyed areas all around them.

Now they only have one mountain left.

Ison Rock Ridge comes off of Black Mountain on the Virginia / Kentucky border and runs southeast toward the town of Appalachia. Its preservation is essential to the quality of life for the people in the community. Without it, residents lose an important ecosystem, and fear the destruction of their homes from landslides, as well as the contamination of their water from valley fill sediment. They also worry about disturbance from blasting and the resultant dust that often accompanys mountaintop removal mine sites.

Though the federal permit for mining on the ridge was sent back to the Army Corps of Engineers by the Environmental Protection Agency for its failure to consider the cumulative environmental impact of many mountaintop removal mines in a concentrated area, residents fear that the mine may be allowed with only minor changes on the state level.

According to the local environmental group Southern Appalachian Mountain Stewards (SAMS), the Ison Rock Ridge mine would destroy three miles of streams and fill nine valleys with more than 11 million cubic yards of rock and dirt.

To support Pete and his community contact:
Southern Appalachian Mountain Stewards
(276) 565-1083 • www.samsva.org

SAMS is committed to stopping the destruction of communities by surface coal mining and to help rebuild sustainable communities.

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[shatuga]

We must find other sources of electricity - it's foolish to trade something permanent for something temporary. And we must do all we can to conserve electricity while we are dependent on coal too.

But I agree that we waste far too much of our precious energy in this country, and that is something we can all change, as individuals, to help.

[walkerstyle92]

if you dont like coal mining quit using your electricity, i bet you will like it then

[TheTrifire]

so how do ya like the mall and plaza thats close to your house the same company your downing there cleared the land for them over coal and the state got payed taxes 3 times for it to

[Revgirl5]

Great video!