Here are some samples of what people are communicating on the web:
http://blackwarriorriver.org/news/two-waterkeepers-sue-black-warrior-minerals.html
According to John Wathen, Hurricane Creekkeeper for the Friends of Hurricane Creek, “Coal mining has been a serious problem in Hurricane Creek for many generations causing it to be placed on the EPA’s impaired streams list. Black Warrior Minerals has not only failed to reduce those pollutants but has exceeded effluent standards repeatedly and should be held accountable. The state has failed to do so. With no recourse left, we have joined forces with Black Warrior Riverkeeper to step in to enforce the laws.”
http://www.riversofalabama.org/Black%20 Warrior/BW_Physical_Description.htm
The Black Warrior River contains the largest drainage area entirely within Alabamas borders. The entire watershed drains approximately 6,276 square miles of land.
www.blackwarriorriver.org/pdf/EnvironmentTownHall10.14.11.pdf
While the Black Warrior river mainstem occupies only 5 counties (Jefferson, Walker, Tuscaloosa, Hale and Greene) before draining into the Tombigbee River near Demopolis, the streams comprising its watershed flow through an additional 10 counties (Marshall, Etowah, Blount, Morgan, Cullman, Lawrence, Winston, Fayette, Bibb, and Perry).
Red Mountain serves as the drainage divide between the Warrior and Cahaba River systems.
The Birmingham-Metro Chapter of the NAACP will present a Grand Town Hall Meeting and Public Forum about the Environment on Friday, October 14th from 7:00 to 8:15. Panelists will focus on two local pollution threats: the Shepherd Bend Mine proposal across the river from Birmingham’s drinking water intake facility and the recent “Deadly Deception” controversy in the Collegeville area. The free public event will take place at Glen Iris Elementary School (1115 11th Street South, Birmingham, AL 35205).
Click here for more information about the Shepherd Bend Mine proposal:
www.blackwarriorriver.org/news/help-protect-birmingham-s-drinking-water.html
Black Warrior Riverkeeper opposes the Shepherd Bend Mine, which would discharge wastewater from coal mining into the Black Warrior’s Mulberry Fork only 800 feet from a major drinking water intake for 200,000 customers of the Birmingham Water Works Board (BWWB). We have been proud to partner with community groups, student organizations, and numerous scientists and public health advocates to point out the risks of permitting a coal mine so close to a major Birmingham drinking water intake. Despite widespread opposition, on October 19, 2010 the Alabama Surface Mining Commission (ASMC) issued a permit to Shepherd Bend, LLC to mine 286 acres. The BWWB announced on November 17 that they are appealing this ASMC permit. The BWWB has offered detailed information as to how the wastewater discharges from the mine will introduce toxic pollutants and sediment into the water, potentially leading to increased treatment costs (typically passed on to customers), decreased water quality, and possible health risks. The BWWB also stated that a mine this close to a major water intake would be “incompatible” and “unprecedented.” http://blackwarriorriver.org/
Black Warrior Riverkeeper’s mission is to protect and restore the Black Warrior River and its tributaries. We are a citizen-based nonprofit organization dedicated to improving water quality, habitat, recreation, and public health throughout our patrol area, the Black Warrior River watershed. This vital river basin is entirely contained within Alabama, America’s #1 state for freshwater biodiversity.
May 17, 2011 Birmingham, Ala. —Pollution caused by coal mining near the Black Warrior River has landed the river on the annual list of America’s Most Endangered Rivers™ – a report issued by the conservation group American Rivers.
