You Can Help! Coal Disaster in Tennessee

[whilojo]

On Dec. 22, a retention wall at a coal plant broke, spilling more than 100 million gallons of coal cumbustion waste into the surrounding area, including residential homes and rivers. The Tennessee Valley Authority operates the coal plant and should have taken better precautions to prevent an accident like this from occurring. The plant, in Kingston TN, is about 40 miles east of Knoxville.

The coal cumbustion waste, aka sludge, is a known carcinogen and contains such sundry toxic contaminants as lead, arsenic, and mercury. It can contaminate drinking water (and already has in this case) and when it dries, it can become airborn and cause damage to lungs, eyes, and skin.

The amount of sludge is estimated to be over 100 billion gallons, nearly 40 times the amount of oil spilled from the Exxon Valdez. This is an environmental accident of epic proportions, and the Tennessee Valley Authority has taken the minimum amount of responsibility in terms of cleaning up, informing residents of the health hazards they now face, and helping residents secure safe drinking water and health tests that would indicate if they have been over-exposed to carcinogens and contaminants such as arsenic and mercury that are present in the ash.
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What you can do to help:

1. United Mountain Defense (www.unitedmountaindefense.org) is trying to organize protests at the four main TVA offices. Contact: christopherscottirwin@yahoo.com if you are willing and able to help with the protests.

2. UMD also has raised money to provide drinking water, educational materials, and health tests for residents. PLEASE consider donating to UMD to help them with their efforts. Visit www.unitedmountaindefense.org for more info.

3. Educate yourself about the effects of coal, from extraction to waste dumping, on the environment and human health. Don't buy into this idea of "clean coal". Yes, it *might* be possible to sequester the carbon created by the burning of coal, but mountain-top removal and the irresponsible ways that coal companies dispose of coal ash waste will more than ensure that coal is never truly "clean". Start here, with a source that you will recognize and trust, TIME magazine:
http://www.time.com/time/health/article ... 99,00.html