UPDATE: After 32 hours activists came down of their own free will. No arrests. The EPA is definitely getting the message (see below).
Cross-posted on the Understory
By Amanda Starbuck
RAN activists have spent two days locked-down to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), demanding justice for the people of Appalachia by enforcing the Clean Water Act and ending mountaintop removal mining (MTR).
Specifically we requested that EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson visit Appalachia to witness this American tragedy firsthand by taking a citizen-guided flyover of a mountaintop removal mine site.
While the EPA has not committed to taking the flyover, we are encouraged by their positive comments.
Almost every person who passed through our ‘Purple Mountain’s Majesty’ and underneath the banner “EPA: Pledge to End Mountaintop Removal Coal Mining in 2010” has been incredibly encouraging of our action. EPA employees, tourists and DC residents all demonstrated their support on the issue.
In addition to the many comments from EPA employees that “we are doing a great job” and “please keep doing what you’re doing”, Lisa Jackson personally tweeted her response. Administrator Jackson said in her tweet: “People are here today expressing views on MTM, a critical issue to our country. They’re concerned abt human health & water quality & so am I.”
This conversation extended to Lisa Jackson’s facebook page, now full of comments calling for Lisa to visit Appalachia and examine the impacts of MTR for herself. Many of these came from coalfield residents, using the opportunity to directly communicate with the EPA about their plight.
We have also been told about an internal memo that circulated the EPA headquarters yesterday, explaining that we were a nonviolent, peaceful protest and staff should not be concerned by our presence drawing attention to an issue that the EPA is working to address.
However, while we’re encouraged by the implicit support from inside the EPA, now it’s time for that to be delivered through real action.
Having firmly placed mountaintop removal back onto the EPA’s radar, we will ensure that Administrator Jackson cannot ignore this critical issue until mountaintop removal is abolished.
*Update*
After 32 hours locked-down to the EPA, our tripod climbers have descended and activists are unlocking. All of there own free will and no arrests have been made.
Congrats to all those involved. I’m really impressed by the professionalism of these activists and the incredible work that you are doing to stop MTR!
In solidarity,
Gabriel
My full support to the hardworking activists pushing the EPA to get serious about protecting mountains. It’s great the Lisa Jackson and others in the EPA are “concerned,” but the agency’s failure to crack down on mountaintop removal is truly disheartening. It’s been more than a year now since the administration took office, and that should have been plenty of time to come to a conclusion that blowing off the tops of mountains probably can’t be done without serious and irreversible harm to the environment. The EPA really needs to stop dragging its feet and get serious about this.
I’m very proud of the young people who have enough concern over this terrible attack on our earth to do something about it. I’d like to see the same thing happening every day all over the country. Keep up the great effort folks. Hopefully, our regulators will decide to make sure the laws are enforced. Hopefully, people around the country will realize what is happening to our mountains and do something about it. Hopefully the ruination of our homes, mountains, valleys, and streams will stop.