From the DataCenter's Environmental Justice Program, Winter 2002:

Citizens Coal Council Demands Corporate Responsibility

On October 11, 2000, Massey Energy caused over 250 cubic tons of toxic coal sludge to spill over the Kentucky countryside. Laced with hazardous chemicals such as mercury, lead and arsenic, the coal sludge blanketed yards and homes, bridges and roads, clogging water pipes and coating 75 miles of streams.

The amount of waste released in the spill was over 25 greater than the Exxon Valdez oil spill. Environmental officials describe the spill as one of the worst ecological disasters ever to hit the Southeastern U.S.

Coal sludge is a mixture of coal, rock dust and water left after preparing coal for power plants. Massey Energy, the corporation responsible for the spill, dumps coal sludge into a dam built across a valley.

Citizens Coal Council, a network of 54 environmental and social justice groups, fights the environmental degradation and violation of indigenous and rural communities' rights caused by coal mining, asked the DataCenter's Environmental Justice program to research Massey Energy. We alerted Citizens Coal Council to Massey Energy's upcoming stockholder meeting, and provided background information for press releases and informational fliers to support CCC's subsequent shareholder action.

In the wake of the toxic spill, 217 residents and local businesses have filed lawsuits against Massey Energy. Massey Energy's sludge dump in Martin County is one of over 200 in the region that the Mine Safety and Health Administration has identified as hazardous.

For further information or to get involved, contact Citizens Coal Council.