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Mattea lends voice to support legislation protecting Tennessee from “mountain top removal” mining practice

(NASHVILLE, TN), March 5, 2008 -- Country music singer-songwriter Kathy Mattea has leant her voice to Senator Raymond Finney’s (R-Maryville) and Rep. Mike McDonald’s (D-Portland) Tennessee Scenic Vistas Protection Act, which would protect Tennessee from a destructive mining practice called “mountain top removal.”   Mattea, who is from a West Virginia mining family, recorded a public service announcement in support of the bill, urging Tennesseans to ask their state legislators to vote in favor of the proposal.

“There is a controversial and relatively new method of coal mining going on in West Virginia and now being considered in Tennessee called mountain top removal,” said Mattea in the announcement.  “Mountain top removal blasts off the tops of mountains, lowering the peaks by as much as 1,000 feet.  They push the dirt and debris into nearby streams and valleys and scrape up the coal, permanently scarring the land and devastating the eco-systems.  There is a bill right now before the Tennessee legislature to protect our high mountain peaks, the Tennessee Scenic Vistas Protection Act.  This legislation can help protect Tennessee from the devastation that is going on in West Virginia.”
 
Mining involving mountain top removal, which is also called cross ridge mining in Tennessee, is poised to expand within the state according to Dawn Coppock, co-founder of LEAF (Lindquist Environmental Appalachian Fellowship), a group pushing passage of the bill.  Coppock said more than a dozen state permits for proposed sites are currently pending.   LEAF is a Christian group whose mission is to spread the message of Creation Care to congregations in East Tennessee.

“We need to preserve Tennessee’s abundant beauty and eco-system for future generations,” said Senator Finney.   “There is a host of problems for the residents of surrounding communities due to this destructive new method of extracting coal.  This includes water pollution, flooding, lowered property values, and the permanent destruction of the scenic beauty that, if left intact, can enrich these communities in the future through real estate development and tourism dollars.” 

The bill calls for:

1. No new water permits to be issued after July 2011 by the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) for surface coal mining until a Comprehensive Environmental Impact Statement is completed by the federal Office of Surface Mining.  The current study is over 20 years old.

2. No permits for any surface coal operations within 100 feet of any surface water in the State of Tennessee.

3. No permit for surface coal mining that alters or disturbs any ridgeline above 2000 feet in elevation.

The bill was debated in the Senate Conservation and Environment Committee last week and will come before members again on March 12.  The House companion bill, sponsored by Representative McDonald, is also scheduled to come before the House Environment Subcommittee.

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FULL CONTENTS OF THE ANNOUNCEMENT:

            “Hi, I am Kathy Mattea.  I am from a West Virginia mining family.  Coal and mountains are my heritage -- who I am.  There is a controversial and relatively new method of coal mining going on in West Virginia and now being considered in Tennessee called mountain top removal.  Mountain top removal blasts off the tops of mountains, lowering the peaks by as much as 1,000 feet.  They push the dirt and debris into nearby streams and valleys and scrape up the coal, permanently scarring the land and devastating the eco-systems.  There is a bill right now before the Tennessee e legislature to protect our high mountain peaks, the Tennessee Scenic Vistas Protection Act.  This legislation can help protect Tennessee from the devastation that is going on in West Virginia.  Please write your legislators and ask them to vote for our mountains to preserve this precious gift for future generations.  Thanks.” 

For background on mountain top removal coal mining in Appalachia or additional legislative information as well as background on faith and environment in Tennessee:  www.tnleaf.org