Coal mining destoying mountains, rivers and lives in W. Va and other states

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Mountain top removal (MTR) coal mining in West Virginia is one of the most environmentally destructive process that mankind engages in yet it still continues. MTR systematically blasts apart and dismantles entire mountaintops to access multiple seams of coal. The remaining rock is dumped into valleys below, burying over 1,000 miles of streams to date. The highly automated process employees far fewer people than traditional underground coal mining so it does not even help with jobs in the USA!! The Clinch River Power Plant was built in 1958 and burns millions of pounds of surface mined Appalachian coal every year, producing about 700 megawatts of power. Operated by American Electric Power, this facility has no modern pollution controls and it is estimated that small particles from this plant alone are responsible for 59 premature deaths every year. The Bush Administration is pushing for the construction of over 120 new coal-fired power plants across the nation, which raises concerns for people in Appalachia and beyond. If constructed, the carbon dioxide emissions from these new power plants alone would be greater than the combined total of all US carbon dioxide emissions since the Industrial Revolution. Carbon dioxide is the primary contributor to global warming. Marsh Fork Elementary in Sundial, W.Va., is on the front lines of mountaintop removal, located 150 feet from a coal preparation plant and 400 feet below a leaking dam holding back 2.8 billion gallons of toxic coal sludge. Local residents have launched a campaign called Pennies of Promise to build a new school in a safe location in their community. See this photo... http://farm1.static.flickr.com/90/262456412_b7bad04ec8.jpg?v=0 And this ariel view of the Mountaintop removal mine of Montgomery Creek in Perry County, KY. The mine is operated by International Coal Group (ICG). You can see Route 1093, Montgomery Creek runs up through the valley from left to right where the line of trees is in the picture. People live all along this road next to the creek.... http://farm1.static.flickr.com/83/279160427_f93ac1fdaa.jpg?v=0 See, below, Google Earth screenshot comparing poverty rates in Appalachian counties and areas that have been surface mined for coal. Map produced by Appalachian Voices (www.appvoices.org) for www.iLoveMountains.org. (photo link} http://farm1.static.flickr.com/115/284917378_c38dddfa5e.jpg?v=0