Mountaintop Removal

When a crisis hits or the news drifts in one way or the other, it is easy to take our eye off the ball. With campaign ads filling the airspace and the financial crisis talked about everywhere we turn, it is no wonder that the mountains in Appalachia take a back seat. It seems that a long-time practice of loping off the top of mountain for mining purposes is about to have a boost with a revision to remove the protections. Called "mountaintop removal" this process is damaging streams (about 1,200 square miles already) and destroying forests at a rapid rate. The Office of Surface Mining is proposing to revise a regulatory protection that would allow this practice to continue and go forward. In an op-ed from the New York Times this morning entitled, "More Sad News for Appalachia" the editors write a powerful piece on why this is a very bad thing. The AP had a story a few days ago that gives more background. Here's what the three candidates in West Virginia's governor's race are saying about the issue. While this issue is regionally localized, it is representative of the kinds of issue that require civic deliberation. I would hope that groups like the West Virginia Center for Civic Life and others would organize ways for people to talk about this. I know people are afraid for their jobs and livelihood but this is may be a trade-off that is just too expensive.