In April of 2012, four leading scientists briefed Congress on the environmental and health impacts of mountain top removal (MTR) mining in Appalachia. Their findings were damning: mountain top removal, the practice of clearing mountain tops of trees and topsoil and then blasting them with explosives to reveal the coal seams underneath, is polluting the Appalachian watershed, decreasing organism diversity, increasing flooding and contaminating ground water. Meanwhile, people living in the affected areas are experiencing high rates of cancer, heart and respiratory disease, along with rising birth defect and mortality rates.

Members of the Appalachian Community Health Emergency Campaign, along with numerous Democratic representatives, are pushing for the Appalachian Community Health Emergency Act (ACHE Act, H.R. 526), which would allocate funds to research the affects of mountain top removal and to protect Appalachian families. Contact your elected reps today and urge them to pass this vital legislation.

Laura Flanders makes clear why the stakes are so high in this call to support the ACHE Act.

This video details the growing health crisis in Appalachian communities where coal is removed by blasting mountains down to piles of rubble with the use of toxic explosives directly above peoples homes.