Mountaintop-removal coal mining - No more Appalachian Trail

Breaking news -- Act now!

How can humans even consider the practice of literally blowing the tops off mountains in order to remove coal?

President Obama, are you listening?

When the coal is all removed, when the wildlife is extinct, when the river basins are filled with debris and the coal miners are out of work forever, the mountains will still be gone. Nothing will repair the landscape, the majesty, the lifestyle of the people, the extraordinary biodiversity, the sacred completeness.

Trip to the mountains this spring? Watch these videos. Read the linked stories. Then make other travel plans, because the Smokies, the Appalachian Trail, the Blue Ridge . . . they could all be flat and lifeless heaps of rubble if a new bill is passed allowing big coal companies to rape our country for a few more dollars. Coal use is destroying the planet anyway. What are we thinking?

If you've never had a chance to visit the glorious range of ancient green mountains that runs up the east coast of the United States, think cool, green, lush, verdant. Brimming with life, deep peace, grandeur. Ferns soften rock outcroppings covered in mosses and lichens. Clear, clean, cold streams trickle or roar, full of fish, frogs, salamanders and other wildlife. An amazing variety of brilliant, tiny birds and butterflies stop by here or make their homes here. Deer, bear, raccoons, foxes . . . this is a treasure trove, a North American gem. One of the richest and most diverse hardwood ecosystems in the world.

It's all in danger.

Don't let a few powerful and greedy companies steal this from everyone. Once the coal is gone, once the money they made is gone, what will they exploit next? The mountains won't grow back. This is not a renewable resource. Take a look at the video.

We Humans are doing a bang-up job of planet-wide stewardship, aren't we?

Speak out. Now. This minute. Hearings going on now.

Save what is ours. What is yours.

Once it's gone, it's gone.