“We don’t feel like our trespass is nearly as serious as what they’re doing to West Virginia,” Roselle says. “We want this stopped. And we’re going to do whatever we can.” Mike Roselle and James McGuinness halt the movement of coal off Cherry Pond Mountain in Raleigh County, West Virginia. Very close to this MTR site sits 2.8 billion gallons of toxic coal sludge, precariously perched above the Marsh Fork Elementary School in Sundial, WV. This Massey Energy-owned MTR site puts the lives of Coal River Valley residents at risk. Residents contend that blasting will further destabalize the sludge impoundment, while fly rock and rock dust shower the neighboring hollows of Naoma. photograph by Antrim Caskey
“This is a crime against nature”, said James McGuinness, “It is not only illegal, it is immoral.” “They have no right to destroy this mountain.”Mike Roselle and James McGuinness of Climate Ground Zero protest on the Massey Energy-owned Edwight MTR site. They were cited for criminal trespass by WV State Police and released without incident. photograph by Climate Ground Zero
Marfork, West Virginia — On the heels of the TVA coal ash sludge disaster in Harriman, Tennessee, where 1.1 billion gallons of toxic coal ash sludge collapsed into the Clinch and Emory Riveres, concerned citizens in southern West Virginia have been fighting to stop the coal mining of Coal River Mountain and to build instead the Coal River Wind project, which would create clean jobs in perpetuity.
Five activists chained themselves down to heavy mining equipment inside the Massey Energy-owned mountaintop removal (MTR) coal operation. Two banners reading: "Windmills Not Toxic Spills" and "Save Coal River Mountain" were hung. Proesters were completely non-violent and were taken off the mine company property without incident, cited for tresspassing and released. photograph by Antrim Caskey
