Tell Gov. Tomblin to Block the Expansion of the Brushy Fork sludge dam!


Mar 26, 2013

TDon't let this coal slurry impoundment become bigger than the Hoover dam.he Mine Safety and Health Administration has approved a 50 foot and two billion gallon expansion to the 750 foot tall and 6.6 billion gallon Brushy Fork coal slurry dam.  Unless the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection denies the expansion, the largest sludge impoundment in Appalachia will become taller than the Hoover Dam.  WVDEP and the Federal Office of Surface Mining have been studying the compaction of coal waste dams in West Virginia for the past two years.

Regulators continue to rely on company submitted data to prove that impoundments are properly constructed.  This is unacceptable for a dam designed by the same engineers responsible for the disastrous 2000 Martin Co., KY sludge spill and overseen by the Massey engineering team responsible for the Upper Big Branch disaster.  Citizens deserve to know if the existing impoundment is truly safe, before this massive dam gets larger!

"I truly believe it will fail.
It's just a matter of time."
~Joe Stanley, retired UMWA miner

"A 100-foot wave of sludge would reach
Sherman High School in 17 minutes."
~Report in Associated Press

Call Governor Tomblin today to demand that he order a halt to expansion to the Brushy Fork impoundment until they complete their compaction study.  Call (304) 558-2000 now!