Mountaintop removal mining: Larry Gibson, gatekeeper

A report from W. Va.

Posted by Grist at 3:40 PM on 20 Aug 2007

Read more about: West Virginia | mining

Mountaintop Removal Mining
1. Larry Gibson, gatekeeper
2. MTR from the sky
3. No respect for the hollow
4. Lonely opposition
5. The waiting game

MTR

This week, Gabriel Pacyniak and Katherine Chandler are traveling throughout southern West Virginia to report on mountaintop removal mining (MTR). They'll be visiting coalfields with abandoned and "reclaimed" MTR mines, and talking with residents, activists, miners, mine company officials, local reporters, and politicians.

We'll publish their reports throughout the week.

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At the Cabin Creek Rd. exit along Interstate 64, we turn off onto a two-lane drive that follows the creek. We pass from one hollow to another, small communities of West Virginians in the cramped valleys of Appalachia. At the end of the road, atop Kayford Mountain, lives Larry Gibson, the unofficial ambassador of the movement to stop mountaintop removal mining, or MTR. Gibson has been fighting MTR for 22 years, and has over 5,000 visitors signed into his guest book. This includes CNN's Anderson Cooper, who showcased Gibson last week on his 360 Heroes program. It is our first stop on a five-day trip across the coalfields of southern West Virginia, looking at how MTR has changed the landscape 30 years after the passage of the federal Surface Mining Reclamation and Control Act.

From the highway, it is difficult to imagine the devastation that has occurred at the mine site; the green, rolling hills seem to stretch out forever, hidden in the light haze of summer. As we continue up the road, we pass by the houses of local residents and a few community churches, following the dirt fork to the right that takes us over a small bridge. There's still no visible sign of the strip mining taking place all around us, but we do see our first sign of mining's impact -- the one-lane dirt road bridge has been reinforced to hold a 40,000-pound truck.

The blasting area at Kayford Mountain. (photo: Katherine Chandler)

On the way up we pass the entrance to the Massey Energy strip mine. A giant pile of gravel blocks the view, leaving us unprepared for the scene that Gibson shows us at the edge of his property, where his family has lived for years. Here, the landscape has been completely transformed, the lush green replaced with gray piles of rubble and small patches of the valuable coal veins that run from here to Kentucky. A dragline scoops giant rock and debris blasted earlier in the day into three massive 190-ton loaders. Gibson points out that the whole operation only requires a handful of laborers, while the deep mines that operated in the area employed hundreds.

Afterwards, Gibson brings us to his pavilion to show us how the mountain has been torn apart, using a hand-built wooden model. The contours of the original mountain are hundreds of feet taller than they are today, actually towering above the high ridge that we had looked upon the mine from earlier. Millions of tons of unwanted rock have been pushed over the edge to bury valleys and streams, showing the impact of these operations on not only the mountaintops but also the valleys beneath them. He also shows us a picture of a pickup-sized rock sitting on the road, explaining that it is flyrock, literally an errant boulder blasted hundreds of feet outside the mine.

the view from kayford mountain
The view from the top of Kayford Mountain. (photo: Katherine Chandler)

Towards the end, an emotional Gibson recounts how a dozer ran through his family's historic cemetery in the past month. "You have to get the fire in your belly!," he implores us.

Our next stop will be at the Charleston, W.Va., airport, where Tom White, a volunteer pilot with non-profit organization Southwings will show us the scope of MTR from the air.

For story: Mountaintop removal mining: Larry Gibson, gatekeeper
15 Comments | Post a Comment

Thanks for this story

Thanks for this story on Mountaintop Removal mining. Recent, tragic deaths at subterranean mines in other parts of the country have readily caught the hearts and sympathies of the public. I suspect that this is in part because the contours and scope of the tragedy are readily understandable - miners are trapped underground in a fight against time. Mountaintop removal mining, on the other hand, is a calamity that goes largely unnoticed by the public. Perhaps this is because, until you see it, it is hard to imagine that mountains are being taken apart like legos. The ramifications of leveling a mountain top and filling in a valley takes some consideration; it seems more like science fiction than harrowing drama.

And yet harrowing drama it most certainly is, both environmentally and economically. Thank you for posting this blog about your trip. Your photos and journal brought me to a location I would not otherwise have gone to and help to make real a situation that I could not have otherwise imagined.

I look forward to reading your future postings.

by eelia at 8:47 PM on 20 Aug 2007

"historic cemetery"

You would think the violation of a burial site should bring a community together in opposition. But what, really, does it take?

We may hope to hear more about why the people who live near the MTR mines are generally so passive and acquiescent.

Chickens deserve our true friendship! So do fish! So do other sentient beings! Let us learn to be kind.

by caniscandida at 10:33 PM on 20 Aug 2007

Yeah, and then

maybe we can discuss why the people in planes and in the World Trade Center were so passive and acquiescent on 9/11.

Jesus, Canis, get a grip. Appalachia suffers from the same resource curse as every other place that has created immense wealth for the few at the expense of the many poor they oppress. The coal companies have been murdering and destroying people long before Shell helped hang Ken Saro-Wiwa--it's the same damn thing.

The 5% Project

by JMG at 11:22 PM on 20 Aug 2007

Wow

That is almost sacramental, you know, dear JMG, putting the name of my Lord and Saviour so close to mine. : )

I quite understand what you mean, about the sociology of Appalachia. I do not think I am gripless. But I am clearly nowhere near as well educated as you, and all I am asking for (right now) is a bit of education.

You might start, in fact, you, dear JMG, by explaining the analogy with what happened to the Nigerian hero. And I do not ask for myself alone. It would encourage many in West Virginia and Kentucky, if it were written straight out, how what happened to Ken Saro-Wiwa is very like what has happened, and what is ever threatened, in Appalachia.

Chickens deserve our true friendship! So do fish! So do other sentient beings! Let us learn to be kind.

by caniscandida at 11:53 PM on 20 Aug 2007

Wikip on resource curse

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resource_curse#Corruption

In short, coal is to Appalachia what oil is to Nigeria -- the source of all wealth and the power and wealth that is concentrated into the hands of the few, who have no problem killing those who dare to point out the inequity and ask for a better shake.

The 5% Project

by JMG at 12:38 AM on 21 Aug 2007

Troublemakers in coal country

It's "moonshine, coal mine, or move it on down the line" Canis.

All the troublemakers that would have energized coal unions were moved off to the city. No unions, no worker protection. And environment comes last, way after workers.

Imagine modern coal miners. Drwan even from other regions in their zeal to do a dangerous job without complaining and earn a few more dollars per hour. The reverse is happening. people who are proud to oppose safety, health, and unions on the job, moving to coal mining country. To risk their lives for mine owners. Happily. Until an accident.

Remember the fellers who dipped their bodies into barrels of agent orange to prove it harmless during vietnam? yep. The real canaries in the coal mine.

It's a volunteer army of victims! So it's ok.

http://amazngdrx.blogharbor.com/blog

by amazingdrx at 6:20 AM on 21 Aug 2007

An argument for carefully planned development?

Threatened natural areas need human beings around to protect them. I know it sounds contradictory, but a small amount of residential development might save an area... lots of squeaky wheels not immediately dependent on timber or mineral extraction. Does blowing the top off a mountain make a sound if no home owners are around to hear it?

Environmentalist might want to look into how one might encourage telecommuters to settle near these areas or perhaps not criticize wealthy corporate executives or actors who want to build a second or third home in the rolling hills of West Virginia. Once the people are in place, they can form alliances with locals who want to preserve the natural environment around their homes. The area might be protected by three powerful forces... money, pure selfishness, and a personal tie to the land. Oh... and the wealthy will want to preserve their property's value for a long time.

Just a half-baked idea. Putting it out there for discussion.

Based on political behavior I've observed... but I won't go into that right now.

by wiscidea at 3:15 PM on 23 Aug 2007

Alberta Tar Sands

You should also check out the Alberta Tar Sands, dubbed the next major oil site in the world, it's the dirtest oil on the planet and requires a lot of water, water Alberta does have, it's not sustainable, yet it may occupy up to a third of the province in the next 20 years.

The term "tar sands" refers to thick oil called bitumen that is mixed in with sand, clay, and water. Intensive energy is required to process the sands into crude oil. Tar Sands oil is the world's most harmful type of oil for the atmosphere, emitting high volumes of greenhouse gases during development, which contribute to global warming, as well as other pollutants. Tar Sands projects are the largest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions growth in Canada. By 2015, the Tar Sands are expected to emit more greenhouse gases than the nation of Denmark (pop. 5.4 million).

Source and picture
http://www.borealbirds.org/images/tarsands3.jpg

by shaynek788 at 5:36 PM on 24 Aug 2007

you can comment here!!!!

People have 60 days to submit comments on the proposed rule by mail or courier to the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, Administrative Record, Room 252-SIB, 1951 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20240

or by Internet through the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Please identify the comments by including docket number 1029-AC04 in the subject line.

"The Earth is the Lord's, and everything in it; the world, and all that lives upon it." (Psalm 24:1)

by feministgirl at 9:05 PM on 24 Aug 2007

how to comment

http://www.regulations.gov/fdmspublic/component/main

Docket ID: OSM-2007-0007-0001

Document Title: Excess Spoil, Coal Mine Waste, and Buffers for Waters of the United States

of course, the office of surface mining and reclamation has made it as difficult as possible to navigate to the comments, but it is possible!

"The Earth is the Lord's, and everything in it; the world, and all that lives upon it." (Psalm 24:1)

by feministgirl at 10:35 PM on 24 Aug 2007

another ram session

You notice how these rules always get punched through right before the old ones are set to expire. It creates a nice little smoke screen for the scumbags in the White House as they cite there is a big emergency to get something in place. And where is the media on this? As usual they're reporting on things like telepathic house pets that can find dead people (CNN 8/19/07).
Where are the hearings, floor debates, committee reports?? Seems like everybody is getting a piece of the action- coal party rolls on.

What they are doing to the Appalachians is criminal and it's going to take a lot of screaming and crying to set it right. So get on it people.

by MD77 at 12:12 PM on 25 Aug 2007

Mountain Top Removal & the Bush Administration

Give me the best names and contacts to voice my despair and anger and I will follow up with protests up the chain to the white house. I used a lower case W to signify my disgust with the total disregard "for which we stand" unless it is attached to the almighty $ or to a political manipulation.

I am an environmental engineer and have conducted numerous windshield studies throughout most of West Virginia. It takes little time and effort (unfortunately)to see firsthand the results of previous illegal MTR. The only ones to benefit from this practice have been the mine company owners and real estate barrons.

One does not even have to drive through or flyover the devastated areas. Simply go to a university library and take a look at the 1970 and 2000 West Virginia aerial photographs. MTR is responsible for all of the cleared or "mall" filled flat tops that once were lush, vegetated mountain ranges. The same libraries, as well as the state's Bureau of Public Health, contain documented proof of the environmental damage.

What do we have to do to end the white house's undemocratic devastation of our political, environmental, and moral landscape? How do we awaken an apethetic populous to their design for immediate gain regardless of long term ramifications?

Paint the path towards likely receprtors and I will follow up with other articles to gain a peaceful way out of unbridled destruction of our environment.

by edbogs at 5:11 AM on 28 Aug 2007

This is just what I needed!

Thanks for helping me get my comments out there, feminist!

by juddfranklin at 1:51 PM on 11 Sep 2007
[ Parent ]

Appalachians, speak up

I'm curious how many of the people who commented on this article are Appalachian. I'm from Buckhannon, WV, right in the heart of WV. I can't help but notice that some of the commentary seems to be blaming the community for the problem of MTR. I don't think that's a fair or accurate assumption. Larry Gibson isn't alone in his fight. It's difficult to explain the circumstances experienced by the people in WV. There are those that support Gibson but it can be difficult for people to choose between their need to provide for themselves and their families and their environmental responsibilities. People who have never lived in a community based on such an industry are quick to judge. It makes me sick to see what's happening to the mountains but I also understand how it's difficult for people to stand up to the coal company giants. Big Coal doesn't play nice and to go up against them is to put one's self and family in danger. I'm grateful for the fearless Larry Gibson and all the other like him. MONTANI SEMPER LIBERI!

by Earthy Chick at 5:17 PM on 09 Oct 2007

To Larry Gibson

Mr. Gibson,
Do you have two brothers named Clyde and Andrew Gibson? Also did you ever go by the name Michael? I am trying to find someone.
Alli

alli

by buffywuffy74 at 10:46 AM on 20 May 2008

ADVERTISING POLICY

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