Rest In Peace - Courtesy of the WV D.E.P.

My friend, Larry Gibson, lives on Kayford Mountain – 35 miles from West Virginia’s State Capital in Charleston. I had the privilege of accompanying Larry on a tour with Kathy Mattea to view the Catenery Coal Company’s mountaintop removal operation there 2 weeks ago. One of things we talked about was the coal industry’s lack of regard and respect for the family cemeteries that are located on coal company property. Larry’s comment was, “If they don’t have any respect for dead how can we expect them to care for the living?”

What most people don’t know is that these resting grounds are sliding off the hillsides. Graves are sinking, and in fact, some of the remains that were interred there have now slipped into the bowels of the earth. Access to these family resting places is limited, if granted at all, to immediate family members – a notion that I find revolting.

Flashback: I attended a public hearing in the Pocahontas County courthouse a few years ago where the DEP was taking testimony relating to a permit for a sandstone quarry on Brown’s Mountain. Everything seemed to be going in favor of the big absentee landowner until a very eloquent sweet lady stepped up and mentioned the three family cemeteries located on the property. Well, that was in the days of Matt Crum at the DEP, and he nearly fell off his seat. Seems that the burial grounds weren’t on the map. Next morning Matt Crum had a helicopter fly him over the property. He walked the property. Guess what? 3 cemeteries, just like the lady said. Guess what? Permit denied! They appealed. Denied! Matt Crum lost his job. Brown’s Mountain is still sitting there – pretty as you please – native trout still swimming in Knapps Creek - no blasting, no trucks, no intruders. Rest in Peace! Of course they still own the land, but up until now – NO PERMIT!

Fast forward – to Kayford. DEP is now under the thumb of Stephanie Timmermeyer. If memory serves correct she use to work for one of the coal company law firms. DEP says the coal company is following the law. What? You have people buried on a little pinhead on the side of blown off mountain. You have to drive through the blasting zone to get to it – on roads built for trucks that could haul my house! And they say they’re following the law. All I can say is THE LAW HAS GONE MAD!

Vivian Stockman, our wonderful photographer friend with OVEC, took these pictures of the Stover Cemetery on Kayford Mountain just a week after I had been there. Please visit their website to read her description of these and other photos she took from the air. Vivian reminds us of Mother Jones when she said, “Pray for the dead and fight like hell for the living.”