Kentucky Lieutenant Governor Daniel Mongiardo -
“A lot of people look at mountain top removal as a negative, but I see it as a positive,” said Mongiardo. “We need to stop apologizing for coal. We don’t want to defend mountain top removal, but I want us to promote mountain top removal, because we need flat land. We can not have economic expansion without places to do things and part of mountain top removal is for places like hospitals, airports and different type of merchants. Source
I really believe this is the first time I have heard someone in government say outright that mountaintop removal is a positive. Usually they promote mountaintop removal by promoting coal. To say mountaintop removal is a positive is to say, blowing up mountains, burying streams, burning forests, polluting drinking water, stealing land, taking advantage of residents all are positives. Leave it to someone in government to try and shovel that crap.
I’ve talked about future economic expansion/development before. I find it an absolutely ridiculous notion to try and justify MTR by claiming future economic development of mountaintop removal sites. Most of these reclaimed sites, 26 hard miles south of nowhere, lack one very important ingredient, access to basic infrastructure in the form of roads, water, and sewer. How can you promote economic development without any plan to carry it forth except for leveling the land? That would be like going to New York, clearing an entire city block for future development only to find out you have enough infrastructure in place to support a hot dog stand on one corner.
To promote MTR for future economic development is the same thing as promoting clean coal. It is only the idea the coal lobby has to sell in order to keep raking in the profits.
I know exactly what I am going to say if I ever see that guy….
“FOCK YOU! YOU FOCKIN’ FOCKER! LYIN’ ASS FOCK!”
LOL!
This guy is definitely an idiot.
Just when you think you have seen it all.
This is a rather interesting turn of events. I’ll be watching closely. Denny, you are the man.
AOC requires removal of all infrastucture after mine closing and reclamation. Its a FEDERAL law. Dont like it, contact your congressman!
Hey Ron, you remind me of a person I use to work with, a genuine company suck ass. All your type are always talking about laws, when the coal companies are the biggest outlaws known to man. Not only do you all break laws daily, but you all are the biggest liars and cowards I’ve ever saw. You talk about contacting our congressman, when you corrupt and buy these peices of shit, such as congressman Rahall, to write the laws to suit the companies. You really think you’re something, but you don’t mean a damn thing to the coal industry. You and your fellow workers could care less about famlies and communities. Well the feelingis mutual, because we don’t give a damn about you, your friends, or your families
Ron, I don’t care if you remove all infrastructure, not that it takes much to support a surface mine. It is ridiculous to promote future economic development of mountaintop removal sites without a plan to create infrastructure capable of supporting merchants and patrons, neighborhoods or what the hell ever.
I’ll tell you what pisses me off about the infrastructure development – if it were to ever happen, there would be signs up all over the damn place telling me my tax dollars are at work. I don’t want to blow the mountains up to begin with and to think that you, Ron, and I will have to pay for the infrastructure development, if it were to ever happen, of these reclaimed sites definitely pisses me off.
Without infrastructure to develop reclaimed sites, promoting future economic development is the same thing as promoting clean coal without carbon capture and sequestration. They are two phrases in a PR campaign, nothing more. The whole point of this post to begin with, just in case you missed it.
as a native kentuckian, i say if you want flat land, move to the western part of the state. there are miles upon miles upon miles of nothing out there. people live in the mountains because they love the mountains. who are we, mere humans, to alter God’s creation? i’m sure leveling them wasn’t His intent when He created them.
what a ridiculous statement….