By SAMANTHA PERRY
Call us Mountaineers or Hokies or Hillbillies. When it comes to certain issues in the coalfields, the title really doesn’t matter.
It’s not always been easy to scratch out a living in this steep and mountainous environment. But for decades we, and our ancestors, have persevered. We’ve stood tall in the face of jabs from those outside who don’t understand our culture and society. We’ve faced the ridicule — including those shining from T-shirts (Abercrombie and Fitch) and high-def movie screens (‘‘Wrong Turn”) — and vowed to take the high road against the taunts.
But now, once again, many feel we’re under attack. This time it’s not against our so-called “hillbilly” way of life, but our very lifeblood — coal.
There are few who were born and raised in this region who don’t have a connection to coal.
For many of us, coal provided the food on our dinner table and the clothes on our back. Our fathers, grandfathers and great-grandfathers were miners. They were strong men who were proud of their jobs, and the fact that their daily labor provided energy for this great nation.
Others may not have had relatives toiling underground, but coal was still the source of their livelihood. Their parents worked on the railroad, at equipment manufacturers or other shops that serviced the mines and miners.
There’s no doubt coal has been, and continues to be, a cycle that drives the economic engine of the two Virginias.
Now, of course, our nation is talking cap and trade — a method of regulating carbon emissions. And coal — which fuels about half of our nation’s electricity and 99 percent of it in West Virginia — has become the poster child for “dirty energy” that some environmentalists believe we can do without.
If that’s not enough, we also have the Environmental Protection Agency’s review of 79 mountaintop mining permits across the Appalachian states — permits that were issued, but are now stalled because of the new administration’s penchant for “wait-a-minute” politics.
You know, “Wait a minute, we may get nasty e-mails from those involved in the anti-coal cause.” Those very people who protest while enjoying the electricity that lights their homes and keeps their food cool.
Attempting to understand the logic of people protesting coal via electrical-powered means — yes, computers — would be laughable if folks in our nation’s capitol weren’t so easily swayed by the very utterance of the word “green.”
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While few would argue the benefits of recycling and other “green” endeavors, it is beyond reckless to kill such a critical, viable source of our nation’s energy in a nod to the newest movement.
If coal is shelved as an energy source the people of the two Virginias, and the rest of America, may as well turn off the lights and turn on the wood stoves.
The bottom line: We do not have alternative energy sources in place to replace the job coal does each and every day.
While many may not like the practice of mountaintop mining, the reality is that the coal retrieved by this practice also provides much-needed fuel for our nation and reclaimed land for other uses.
We’re not in Kansas, where flat land greets the eye wherever one scopes out a view. We’re in “Little Switzerland,” also known as the Mountain State, a place where mountaintop mine sites have provided roadbeds for interstate highways.
Can we forget how Tom’s Mountain in McDowell County — a former surface mine site — was a lifesaver after torrential flooding devastated southern West Virginia in July 2001? The site was the only available place where the Federal Emergency Management Agency was able to set up temporary housing for the hundreds of victims displaced by the disaster.
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Last week, West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin conducted a summit during which federal, state and local leaders stood firm with coal producers in a united effort to protect the industry.
“This state has basically given most of the people in this great country of ours the life they have today because of the energy we produce,” Manchin said. “We know that they are going to continue to need it for quite some time as we transition to the fuels of the future. We’re just trying to find that balance right now.”
Although he has taken heat from coal critics, Manchin has always been outspoken in support of our region’s energy source. His constituents should be proud of his stance.
“We heard a lot of frustration, a lot of anger, a lot of anger as to how to proceed,” said U.S. Rep. Nick Rahall. “Certainly, the lack of a definitive plan of action by our federal agencies has caused this frustration.”
Of course not everyone is a believer in the necessity of coal.
In an Associated Press report, Judy Bonds, of the environmental group Coal River Mountain Watch, said, “the federal government needs to come in and take over the state of West Virginia, all the way from the governor to the dog catcher.”
A plea for a federal takeover of the great state of West Virginia.
Is the Mountain State and coal truly under attack? You better believe it.
Samantha Perry is managing editor of the Daily Telegraph. Contact her at sperry@bdtonline.com.
