Storming Capital Hill

On June 2, more than 150 people gathered in Washington, D.C., for the 7th annual End Mountaintop Removal Week in Washington, sponsored by The Alliance for Appalachia. After a day of training, participants spent three days meeting with Congressional representatives to urge them to support legislation restoring the Clean Water Act to its original language, as well as talking with federal agencies tasked with regulating coal mining and its impacts.

On Wed., June 6, a Rally for Appalachia took place in the Upper Senate Park across from the Capitol building. More than 100 people attended to listen to speakers and watched as more than six people shaved their heads in a show of mourning for mountains destroyed by mountaintop removal coal mining.

In addition, thousands of individuals across the country joined the action from afar by contacting or visiting their congressional representative district offices. Independent groups working with AppRising simultaneously staged peaceful sit-ins at four offices throughout Capitol Hill.

By the third day of the Week in Washington, the Clean Water Protection Act, the Alliance’s legislation in the House, had garnered 125 bi-partisan co-sponsors from all across the country. Recent cosponsors include Representatives Mike Fitzpatrick (R-PA), Hansen Clarke (D-MI), Janice Hahn (D-CA) and Carolyn Maloney (D-NY).

For more information about the Alliance’s efforts to end mountaintop removal coal mining, and to see images from this year’s event, visit iLoveMountains.org.