Red State Ramblers: Groundhog from Kentuckians For The Commonwealth on Vimeo.

Performances for the evening were provided by The Wild Boogers, Rich and the Po Folks, Clack Mountain String Band, and the Red State Ramblers. Additionally, Kentucky author Erik Reece and Kentucky poet Eric Sutherland read from the stage. Central Kentucky member Tanya Turner spoke from the stage encouraging folks to attend I Love Mountains Day on February 11.

Long-time KFTC member and establishment owner Josh Miller mentioned how exciting the event is every year and how much he looks forward to opening up the Bar for such a good cause.

Numerous KFTC members volunteered their time and creative skill to make the event such a huge success and one that folks in Lexington look forward to every year. 

Thanks to Jordan Panning, Mason Colby, Erin Cutler, Josh Saxton, and everyone else who helped working the door and the merch table.  Special thanks to Brian and Sara Turner of Cricket Press (www.cricket-press.com) for producing yet another wonderful poster.  Posters are still available for $10 each. Email Tim@KFTC.org if you are interested in purchasing one.

On Saturday, 14 KFTC members came together to plan a meeting with Governor Beshear's top staff this Thursday as part of "I Love Mountains" day.  They plan on talking to the governor's staff about the problems with mountaintop removal coal mining, the need to transition away from coal and towards sustainable energy, and the opportunity for jobs and a new economy that clean energy can create for Kentucky.

They also plan on speaking to this issue with a unique perspective -- they are between the ages of 5 and 25.  They think their youth allows them to speak to the importance of investing in a clean future for Kentucky.  Stay tuned to hear about how their meeting goes and next steps that come out of the meeting. 

And this group would love to see all of you at "I Love Mountains" day this Thursday, February 11th at 11 a.m. at the State Capitol.  More information and registration can be found at www.kftc.org/love.

The Central Kentucky Chapter held a fundraiser for KFTC last Saturday at Al's Bar in Lexington. This wasn't just any old fundraiser though, it was a punk rock show! Organized by KFTC member Jack Cofer, the show featured three great bands from Lexington; the Butchers, J. Marinelli, and the Tense Kids. Also joining everyone was the all female punk trio from Chicago, 8" Betsy.

Over 60 people attended the show and raised $260 for KFTC. Jack Cofer and Katie Meyer spoke from the stage about the importance of grassroots organizing, and why people should be involved in making their communities a better place.

Don't forget to come out for the next Al's Bar KFTC fundraiser, our old-time music showcase on Saturday, February 6. Doors open at 8 p.m., and the cover is $10.

KFTC’s annual “I Love Mountains” day at the state capitol is just around the corner.  This big event, which attracts more than 1,000 Kentuckians each year, calls attention to the scale of destruction created by mountaintop removal coal mining in Kentucky and the need for a clean water and energy future.

This year the day includes a special emphasis and participation from young Kentuckians – including a youth-led delegation to meet with Governor Beshear.

KFTC has requested a meeting with Governor Beshear in the afternoon of “I Love Mountains” day on February 11. Would you like to be part of this youth-led delegation or do you know a young person within the ages of 5 and 25 who would be? 

What it involves:  Each youth would be responsible for attending a planning meeting (hopefully a face-to-face, but maybe on a conference call) with other youth group delegates, as well as the meeting with Governor Beshear on February 11 in Frankfort.  In the event that Governor Beshear is unwilling to meet with us, the youth-group will also discuss and develop an alternative plan for making our voices heard.

How to get involved:  If this sounds like you, please write a short letter telling us about yourself, how old you are, and why you are interested in talking to Governor Beshear about mountaintop removal coal mining. A committee of KFTC members will review the letters and select the delegation. Letters are due by the end of the day on Friday, January 15.  You will be notified of a decision by Friday, January 22.  And the youth group will schedule a meeting sometime between January 25 and February 6.

Spread the word:  Also, please pass this announcement along to anyone you may know who would be a great addition to the youth team! 

Where to apply:  Letters can be emailed to carissa@kftc.org or mailed to KFTC, 435-R Chestnut St, Suite 2, Berea, KY, 40403.  Please call or email Carissa Lenfert (859-893-1147) with any questions.

After warming up from the cold and grabbing a bite to eat, join with youth from all across Kentucky to discuss next steps for youth in the important fight to end mountaintop removal coal mining. We will hear a debrief from the youth delegation that meeting with the governor and formulate different ways for youth to continue to have a strong voice on mining and energy issues for the remainder of the legislative session and beyond. Join us in the Capitol Annex, room 129, at 2 p.m. Please call or email Beth Bissmeyer at (502) 751-2998 and beth@seac.org with any questions or suggestions for agenda items.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is forming a panel to provide "expert advice" on the ecological impacts resulting from mountaintop removal mining and valley fill practices.  The panel will report to the EPA's Science Advisory Board.

The EPA's request states that it is "seeking individuals with nationally recognized expertise, experience, knowledge, and field experience in the following disciplinary areas associated with mountaintop mining and valley-fill operations: aquatic ecology, aquatic toxicology, hydrogeology, water quality, mining engineering, ecosystem restoration, inorganic chemistry, freshwater ecological risk assessment, and systems ecology."

Nominations should be submitted in electronic format.  Visit the science advisory board website, www.epa.gov/sab and click on the ‘‘Nomination of Experts’’ link on the left hand side.  Information that must be provided to nominate someone includes the nominee's contact information, area(s) of expertise, resume, sources of recent grants and/or contracts, and a biographical sketch with information outlined on the website.  Information about how individuals will be chosen and announced is also on the site.

Yesterday the website Daily Kos and the Sierra Club hosted a live chat with Ashley Judd about mountaintop removal mining and its impact on Appalachian communities.   Apparently a huge number of people participated in the chat.  From the Sierra Club:

According to Kos, the 1-hour live chat got over a million page views from about 90,000 unique visitors - more than the audience of many cable TV shows. Around 200 people participated directly in the live chat, leaving nearly 400 comments.

One thing interesting thing to come out of the discussion, is the possibility that Oprah might be interested in doing a piece about mountaintop removal.  As one of the most influential media figures in the U.S., she could drive millions of people to learn more about the destruction of the Appalachian mountains.  Hopefully this new national attention will help push our new Congress to do the right thing and finally pass the Clean Water Protection Act.

Teri Blanton, Sen Kathy Stein and Rep. John Yarmuth

It was a great event!  I Love Mountains Day 2009 saw another strong turnout in Frankfort as hundreds marched and rallied in support of clean water and protections for Kentucky's mountains and coalfield communities. The march was energetic, the speeches were phenomenal and the determination to retake state government from special monied interests was undeniable.

"I'm glad to be here today with people who are not afraid. We can take back our democracy. We're doing it, we're doing it today," said KFTC Chairperson K.A. Owens.

Watch a short video of the event by David Stephenson, photojournalist with the Lexington Herald-Leader, or another video by Mike Wynn of the Winchester Sun. 

View this photo album by Ann Olson

More than 700 people started the rally in downtown Frankfort at the Kentucky River, whose headwaters are severely damaged by coal company pollution. This included a group of people who had marched from Lexington to Frankfort to draw attention the issue.

The crowd marched — including 96-year-old Marie Cassidy from Louisville — about a half mile to join a another crowd waiting for them on the front steps of the state capitol, greeted by music from Ben Sollee and David Martin Moore.  Speeches by Sen. Kathy Stein, Rep. John Yarmuth, K.A. Owens, Randy Wilson, Silas House, Ashley Judd, Lyle Snider, Willa Hood, Emily Gillespie and Teri Blanton, as well as music by Public Outcry and the Reel World String Band followed.

Willa Johnson talked about growing up in McRoberts in Letcher County where abuse by coal companies is a daily occurrence.

"I am 23 now, and still live in the mountains I love, and my family still struggles to hold on to what is theirs. My grandfather, a retired coal miner, at the age of 84 fights daily for his land. His home is falling apart from the blasts, boulders litter the family cemetery behind his home and the MTR company behind his home trespasses to clean up their dirty mess from time to time thinking that he doesn't realize what is really going on. What that company doesn't know is that age doesn't matter, strength and determination is what counts, and at 84 years old he's going to keep fighting for what he loves."

Featured speaker Ashley Judd was equally strong in her condemnation of the coal industry's disregard of people and planet.

Let me be clear.
Mountaintop removal coal mining is a tragedy.
Mountaintop removal coal mining is a scourge on our people and on our land.
Mountaintop removal coal mining is devouring vast acreages of irreplaceable hardwood forests, filling our sacred hollows, burying precious headwater streams, and eliminating wildlife habitat. And, with its monstrous equipment and mechanization, it is also eliminating coal miner’s jobs.

 
But the emphasis was largely on water, protecting Kentucky's rivers and stream from the coal industry's practice of dumping its toxic mining wastes into the headwater streams of the Kentucky, Big Sandy, Cumberland and Licking rivers in eastern Kentucky. "Not One More Mile"  was the chant for the day as the defenders of Kentucky's precious people and places said that 1,400 miles of streams buried or severely damaged by this practice is already way too many.

Speakers emphasized that by being so bound to coal and protecting the industry that Kentucky is losing out on opportunities to transition with the rest of the nation to a green energy economy. Some of the loudest cheers came when speakers talked about bring these jobs to the coalfields.

Media coverage:

• Ronnie Ellis with CNHI News Service
• Charlie Pearl in the Frankfort State Journal
• Tom Eblen in the Lexington Herald Leader
• David Stephenson's video in the Herald-Leader
• Mike Wynn in the Winchester Sun
  
• James Bruggers in The Courier-Journal
• Kristin Espeland on WFPL-FM
• Silas House blog
• Mark Grayson at thelevisalazer.com