Photo/ Mark Schmerling
Editor’s note: Below are a few excerpts from an Open Letter by Maria Gunnoe, a 2009 Goldman Prize winner who has been the fight for a safe environment in Appalachia for 25 years. The link to her full Open Letter is below.
“There is very little that I have not done to end mountaintop removal (MTR) coal mining and to stop the coal industry tirade on our land, water, air, our economy, and our people. I have always been a friend to miners and to environmental organizations across this country . . . I have taken threats on my life and my family’s lives and criticisms from both sides of the coal war. Still, I attempt to focus on good work that will improve the lives of the people where I live, all while trying to sustain my own . . . .
“I had two children with breathing problems and Dakota Coal Company was blasting close to my home . . . My water well went bad . . . There were underground mine fires burning close to our schools in Van, WV. The coal smoke was so thick people had to stay indoors . . . This was in 1998 before my Dad (at 51) was killed on an MTR mining operation trying to gather wild ramp bulbs from what he called Heaven’s Land. . . I moved back to my home place to care for my 85-year-old Cherokee Grandfather. I promised my Dad and my Grandpa that I would tend to their land and see to it that my kids inherited something worth having . . . . We deserve clean water and safe communities to raise our kids in. Our kids deserve a fair and well-funded education . . . .
“Every group that ever muttered the words mountaintop removal coal mining or used our work in any capacity owes us something in return. . . . In the coal war many people have been left behind on the battlefield and if you listen you can hear them still calling out for the help they’ve been promised.
Contact Maria Gunnoe on Facebook at fb.com/maria.gunnoe, call 304-989-9581, or write to PO Box 494, Van, WV 25206.
Click here to read Maria Gunnoe’s full Open Letter: https://www.facebook.com/maria.gunnoe/posts/10219556998456759
