Destroying mountains and streams

Too many in America think God is stupid. Out of one side of their mouth, they pretend to revere God as creator. Out of the other side, they allow that creation to be destroyed for greed. But if your heart is truly guided by the Holy Spirit, you know with certainty that the Lord is never ever fooled with double talk.

The nations were angry, and your wrath has come. The time has come for judging the dead, and for rewarding your servants the prophets and your people who revere your name, both great and small — and for destroying those who destroy the earth.” Revelation 11:18

Nowhere is the flagrant hypocrisy better seen than in Appalachia. The most profitable form of coal mining (mountaintop removal) is to dynamite mountain tops, dump the rock into valleys, and use massive dragline cranes to extract coal seams a few feet thick. So far, 550 mountains have been reduced to rubble, more than one million acres of forest have been destroyed, and more than 2000 miles of streams have been buried. People living near these destroyed mountains are poor and suffer from high rates of cancer.



A new study from researchers at Duke and Baylor adds more to our understanding of the damage being done to God's creation to service greed. They took water samples from over 233 streams and correlated levels of minerals and metals with proximity to mountaintop removal sites. While all coal formations contain these potential toxic substances, surface mines dump the rock waste into streams, allowing for much greater contamination than from underground mines.

"Our analysis suggests that mining only five percent of the land surface is degrading between 22 percent and 32 percent of the region's rivers."

My family comes in part from Pikeville in the heart of the eastern Kentucky coal fields. To give you a sense of the scope of how mountaintop removal is creating wanton destruction throughout Appalachia, put Pikeville, Kentucky in Google and click on the Google map. Now zoom out three clicks. You will see many grey and brown scars all over the green. Those are mountaintop removal mining sites.

The growth of one malignant mountaintop removal mine site over 20 years can be seen in this series of NASA satellite photos. Now imagine that same destruction over 550 sites and you can get a sense of the scope across the region.

Some say this destruction creates jobs. This is mostly a lie. You can get as much coal from a few hundred workers using explosives and massive machines as you can get from 50,000 miners underground. It is about profit margin, not job creation. It is about greed.

Some say this destruction benefits the surrounding communities. This is another lie. Poverty is just as great in the areas around these mines as before they arrived. The profits do not trickle down, only the poisons, filth, and rock. The pittance these companies pay in taxes makes little difference in the lives of people living nearby.

Some say the destruction is necessary for lower energy costs. Another lie. More and more of the coal from these sites is exported to China and India. This is high BTU coal, also known as metallurgic grade coal. It is most valuable for manufacturing steel. The same coal can be mined underground with far less damage to the environment, but it is cheaper to destroy mountains and forests where people are too poor to stop it.

Some say the sites will be reclaimed and restored. Another lie. When mining sites are no longer profitable, the companies pack up and leave the mess. There are tens of thousands of abandoned mining sites all over the country that have not been restored over the past century. Most of those are much smaller in scope than the destruction created by mountaintop removal mines. Throwing a little dirt and grass seed on scarred earth does not restore mountains, forests, and streams.

And never mind the pollution that comes from burning coal, whether for electricity or manufacturing. Never mind the piles of toxic coal ash. Forget about greenhouse gases, mercury, soot, and sulfurous compounds released in the air. Keep your eyes on the profit and all will be well say the ones that claim control over God's creation.

But people love lies. My God, they love lies. Just remember, the father of all lies is Satan.

“The earth dries up and withers, the world languishes and withers, the exalted of the earth languish. The earth is defiled by its people; they have disobeyed the laws, violated the statutes and broken the everlasting covenant. Therefore a curse consumes the earth; its people must bear their guilt. Therefore earth’s inhabitants are burned up, and very few are left.”  Isaiah 24: 4-6

It is amazing the damage a few corrupt politicians and corporations can do to God's creation. Their evil is plain to see. They are well-dressed vipers and experts liars. Death, destruction, and disease follows in their wake. Only a fool would be blinded to their evil.

Less obvious are the forked tongue people of faith that claim to revere God as creator but do nothing to protect that creation. The Lord is not blind.

It is interesting that the destruction of forests, mountains, and rivers is featured so prominently in the apocalyptic images found in Revelation 8: 7-11.

The first angel sounded his trumpet, and there came hail and fire mixed with blood, and it was hurled down on the earth. A third of the earth was burned up, a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up.

The second angel sounded his trumpet, and something like a huge mountain, all ablaze, was thrown into the sea. A third of the sea turned into blood, a third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed.

The third angel sounded his trumpet, and a great star, blazing like a torch, fell from the sky on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water — the name of the star is Wormwood. A third of the waters turned bitter, and many people died from the waters that had become bitter.

Explosions. Hail of rock. Forests destroyed. Mountains destroyed and pushed into waters below. Poisoned streams. Seems a little too familiar.