With Coal It's What We Don't Know That Can Hurt Us

To bad the NSA didn’t hire a few coal guys to keep an eye on things for them. Their secrets might still be secret if they had. When you think about how little we know about the chemicals (what chemicals, exactly?) these energy producers use in the extraction, cleaning and processing of their product, I'd say the industry is pretty adept at keeping things classified. Hell, as Kate Sheppard pointed out for Huff Post Green 1/20/14, we can't even say for certain where every related storage facility is! (Hint: that rusty, abandoned-looking tank in your community might not be empty!)

There has been no Snowden-scale whistle-blowing exposing all of coal's dirty little secrets, no leaked documents detailing the full scope of their commercial deceit - at least none that have managed to maintain the level of scrutiny Edward Snowden's revelations were rewarded with. In fact, less then two weeks after hundreds of thousands of West Virginians lost their access to potable water for more than a week because of a chemical spill related to 'big coal', (no matter what the state's governor says) the attention of the media and the nation is faltering and news-gatherers are leading with other topics. I find that very disconcerting.

From mountain-top removal to fracking to cross-country pipelines, the biggest story in carbon-based fuel consumption is how much we don’t know about the processes and materials and dangers involved. The amount of information we are not privy to – even when it directly affects us - is mind-boggling! Spilled and leached poisons have rendered water sources undrinkable throughout 'coal country', accidents - or like industry spokes-people like to call them, “acts of God” - have turned whole towns uninhabitable and yet the Energy companies cry “Proprietary!” when asked to disclose the specifics of the chemical substances they use. And unbelievably, we let them: current law backs them up! Huh?!?

When John Boehner tells us ...“we have enough regulations...” in place to protect the waters in West Virginia and beyond, he ignores the fact that what happened in West Virginia was a direct consequence of a lack of mandated oversight. Deregulation is why inspecting chemical storage containers isn't done in WV – ever. 

House Appropriations Chairman (aka “Prince of Pork”) Hal Rogers (R-Ky), openly acknowledged helping the coal industry as his reason for attaching an omnibus rider that stops the EPA from tightening the rules for dumping waste into streams.

With the spectre of high unemployment working in their favor, the sociopaths (according to Wikipedia definition: sociopath: an abnormal lack of empathy combined with strongly amoral conduct but masked by an ability to appear outwardly normal... seems appropriate) in charge of coal and coal-related companies are able to maintain their huge profit margins with the promise of a pay check. But job security won't make up for a way of life forever lost through greed. It won't make the streams run clear again, or shape the tops of cut down mountains. It won't bring back the people.