Mountaintop removal damage irreversible, Senate hears

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Mountaintop removal coal mining is causing "immense and irreversible" damage to Appalachian hills, streams and forests, members of a U.S. Senate subcommittee were told Thursday.

[opinion8d]

Quite amusing that a representative was there to speak against valley fills from Tennessee. They might have banned them in their state but not before burying how many damn miles of streams under lakes that they now profit from with tourism? Explain to me just how you can justify that all the Vol damns built in Tennessee flooding forest land and streams is any different than valley filling.

And, just what other economic opportunity is there on these mountains that are so steep that billy goats won't traverse them? The mine companies are to restore the mountains to approximate orginal contours. Do you know why in most cases approximate is as good as it will get? Because the original contours are steeper than the angle of repose for rock.

[informed citizen]

T. Boone Pickens is touting alternative energy -

on his previous oil drilling sites and after he's gotten all the profit out of them..

I propose WV does the same. Get the mineral first then transition the site to wind and/or solar power. You already have the infrastructure of roads & power and a flat surface for the turbines built by companies covered by stringent regulations. The wind power people wouldn't have the same regulations. A win-win situation - coal companies & environmentalists working for a long time goal.

[informed citizen]

(last few words should be "long term goal")

[Heartless]

You would think that would be the plan, and easy to do. But the underlying agenda is to completely wipe out fossil fuel, to profit the "green" companies. Show coal companies where the profit is in reclaiming the land and installing wind, sun, etc after they mine, and I doubt there would be as much disagreement as there is. Instead, the green movement pushes people with emotional andrenalin to fight for what's "right" in their eyes, to totally destroy our economical base and cause the progress we've made in this state to move back several years. There is no movement to work with the companies and our legislature to actually work on meeting halfway, or coming up with ideas for a long term goal that can not only support us with cleaner energy, lower costs, and economical stability. It's only "they're the devil!" and attacks commence. Until everyone learns to sit down and work on the issue, there will be no solving it, and our lives and prosperity depend on it.

[capitalist pig]

opinion8ed, informed and heartless, please keep posting these types of posts and exposing the lies of the government and the press. thank you.

[billy]

i happen to be a little emotional right now so
pardon the language.

i agree with every one of you.com pletely.

it is time for all this G&&&&&N bullfeces to end
and arrive at some F&&&&&G logical conclusions.

sorry.the backwoods hillbilly hick coming out.

billy--aerosmith---come together--good tune

[billy]

again,sorry.conclusions should have been"solutions".

billy

[Wondering]

Does anyone posting here actually live where these mountains will be removed forever.

Oh Yeah, open the dam and the water will remove itself and the valley still exists. The state of TN does not profit from the lakes. The only fee is to break even on the roads and bathroom facilities. And that is only for the picnic areas and beach areas. Please do your homework before commenting. You might also read up on which mountains they want to remove. The ones I used to climb when I was a young lad. Since when is there Billy Goats running wild in WV?......Just wondering

[capitalist pig]

glad you are happy in TN keep your nose out of our business. we have many families depending on strip mining and these are hard working, decent, honorable men and women.

[Wondering]

capitalist pig wrote:

glad you are happy in TN keep your nose out of our business. we have many families depending on strip mining and these are hard working, decent, honorable men and women.

I am from WV. My family lives and works there. I will do what ever I want. Little boy! I graduated with 6 people who went to work for the coal companies. Two are dead. Do not ever talk to me like that you self-centered, self-righteous, little punk. I just visited WV. I know what it is like. I really do. Quit banking on jobs from the past. Start to look forward. It will happen no matter what. Or you can continue to walk with your eyes closed and run into progress.

[billy]

wondering,

you sniveling little shit.drive down rt.3 on coal river some time and you will find these backwoods
hillbilly hicks have goats running around all over the damn place.

sorry,still pissed.

billy

[billy]

they do not care for or feed them.makes them wild in my book.

billy

[Wondering]

billy

I am not sniveling, defintely not little,(Huge comes to the mind), you can ask my girlfriend. I do take a shit once a day. You were close....LOL!

I was on rt 3 last week. Did not see any goats. Most Hillbillies I talked to are more worried about the coyotes eating their goats than feeding them. Sorry you are pissed. Still better then pissed on. So where can I get a copy of your "Book". I figure it would be interesting reading.

[billy]

wondering,

i do have plans on writing three books.two will
be poetry.one will be called hillhippy's walden
and will be concerned with my observations about
all subjects around me.mostly a philsophical
slant towards them.

why don't we start a thread and utilize the intelligence that is apparently here and come up with some viable solutions and alternatives.i
foresee no change in attitudes anywhere.i could
point out indicators showing that this situation
is esculating to the point of armed violence.
do we really want that?????

billy

[Wondering]

billy,

Hillhippy's walden sounds good. Never been to interested in poetry.

I really hope it does not come to the point of violence. That would be bad, very bad. It is amazing that mankind can be so self-centered to never take the time to learn both sides of the story and work together for a common solution. I do not believe on violence unless protecting yourself or Family(True Friends are Family).

Have a good day.

Wondering

[billy]

wondering,

i disagree with violence.but the indicators are there and growing stronger.no offense to anyone
but when you consider the characteristics of many people here you will find that violence is latent beneath the service.the emotional level grows stronger daily.it is going to hit the point of over-heated steam kettle and blow the lid sky-high
people are going to get hurt,a lot of them
innocent ones.at the moment i find myself falling
into a machiavellian position on it.should i try
my damndest to defuse the situation if i can or
should i sit here and laugh my a&& off while
watching them blow each other away?

point blank backwoods hillbilly hick speaking there.

billy

[Wondering]

billy wrote:

wondering,
i disagree with violence.but the indicators are there and growing stronger.no offense to anyone
but when you consider the characteristics of many people here you will find that violence is latent beneath the service.the emotional level grows stronger daily.it is going to hit the point of over-heated steam kettle and blow the lid sky-high
people are going to get hurt,a lot of them
innocent ones.at the moment i find myself falling
into a machiavellian position on it.should i try
my damndest to defuse the situation if i can or
should i sit here and laugh my a&& off while
watching them blow each other away?
point blank backwoods hillbilly hick speaking there.
billy

billy,

I guess it depends on how pissed you are, whether you help or not. So you do not sound that pissed any more. I would try to go help. If they made it hard than I would sit back ,blaze one and LMAO!

Later on billy,

Wondering

[JustWondering]

Saw a huge decal on the back of a truck windshield the other day - wanted to get out of my car and rip his head off, but ... alas, it's against the law! Decal had a picture of three mountains with no tops and it said "Strip 'em until they're topless!" Buttwipe!

[billy]

wondering,

later.be cool.

billy

[Zoe]

Only a small amount of mountains are being stripped. Big deal! We have tens of thousands of the effing things. And it is a good thing. I live here. Until you people have to live here and trek up and down the foothills, just stay quiet. They're our hills and we can strip mine them all day long if we want to and their is not a damn thing you or anyone else can do about it. No way in hell would I ever vote against my own economic interests.