Mountaintop removal action leads to 17 arrests
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Protesters being arrested at mountaintop-removal mine in Southern West Virginia. |
May 25, 2009 ·
An environmental group is planning a press conference Tuesday about the largest series of arrests so far in an ongoing nonviolent campaign against mountaintop removal mining.
Climate Ground Zero and Mountain Justice members were protesting Richmond, Va.-based Massey's plan to blast at the mine. The groups say blasting could cause a coal slurry dam at the site to collapse.
Altogether, 17 people were arrested Saturday protesting mountaintop-removal mines across Southern West Virginia.
It was the highest number of arrests in one day so far this year in an ongoing series of nonviolent protests.
Police refused to arrest former Congressman Ken Hechler, D-W.Va., who was one of the protestors at the Massey Energy mine near Pettus.
Amy Marlow, 23, and Jessica Eley, 26, were charged with trespassing and littering after paddling onto the Brushy Fork slurry impoundment to spread a banner across the water.
Charged in the other Pettus action were Eric Blevens, 27; Martin Mudd, 26; Thomas Wild, 21; Ethan Silverstein, 19; William Grasmeder, 20; Sidney Moye, 64, and Laura Steepleton, 24.
At Kayford Mountain, eight other were arrested after chaining themselves to coal trucks and spreading out a banner saying "Never Again.”