America The Beautiful and Our Mountains Majesty

Our small community has been in bitter battle with a company that is bent on destroying our mountain and the resources that surround it. Why you as, because they want the rights to mine shale and other minerals out of the mountain. The mountains hols all of our drinking water. They do not realize just how strong our community is and we will continue this fight until, like the neighboring state that is only a couple of miles from this mountain, and on the same mountain range as us, throws them out too. I wrote another hub about this very same think and came from the stance of a young family TAKE A RIDE TO THE BEAUTIFUL COUNTRYSIDE. This hub is about a man who wrote to the local newspaper and spoke out. Don't ever loose sight of what is beautiful that needs preserving. Stand Up For something that is important to you. Here is the Letter that he wrote in the local newspaper

 CARE Letter to the Editor
The Martinsburg Journal

My name is Eric Sandstrom. I live in the community of Gerrardstown.  I love this area.  I am really dismayed at the virtual erection of a "brick wall" around the issue of North Mountain Shale, LLC.  I never imagined that we would be faced with this kind of environmental hostility in Gerrardstown.  Throughout the panhandle we have history.  George Washington came through here, The Civil War came through here, and families homesteaded here.  Gerrardstown is one of those few continuously inhabited towns from the late 18th century.  Towns like Gerrardstown are extremely rare.  Fortunately, this was recognized by some thoughtful people, and the Historical Society is full of information about Gerrardstown; there was even a book published about it. We are a designated Historic District, and the George Washington Trail that winds through the area comes right through Gerrardstown.  The thing is, that's why people come to live in a place like this.  It's why I did, anyway.  What really impressed me about Berkeley County in 1992 was the sense of community.  When we moved in, our neighbors brought cakes and pies to welcome us!  Community is precious and we should not take it for granted.  My point of view: it's more than a little bit short sighted to start digging up North Mountain; it could be evidence of blindness!  Mining interests aside, who is it that's been living here in stewardship of the land for the last 200 and some odd years?  The people of Berkeley County.  Shouldn't we have some sort of say about a mining operation that is first of all going to give us nothing, and then dirty up the air and the water, cause erosion problems, traffic problems, totally mess up the character of our little town, and is not even from West Virginia?  Who says you can do that?  It seems there's up for sale and then.. there's up for sale.  This is not coal country, USA.  In fact, we have a chance to become the land of nice properties and houses and even eco-tourism, USA.  We have the best of the best.  You wouldn't believe the number of bikes that come through here on any Saturday during the summer months.  I know; I hear them!  But that's good, and it helps the economy.  They stop by the Corner Store, and lots of other businesses in the panhandle.  But we seem to have arrived at some sort of political predicament where Governor Manchin appears to have his hands tied, and it doesn't matter what geologist you talk to or what they say, because you can't walk around inside a mountain; but wait a minute...does anybody really think that popping that mountain open like a water balloon is not going to have a major effect on wells around here?  Let's have some common sense!  West Virginians are usually long on common sense.  The rest of our legislators have been sitting on their hands too, from Jonathan Miller to Shelly Moore Capito.  Why won't anybody help us?  Now, I will say kudos to the Berkeley County Commission for doing a great thing and passing that resolution last summer.  Thank-you.  Now, I'll borrow an old phrase and say that it doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that this particular project on this particular parcel of land, at this particular point in time is a bad idea.  It needs to fall off the launch pad.  We need more community involvement; intense community involvement and real pressure, or our best hopes for Berkeley County in the future are going to be shattered.  Hindsight is 20/20 they say.  Let's have some foresight.  If mountaineers are free, let's act free and get the special interests off our backs.  I strongly suggest that anyone reading this who has access to a computer go to www.northmountain.org and find out what is really going on here.  We need your help.
  
Thank-you,

Eric Sandstrom,  Gerrardstown       

 You can go to the website listed in the man's letter and find out how you can write to the congressmen about this. People do not think about how anything like this will affect other areas. We have orchards that get passed around the states that will have these pollutants in them, let alone any meat or dairy products tht drink any of the water here. Also we are on the Chesapeak Watershed and our waters eventually make it out to the Atlantic Ocean and then get taken by the currents. It may sound like this is a really small deal, but it really isn't. They have already destroyed the water on one family's farm before they told themn that they were doing surveys on the maountain there. It is big to us and to the vital resources here and everywhere. The Shale Company was denied in Virginia and they came here to see if they could get permits--for the same mountain just about 20 miles North of their original site was supposed to be. If you look at my map on my Profile you will see WV and Berkeley County, where I live, boarders up against Virginia and Maryland. These two states will be affected becuase of the smaller creeks and tributaries that feed into the Potomac River which feeds many areas including Washington, D.C.

Thank you very much for asking what you can do to help. Others can do this too. No one has to live in this area to show support for keeping our natural resources in our land we call home.

 I just received this today and I truly hope this is the end of it.

Good Morning~

Hope you are enjoying your summer. I am sending my best wishes to you.

I have been monitoring the quarry situation, but having a bit of summer fun in the meantime.

I have been advised of the following-

******************* The  permit application was removed from the courthouse because the comment period is over. No decision has been made yet. Randy Moore and others still reviewing comments at the Philippi office and then will send it  to Charleston.  Tom Clarke, director of the Division of Mining and Reclamation, makes the final decision.

Decision may be final within a month.  We will receive a letter once the decision is made.  If we do not agree with it we will have 30 days to file an appeal.

I hope they realize this is a serious issue with dire consequences involved if this permit is approved. We are not backing down and the state will have a huge fight if this goes through.

Keep in touch,

Wendy

CARE

Citizens Alliance for a Responsible Environment