Honorable Shelley Moore Capito
2nd District, West Virginia
1431 Longworth Building
Washington, DC 20515

July 21, 2001

Dear Congresswoman Capito:

I attended the Energy Forum at Riverside High School in Belle, WV which you sponsored on 16 July. I was part of a group of concerned citizens who are alarmed by the Bush Administration’s promotion of coal and nuclear power as the chief sources of national energy in the foreseeable future. We are particularly concerned about the proposals made by the panel at the forum which, we believe, will have adverse consequences in the state of West Virginia.

First, let me state that I realize that the mining of coal in West Virginia cannot, arbitrarily, be dismissed without alternative sources of energy being available. I also realize that these sources cannot be put online right away. It is, however, apparent to anyone with eyes to see and ears to hear that the destructive practice of mountaintop removal is abhorrent and must stop. It not only ravishes the beauty of the area, but destroys whole ecological systems which can never be reclaimed (reclamation is truly an oxymoronic term). Communities in the area of mountaintop removal have their whole quality of life diminished (recent flooding is one telling consequence of this practice).

We are concerned, too, with coal-fired plants which are not regulated under the Clean Air Act, and which continue to spew carcinogenic materials into the air and water of West Virginia.

I pointed out to Congressman Barton of Texas at your forum that while oil did benefit the average citizen of Texas to some extent, coal has never done that for the average citizen of West Virginia. The proof is the poverty of the coal mining areas of our state. You find in these areas, the poorest schools, the poorest healthcare and the poorest infrastructure. The only people that coal enriches are the coal companies, equipment suppliers, stock holders and politicians. Oil does not ravage the land as coal does (particularly MTR), although certainly oil spills in waterways and oceans have their own severe ecological consequences.

I am a member of a West Virginia Interfaith Global Climate Change Campaign, now a nationwide campaign. We are dedicated to a responsible stewardship of the earth, educating religious congregations and others about ways to conserve & preserve "God’s Creation." We are made up of a widely diverse group of people, Christians, Jews, Hindus, Muslims, Unitarians, Ba’hai, Buddhists and others. We all look to our scriptures and own personal moral compasses for guidance in how to deal with the terrible things that have happened and continue to happen to our planet. We believe it is incumbent upon us to encourage environmental awareness and to educate ourselves and others about ways to prevent further degradation of the earth’s components. We therefore view any practices, such as mountaintop removal, as a sacrilegious affront to all that we, as people of faith, believe in. (Since I know that you are Presbyterian, may I point out that we have many Presbyterians in our group, marvelously committed people).

Essentially, I hope that the Bush Administration will listen to those of us who are concerned about the environment. We do not want a "token acknowledgment." We want real effort and recognition. We want serious and immediate commitment to alternative energy sources which are less damaging to the planet, and we want a voice in all decisions with respect to the future of energy in our country.

It is time that we consider what we are bequeathing to future generations. If not kept in check NOW, the present policies of excess consumerism in alliance with laissez-faire attitudes by government and corporations, will assure the not-too-distant destruction of our earth for any viable quality of life.

Thank you.

Kathryn A. Stone

cc: M. Leitch
M. Callaghan. DEP