Citizen Action

We are up against much more than an unjust mining process. We are fighting the inept, if not corrupt, regulation agencies and government.

We must address the problem of having a state regulatory system that is ineffective, at best, at protecting residents from coal industry threats to their health, homes, and communities. We must hold coal companies and regulatory agencies accountable. We must oppose new MTR permits and related hazards and we must monitor, document, and report violations of existing permits. We must tell the regulatory agencies, every chance we get, what they should be doing…even if they don’t listen.

Announcements

  • Tell the White House: Put Our Health First, End Mountaintop Removal Coal Mining!
  • Stand With These Three Appalachian Communities And Help Stop Mountaintop Removal Mining
  • Tell the EPA to keep up the fight for what is right regarding the Spruce Mine as well as other mountaintop removal operations that destroy waters and threaten communities.
  • Tell the Office of Surface Mining to revoke Alpha's Eagle II permit on Coal River Mountain
  • Mountaintop Removal Is Burying Bears Alive! – Take Action now!
  • Tell President Obama: Protect West Virginia from a massive mountaintop removal mine
  • US House of Representatives: Sign bill HR 5959 The ACHE ACT
  • Make a permanent ban on all mountaintop removal mining operations. sign the petition!
  • Petition - We won't drink WV American Water until it's safe for everyone
  • Petition - Demand justice for West Virginians whose water has been poisoned
  • Stand with the prisoners in SCRJ
  • Petition to Stop Mountaintop Removal mining adjacent to Kanawha State Forest

Resources:

*All Emergencies Regardless of what it is especially on weekends *Spill Hotline* 1(800)642-3074

The Strip Mining Handbook – The Strip Mining Handbook was written to give citizens in mining areas a fighting chance to protect their homes and communities from the ravages of mining operations by providing them with the tools they need to understand the law and use the often complex provisions of SMCRA to their advantage.

Appalachian Center for the Economy & the Environment – The App Center is a regional law and policy organization that works together with individual citizens and grassroots citizens’ groups to clarify, analyze and act on the environmental and economic issues that affect our communities. -The coal mine permit tracker is a valley fill database.

Appalachian Citizens’ Law Center – a nonprofit law firm that fights for justice in the coalfields by representing coal miners and their families on issues of Black Lung and mine safety and by working with grassroots groups and individuals to protect the land and people from misuse and degradation caused by extractive industries. The Center handles individual cases and engages in strategic litigation and policy work in the areas of mine safety and health, environmental protection and sustainable energy.

Coal River Mountain Watch Local Resources Page – CRMW asks: Are you being affected by a mine site, prep plant, impoundment, blasting, flooding, dust, polluted water, coal trucks, or any other coal company related problem? The following pages contain information for dealing with some of the issues you might be facing.

Regulatory Agencies:

  • WV Department of Environmental Protection
    WV DEP is in charge of issuing and regulating mining permits, as well as overseeing their operation.

    • to view a mining data map tool
    • to search and view current mining operations
    • to search and view newly applied for mining operations that are yet to be approved
    • to search and view current NPDES, national pollutant and discharge elimination permits
    • to search and view applied for NPDES, national pollutant and discharge elimination permits
  • Office of Surface Mining, Reclamation and Enforcement
    OSMRE is the federal agency responsible for regulating surface mining in the United States.
  • Mine Safety and Health Administration
    MSHA is the federal agency responsible for overseeing worker safety in the mining industry.
  • US Army Corp of Engineers
    US ACE is the federal agency that oversees valley fill permits.
  • US Environmental Protection Agency
    • US EPA enforces the federal clean water act
    • Searchable Website for Drinking Water Violations
    • Enforcement & Compliance History Online