"You're about to enter some rough country.  It used to be some of the most beautiful country you ever did see before the coal company got a hold of it."

                                                                                                            Doug Justice, Pike County

Read about recent mudslides in Island Creek caused by nearby TECO mining operations.

Long time community residents of Island Creek in Pike County are organizing to protect their homes and heritage.  TECO coal has moved in.  This multi-million dollar outfit is throwing its weight around and using the taxpaying citizen's county road to haul their heavy mining equipment.

The goal in this community is to get Susan Bush, the Commissioner of the Department for Natural Resource to enforce the law and require the coal company to apply for a permit to include the county road as part of the affected area of their mining activity.   If the permit were to be granted the coal company would be accountable for maintenance and required to obey the regulations of the permit.

Community residents are also working to get water.  State Representative Keith Hall, has promised to use allocated monies to extend city water to residents.

In the mean time community residents are organizing tours of their community.  Educating people from all parts of the state about the true cost of coal. People visit tour points that include examples of dangerous road conditions caused by overloaded coal trucks, poorly reclaimed valley fills, dried up streams that once flowed year round, and a mountain top removal site that leveled community member's ancestoral land.