This is the only footage in the world of TVA's Coal Ash Dust Storm.
It made international media yet people in east TN didn't know it had happened.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CyX5rEb4vqg
Showing posts with label Bucket Brigade. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bucket Brigade. Show all posts
Saturday, April 4, 2009
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Feb 3- Feb 10, 2009 UMD Updates about TVA Coal Ash Disaster
Feb 10, 2009 Tuesday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
United Mountain Defense Internship List
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_8hnc3hmcv&hl=en
United Mountain Defense Volunteer House Application
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_6cg5tvmdx&hl=en
Tonight there was a meeting of the TN Coal Ash Survivors Network(TCASN). Volunteers from United Mountain Defense traveled to Harriman, TN to help facilitate this organizational meeting. One of the goals of the evening meeting was to choose an organizational structure. The group chose to continue using the consensus based decision making process. Next TCASN decided on goals for the group. They came up with a list of 5 goals and decided on one goal to add to the website immediately with the others to be discussed over the next week and decided on at the next organizational meeting. The one goal they decided on was to “Support and help evacuate families with health impacts directly related to TVA’s Coal Ash Disaster”. The group then decided on some various tactics they would use. They then decided to work on their first fundraiser. TCASN has been very successful to date in making group decisions and using the consensus process. The next meeting is set for next Tuesday at Penny Dodson’s house.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Feb 9, 2009 Monday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
United Mountain Defense Internship List
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_8hnc3hmcv&hl=en
United Mountain Defense Volunteer House Application
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_6cg5tvmdx&hl=en
For the past week United Mountain Defense volunteer Tom Swinford has been making copies of the video documentation of the TVA coal ash disaster. Thank you Tom!!
UMD board member and volunteer coordinator, Bonnie Swinford worked on balancing UMD’s budget by going through the stack of receipts to figure out what the state of the organization’s financial situation. It appears to still be in the black.
Matt Landon, UMD volunteer staff person continued to work on the catalogue of disaster videos.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Feb 8, 2009 Sunday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
United Mountain Defense Internship List
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_8hnc3hmcv&hl=en
United Mountain Defense Volunteer House Application
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_6cg5tvmdx&hl=en
United Mountain Defense volunteers were tasked with getting more medical release forms from residents who got free heavy metal exposure screenings. Their medical results are being analyzed and will be released as an anonymous pool of data. UMD volunteers got two more residents to sign release forms.
UMD volunteers also video taped the changes to the disaster site. It was a mostly quiet day with only a few machines working at the disaster site.
One of the most shocking bits on knowledge UMD volunteers learned today was that workers on site have been having uncontrollable and repeated nose bleeds since beginning to work at TVA’s coal ash disaster site.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Feb 7, 2009 Saturday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
United Mountain Defense Internship List
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_8hnc3hmcv&hl=en
United Mountain Defense Volunteer House Application
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_6cg5tvmdx&hl=en
United Mountain Defense volunteers started working on compiling a comprehensive list of all of the video tapes they have recorded to date. UMD volunteer Tom Swinford has volunteered to start the task of converting the Mini DV tapes into DVD’s and has begun reproducing the DVD’s for distribution.
United Mountain Defense has the most comprehensive video documentation of TVA’s response to the Coal Ash Disaster of Dec 22, 2008. United Mountain Defense has more than 60 hours of footage including two aerial videos and hours of local interviews.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Feb 6, 2009 Friday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
United Mountain Defense Internship List
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_8hnc3hmcv&hl=en
United Mountain Defense Volunteer House Application
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_6cg5tvmdx&hl=en
Today was a very busy day. United Mountain Defense volunteers traveled to Lad Landing at the convergence of the Emory and the Clinch Rivers where they met with the Tennessee Wildlife Resource Agency and the Al Jazeera International Television News Network. The Emory River was so cold this morning that Bobby Brown of TWRA was steering the boat through a 1 inch layer of ice. Landon got another chance to use the YSI digital water monitor purchased with funds from the Natural Resource Defense Council. Thank you NRDC!!
As Bobby Brown steered the boat back to Lad Landing the United Mountain Defense volunteers met up with the graduate students from Duke University for a second round of water sampling. UMD volunteers also met up with Matt Powell of WOUT Radio based at the University of TN in Knoxville. WOUT wanted to do a radio interview about the health impacts and the Massive Coal Ash Dust Storm that occurred on Tuesday.
The volunteers traveled down Emory River Rd and helped the Duke University graduate students reach their next sampling location. The next stop was Diana Anderson’s house, the location of the first air monitoring sample tray. While Diana was helping to prepare the sampling trays she was also giving a radio interview with WOUT.
The next step was deploying the cleaned air monitoring tray outside on her property. While Diana was outside deploying the sampling tray and talking with WOUT, a TVA representative drove up and hand delivered a letter outlining a flood warning to all residents living 10 miles upstream along the river.
It seems that TVA coal ash has created a plug in the original river channel of the Emory River. If there are any heavy rains that fall in the water shed there may be flooding of the area. The representative stated that TVA will provide the flood insurance to any resident who doesn’t have flood insurance and gets impacted by flooding during TVA’s coal ash disaster and the dredging project.
The rest of the day was spent helping the Duke University graduate students find their way back to previously tested locations. We got to hand deliver water quality data to one local resident with a drinking spring located on his property. He stated that all of the tests including EPA’s, TDEC’s, and finally Duke Universities’ data shows that the water is safe. Of course this quality assurance is only as good as the testing. These results are only for one spring/ ground water source in the area. The Emory River water continues to have very high levels of arsenic and other toxic heavy metals. Don’t drink the water!!
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Feb 5, 2009 Thursday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
United Mountain Defense Internship List
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_8hnc3hmcv&hl=en
United Mountain Defense Volunteer House Application
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_6cg5tvmdx&hl=en
Members of United Mountain Defense and the Tennessee Coal Ash Survivors Network attended a meeting with a few other environmental organizations in Knoxville, TN today. There was a local citizen’s panel discussion including Matt Landon of United Mountain Defense. The residents gave updates on the situation in Roane County and Landon gave an update about the progress and projects that UMD has started with the community.
A TDEC representative and a TN Department of Health representative provided updates about the work they were doing at the disaster site. TDEC shared some information about the Emory River dredging plan. The TN Department of Health spoke about how they were done traveling out into the field to interview locals. When Landon brought up the fact that the situation had greatly worsened over the last three weeks since the TN Department of Health’s visit the representative did not react at all and instead ignored the statement and question of when his department would get back to the disaster site.
During the meeting Matt Landon received a phone call from the ABC National Evening News asking permission to air the TVA Coal Ash Dust Storm footage on national television. Of course Landon obliged and returned to the meeting. The story also made world news with readers in China, Russia, and Europe.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Feb 4, 2009 Wednesday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
United Mountain Defense Internship List
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_8hnc3hmcv&hl=en
United Mountain Defense Volunteer House Application
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_6cg5tvmdx&hl=en
Matt Landon, United Mountain Defense volunteer staff person, escorted Jeff Stant of the Environmental Integrity Project and Lisa Evans of Earthjustice to the TVA Coal Ash Disaster site in Harriman, TN. It was an interesting tour.
Matt Landon had a run in with the TVA police today and had an opportunity to honestly and openly speak with the officer to convey his concerns for everyone’s safety around the disaster site. The officer informed Landon that they had not received a copy of TVA’s Material Safety Data Sheet for Class F Fly ash or Bottom Ash. When Landon informed the officer that he had video taped a huge coal ash dust storm coming from the site during the previous day the officer seemed shocked. Everyone on site and around the world has been reassured that this toxic coal ash is safe as long as it wet. Well the reality of the situation is beginning to hit home now as it dries out. TVA did not tell all of its employees about the coal ash dust storm of the previous day and this officer was truly shocked and stated that they would ask for the MSDS sheets.
Landon videotaped dust devils beginning to form on the disaster site.
Landon called the regulators to file complaints after witnessing vehicles cross contaminating the onsite road way with coal ash that dump trucks were driving onto before returning onto the county roads. Landon filed a complaint with Bob Alexander of TDEC about the trucks tracking coal ash off site. Bob Alexander offered to meet the three on site.
The courageous crew met with Bob Alexander after choosing a meeting location on Berkshire Drive. During the meeting Landon pointed out the afternoons developing dust storm. Alexander shrugged off the dust saying that it was just a little dust and that it would not hurt anything. Alexander was not very understanding about Landon’s respiratory protection concerns and laughed at Landon’s respirator.
It would be easy to become discouraged about TDEC’s response as the lead regulatory agency on TVA’s coal ash disaster after meeting Bob Alexander in person.
United Mountain Defense volunteers met up with the Al Jazeera International Television News Network for a tour of the disaster site.
In the mid afternoon United Mountain Defense volunteers got a phone call from the local ABC New Channel 6 camera crew who had been tipped off about the dust storms of yesterday and today. Matt Landon did an interview and supplied the video from the Massive Coal Ash Dust Storm. This news coverage was broadcast to the East TN area.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Feb 3, 2009 Tuesday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
United Mountain Defense Internship List
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_8hnc3hmcv&hl=en
United Mountain Defense Volunteer House Application
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_6cg5tvmdx&hl=en
Diana Anderson of the Tennessee Coal Ash Survivors Network and Matt Landon of United Mountain Defense arose bright and early, fought the Washington D.C. traffic, and caught our flight back to the big city of Knoxville, TN. The volunteers were coming back from a weekend of air quality training with the Global Community Monitor/ Bucket Brigade. The informative training session was video taped to provide a good reference for future trainings and community refresher courses.
After arriving back in Knoxville Anderson and Landon drove to TVA’s Bull Run Coal Burning Plant to document the coal ash piles on site. The coal burning dinosaur appeared to be in working order with a HUGE coal ash pile. Unlike TVA’s Kingston plant there were houses directly at the toe of the coal ash pile.
This weekend was a pleasant retreat from the dusty, toxic air of Harriman, TN. As the volunteers drove the back roads and approached TVA’s coal ash disaster their chests began to tighten and their throats began to get scratchy. Upon clearing the last hill on Emory River Rd directly east of the disaster their eyes were met with a horrible site. A massive dust storm arose from the surface of TVA’s coal ash disaster site. To date this dust storm has been the worst nightmare of the TVA’s Public Relations Team, the regulatory agencies, the local residents, and everyone living downwind.
United Mountain Defense volunteer, Matt Landon documented the Massive Dust Storm on video tape at 5pm and began calling the regulatory agencies to file official complaints. He called Bob Alexander, TDEC’s disaster site manager, to ask if he was onsite and if he was looking outside or wearing a respirator. Bob Alexander was captured on video tape stating that he did not see any dust storm and that he was not wearing a respirator.
The world needs to know that TVA’s coal fly ash disaster has taken a new and harmful turn for the worst.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
United Mountain Defense Internship List
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_8hnc3hmcv&hl=en
United Mountain Defense Volunteer House Application
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_6cg5tvmdx&hl=en
Tonight there was a meeting of the TN Coal Ash Survivors Network(TCASN). Volunteers from United Mountain Defense traveled to Harriman, TN to help facilitate this organizational meeting. One of the goals of the evening meeting was to choose an organizational structure. The group chose to continue using the consensus based decision making process. Next TCASN decided on goals for the group. They came up with a list of 5 goals and decided on one goal to add to the website immediately with the others to be discussed over the next week and decided on at the next organizational meeting. The one goal they decided on was to “Support and help evacuate families with health impacts directly related to TVA’s Coal Ash Disaster”. The group then decided on some various tactics they would use. They then decided to work on their first fundraiser. TCASN has been very successful to date in making group decisions and using the consensus process. The next meeting is set for next Tuesday at Penny Dodson’s house.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Feb 9, 2009 Monday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
United Mountain Defense Internship List
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_8hnc3hmcv&hl=en
United Mountain Defense Volunteer House Application
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_6cg5tvmdx&hl=en
For the past week United Mountain Defense volunteer Tom Swinford has been making copies of the video documentation of the TVA coal ash disaster. Thank you Tom!!
UMD board member and volunteer coordinator, Bonnie Swinford worked on balancing UMD’s budget by going through the stack of receipts to figure out what the state of the organization’s financial situation. It appears to still be in the black.
Matt Landon, UMD volunteer staff person continued to work on the catalogue of disaster videos.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Feb 8, 2009 Sunday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
United Mountain Defense Internship List
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_8hnc3hmcv&hl=en
United Mountain Defense Volunteer House Application
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_6cg5tvmdx&hl=en
United Mountain Defense volunteers were tasked with getting more medical release forms from residents who got free heavy metal exposure screenings. Their medical results are being analyzed and will be released as an anonymous pool of data. UMD volunteers got two more residents to sign release forms.
UMD volunteers also video taped the changes to the disaster site. It was a mostly quiet day with only a few machines working at the disaster site.
One of the most shocking bits on knowledge UMD volunteers learned today was that workers on site have been having uncontrollable and repeated nose bleeds since beginning to work at TVA’s coal ash disaster site.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Feb 7, 2009 Saturday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
United Mountain Defense Internship List
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_8hnc3hmcv&hl=en
United Mountain Defense Volunteer House Application
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_6cg5tvmdx&hl=en
United Mountain Defense volunteers started working on compiling a comprehensive list of all of the video tapes they have recorded to date. UMD volunteer Tom Swinford has volunteered to start the task of converting the Mini DV tapes into DVD’s and has begun reproducing the DVD’s for distribution.
United Mountain Defense has the most comprehensive video documentation of TVA’s response to the Coal Ash Disaster of Dec 22, 2008. United Mountain Defense has more than 60 hours of footage including two aerial videos and hours of local interviews.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Feb 6, 2009 Friday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
United Mountain Defense Internship List
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_8hnc3hmcv&hl=en
United Mountain Defense Volunteer House Application
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_6cg5tvmdx&hl=en
Today was a very busy day. United Mountain Defense volunteers traveled to Lad Landing at the convergence of the Emory and the Clinch Rivers where they met with the Tennessee Wildlife Resource Agency and the Al Jazeera International Television News Network. The Emory River was so cold this morning that Bobby Brown of TWRA was steering the boat through a 1 inch layer of ice. Landon got another chance to use the YSI digital water monitor purchased with funds from the Natural Resource Defense Council. Thank you NRDC!!
As Bobby Brown steered the boat back to Lad Landing the United Mountain Defense volunteers met up with the graduate students from Duke University for a second round of water sampling. UMD volunteers also met up with Matt Powell of WOUT Radio based at the University of TN in Knoxville. WOUT wanted to do a radio interview about the health impacts and the Massive Coal Ash Dust Storm that occurred on Tuesday.
The volunteers traveled down Emory River Rd and helped the Duke University graduate students reach their next sampling location. The next stop was Diana Anderson’s house, the location of the first air monitoring sample tray. While Diana was helping to prepare the sampling trays she was also giving a radio interview with WOUT.
The next step was deploying the cleaned air monitoring tray outside on her property. While Diana was outside deploying the sampling tray and talking with WOUT, a TVA representative drove up and hand delivered a letter outlining a flood warning to all residents living 10 miles upstream along the river.
It seems that TVA coal ash has created a plug in the original river channel of the Emory River. If there are any heavy rains that fall in the water shed there may be flooding of the area. The representative stated that TVA will provide the flood insurance to any resident who doesn’t have flood insurance and gets impacted by flooding during TVA’s coal ash disaster and the dredging project.
The rest of the day was spent helping the Duke University graduate students find their way back to previously tested locations. We got to hand deliver water quality data to one local resident with a drinking spring located on his property. He stated that all of the tests including EPA’s, TDEC’s, and finally Duke Universities’ data shows that the water is safe. Of course this quality assurance is only as good as the testing. These results are only for one spring/ ground water source in the area. The Emory River water continues to have very high levels of arsenic and other toxic heavy metals. Don’t drink the water!!
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Feb 5, 2009 Thursday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
United Mountain Defense Internship List
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_8hnc3hmcv&hl=en
United Mountain Defense Volunteer House Application
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_6cg5tvmdx&hl=en
Members of United Mountain Defense and the Tennessee Coal Ash Survivors Network attended a meeting with a few other environmental organizations in Knoxville, TN today. There was a local citizen’s panel discussion including Matt Landon of United Mountain Defense. The residents gave updates on the situation in Roane County and Landon gave an update about the progress and projects that UMD has started with the community.
A TDEC representative and a TN Department of Health representative provided updates about the work they were doing at the disaster site. TDEC shared some information about the Emory River dredging plan. The TN Department of Health spoke about how they were done traveling out into the field to interview locals. When Landon brought up the fact that the situation had greatly worsened over the last three weeks since the TN Department of Health’s visit the representative did not react at all and instead ignored the statement and question of when his department would get back to the disaster site.
During the meeting Matt Landon received a phone call from the ABC National Evening News asking permission to air the TVA Coal Ash Dust Storm footage on national television. Of course Landon obliged and returned to the meeting. The story also made world news with readers in China, Russia, and Europe.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Feb 4, 2009 Wednesday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
United Mountain Defense Internship List
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_8hnc3hmcv&hl=en
United Mountain Defense Volunteer House Application
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_6cg5tvmdx&hl=en
Matt Landon, United Mountain Defense volunteer staff person, escorted Jeff Stant of the Environmental Integrity Project and Lisa Evans of Earthjustice to the TVA Coal Ash Disaster site in Harriman, TN. It was an interesting tour.
Matt Landon had a run in with the TVA police today and had an opportunity to honestly and openly speak with the officer to convey his concerns for everyone’s safety around the disaster site. The officer informed Landon that they had not received a copy of TVA’s Material Safety Data Sheet for Class F Fly ash or Bottom Ash. When Landon informed the officer that he had video taped a huge coal ash dust storm coming from the site during the previous day the officer seemed shocked. Everyone on site and around the world has been reassured that this toxic coal ash is safe as long as it wet. Well the reality of the situation is beginning to hit home now as it dries out. TVA did not tell all of its employees about the coal ash dust storm of the previous day and this officer was truly shocked and stated that they would ask for the MSDS sheets.
Landon videotaped dust devils beginning to form on the disaster site.
Landon called the regulators to file complaints after witnessing vehicles cross contaminating the onsite road way with coal ash that dump trucks were driving onto before returning onto the county roads. Landon filed a complaint with Bob Alexander of TDEC about the trucks tracking coal ash off site. Bob Alexander offered to meet the three on site.
The courageous crew met with Bob Alexander after choosing a meeting location on Berkshire Drive. During the meeting Landon pointed out the afternoons developing dust storm. Alexander shrugged off the dust saying that it was just a little dust and that it would not hurt anything. Alexander was not very understanding about Landon’s respiratory protection concerns and laughed at Landon’s respirator.
It would be easy to become discouraged about TDEC’s response as the lead regulatory agency on TVA’s coal ash disaster after meeting Bob Alexander in person.
United Mountain Defense volunteers met up with the Al Jazeera International Television News Network for a tour of the disaster site.
In the mid afternoon United Mountain Defense volunteers got a phone call from the local ABC New Channel 6 camera crew who had been tipped off about the dust storms of yesterday and today. Matt Landon did an interview and supplied the video from the Massive Coal Ash Dust Storm. This news coverage was broadcast to the East TN area.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Feb 3, 2009 Tuesday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
United Mountain Defense Internship List
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_8hnc3hmcv&hl=en
United Mountain Defense Volunteer House Application
http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=ddtgk4hx_6cg5tvmdx&hl=en
Diana Anderson of the Tennessee Coal Ash Survivors Network and Matt Landon of United Mountain Defense arose bright and early, fought the Washington D.C. traffic, and caught our flight back to the big city of Knoxville, TN. The volunteers were coming back from a weekend of air quality training with the Global Community Monitor/ Bucket Brigade. The informative training session was video taped to provide a good reference for future trainings and community refresher courses.
After arriving back in Knoxville Anderson and Landon drove to TVA’s Bull Run Coal Burning Plant to document the coal ash piles on site. The coal burning dinosaur appeared to be in working order with a HUGE coal ash pile. Unlike TVA’s Kingston plant there were houses directly at the toe of the coal ash pile.
This weekend was a pleasant retreat from the dusty, toxic air of Harriman, TN. As the volunteers drove the back roads and approached TVA’s coal ash disaster their chests began to tighten and their throats began to get scratchy. Upon clearing the last hill on Emory River Rd directly east of the disaster their eyes were met with a horrible site. A massive dust storm arose from the surface of TVA’s coal ash disaster site. To date this dust storm has been the worst nightmare of the TVA’s Public Relations Team, the regulatory agencies, the local residents, and everyone living downwind.
United Mountain Defense volunteer, Matt Landon documented the Massive Dust Storm on video tape at 5pm and began calling the regulatory agencies to file official complaints. He called Bob Alexander, TDEC’s disaster site manager, to ask if he was onsite and if he was looking outside or wearing a respirator. Bob Alexander was captured on video tape stating that he did not see any dust storm and that he was not wearing a respirator.
The world needs to know that TVA’s coal fly ash disaster has taken a new and harmful turn for the worst.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Jan 24- Feb 2, 2009 Updates from United Mountain Defense about TVA's coal ash disaster
Feb 2, 2009 Monday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
Today was the second day of training from the Global Community Monitor. Today Diana Anderson of the TN Coal Ash Survivors Network and Matt Landon of United Mountain Defense learned how to operate Air Metric’s Mini Volume air monitor. This machine is very user friendly and maintains its calibration for one year.
The air monitoring volunteers learned about how to use various filters for the monitors and how to maintain the integrity of the filter sample. They learned how to troubleshoot the monitoring machine. They also learned about properly mounting the monitor on power poles or house roofs and other important sighting instructions.
Anderson and Landon also learned about filling out chain of custody forms, and how to tamper proof the filter cases for shipping to the lab.
We finally got back to TN’s community map we had drawn two days prior. After reviewing this map with GCM staff we decided on locations for Swipe Testing and then Air Quality Testing.
More importantly we learned about the impacts of air pollution on other communities and how similar their concerns are to our own concerns.
We ended the training by looking to the future. Matt Landon of United Mountain Defense helped bring the Bucket Brigade to Appalachia in order to provide another community organizing tool that would give back to the communities. He envisioned using TVA’s coal ash disaster as a pilot project to show how easy it is for communities to do this type of monitoring and help bring it to coal impacted communities across the region. He wants to see Bucket Brigades at Marsh Fork Elementary School in West Virginia and at surface coal mines, coal processing plants, and coal burning plants across the region. Won’t you help?
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Feb 1, 2009 Sunday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
Super Bowl Sunday was spent researching a number of online sources of data that we had left untapped till this point.
Matt Landon, United Mountain Defense volunteer staff person, took a virtual car ride through the Swan Pond Community before the coal ash disaster using Google Street View. He found photos of the leaking dam located at 1222 Swan Pond Rd. There was photographic evidence of red iron oxide and heavy metal laden water leaking from the toe of the dam. Whenever water is leaking from the base of the damn it is a bad sign and could foreshadow failure.
We also viewed Roane County property tax maps online. These property maps incorporated aerial photography as well making the property searches so much easier. These maps were not up to date as they did not show the properties recently purchased by TVA along Berkshire Ln and Lakeshore Rd.
Diana Anderson of the TN Coal Ash Survivors Network and Matt Landon of United Mountain Defense met with Sarah Goldberg of the Kelley Campaign, a Public Relations group based in Washington DC. Sarah Goldberg was very excited to meet with us and learn more information about what was happening from our firsthand accounts. The Kelley Campaign has been working on a campaign to counter the “Cl*** Coal” campaign of 2008. The Kelley Campaign is working with United Mountain Defense to help amplify our media presence. They have a staff dedicated to writing press releases, distributing them to national and international media, and helping with ground work logistics like setting up citizen press conferences. This is the start to be a beautiful relationship……
After catching the last 15 minutes of the Super Bowl and seeing that incredible touchdown play by the PA Steelers Matt Landon helped Diana Anderson create her first blog. The blog’s title is the Tennessee Coal Ash Survivors Network. The blog’s address is http://tncasn.blogspot.com
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 31, 2009 Saturday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
Diana Anderson of the TN Coal Ash Survivors Network and Matt Landon of United Mountain Defense traveled to Deleware today to receive training from the Global Community Monitor (GCM) organization. www.gcmonitor.org
Matt Landon of UMD video taped the entire two day training session so that other community members in Deleware, TN, and the world could review the training. Today’s training consisted of learning about the history and successes of the Bucket Brigade, GCM’s most notable air monitoring project. The community that hosted us today was plagued by numerous polluting industries and was in the first steps of beginning to self monitor the air quality. One of the first steps in the process was called a log sheet. A brainstorming session led to the development of the “I SEE, I SMELL, I FEEL” sections for residents to fill out for each air pollution event. Based on these pollution log sheets GCM and the community would be able to decide where to put up Swipe Tests and then Mini Volume Air Monitors.
A really good excerise was for the community members to make a map of the major polluters in the area and show the locations of surrounding houses and other points of interest such as schools, hospitals, existing air monitors, and prevailing wind directions.
This training provided a good basis for how the Bucket Brigade would proceed in TN and we got one step closer to having a solid monitoring plan. Thank you Global Community Monitor for providing a helpful training session.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 30, 2009 Friday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
United Mountain Defense volunteer staff person, Matt Landon was awoken to a call from a TN Highway Patrol officer calling from Arizona. The officer said he would send out an officer to the disaster site and would further investigate the CFR on solid waste to figure out about the solid waste regulations.
Landon traveled to the University of TN in Knoxville for a PodCast interview that was conducted at the college radio station, WUOT 91.9. The PodCast will be aired by On the Earth, a project of NRDC. Thanks, NRDC.
After the interview Landon did more research about the Mini Volume air samplers from Air Metrics and the different filters available for the sampler. He was also packing his bags at the same time for a flight to Washington DC.
Diana Anderson of TN Coal Ash Survivors Network and Matt Landon of United Mountain Defense boarded a flight to DC and then drove to Deleware for a two day training by the Global Community Monitor (GCM). GCM is a non profit organization that has trained community members around the globe to use various air monitoring techniques and equipment in order to gather independent data on their own. GCM is currently working with 18 impacted communities across the globe and is very excited about beginning to work in Appalachia on the issue of FILTHY COAL.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 29, 2009 Thursday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
Bonnie Swinford, UMD volunteer coordinator finalized the water monitoring data with Jeff Stant on UMD’s Google map for 3 hours. Good job, Bonnie!!
Matt Landon, UMD volunteer staff took a boat ride on Emory River with TN Wildlife Resources Agency. Until this point Landon had mistakenly thought that a rock weir had been constructed across the Emory River to contain the coal fly ash. Upon boating up the river he learned that TVA had temporarily abandoned this Emory River rock weir project. The boat shuttled the History Channel’s camera crew, reporter, and Matt Landon up and down the river next to the disaster site numerous times in order to get the best shots and to provide enough time to interview TWRA’s Bobby Brown and UMD’s Matt Landon. Landon used the new YSI digital water monitor purchased with a grant from the NRDC. Thank you NRDC!! We were able to check for specific conductivity, pH, dissolved oxygen, and temperature.
Once we got off the river and defrosted our hands Landon led the History Channel crew to Lakeshore Drive for an interview with Rick Cantrell, a local resident whose family was evacuated by TVA. Cantrell gave a stellar interview.
Landon called Paul Sloan of TDEC and the TN Highway Patrol after video taping vehicles exiting the disaster site without being washed first.
A community volunteer meeting was organized for the evening at the Roane State Expo Center. At this meeting the volunteers decided on what content to put on their website, what was their group’s name, and when and where the next volunteer meeting would be held. The Tennessee Coal Ash Survivors Network came into existence. Their website is www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com and they have a blog at http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Diana Anderson of TCASN offered to host the next volunteer meeting.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 28, 2009 Wenesday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
There was a fundraiser set up in Nashville, TN. Local resident, Rick Cantrell attended the fundraiser and spoke about the difficulties his community is facing at this time with TVA’s coal ash disaster. Cantrell reported that nearly 100 people attended the fundraiser where local old time musicians strummed banjos and guitars.
United Mountain Defense volunteer staff person, Matt Landon made phone calls reminding local residents about the volunteer meeting on Thursday night. Landon also received his first email from Bob Alexander of TDEC admitting that TDEC was allowing vehicles to drive off site with coal ash on them.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 27, 2009 Tuesday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
United Mountain Defense volunteer staff person, Matt Landon called all of the regulatory agencies to report the problems of coal ash tracking. Landon called TN Highway Patrol, TN Bureau of Investigation, Bob Alexander of TDEC, EPA criminal division. After speaking with the EPA criminal division Landon was told he would be called by TVA’s OIG in the next week. Landon learned that EPA can’t regulate coal fly ash tracking. EPA doesn’t investigate it because it is not a hazardous waste. After speaking with the TBI, Landon emailed the District Attorney about the tracking problem to file an official compliant.
United Mountain Defense volunteers worked on gathering releases from residents who received heavy metal exposure screening. They picked up disaster photos that were taken to Washington DC. Bonnie and Tom picked up some more human samples for the heavy metal exposure testing. These samples were kept on ice then refrigerated until they were delivered to Internal Balance on Wenesday Jan 28, 2009.
UMD volunteers distributed TVA’s coal fly ash Material Safety Data Sheets to the local residents as they drove around the community.
Matt Landon spoke with a local resident, Judy Scofield, who has had massive asthma attacks since the coal ash disaster occurred. She is now using a steroid inhaler to help her breath. Landon was near tears as she retold her story. He offered to have a call in day to the TVA to politely ask TVA to call Judy Scofield. Judy had not received any phone calls from TVA for nearly two weeks after requesting to be evacuated after a doctor’s suggestion about her respiratory distress being linked to TVA’s coal ash. After the first day of the call in campaign for Judy Scofield she received a phone call from TVA. They informed her they would send CTEH out to check the air quality. Unfortunately CTEH is using inadequate air monitoring equipment. CTEH showed up and after a few minutes told Judy the air was okay.
The call in campaign continues until Judy Scofield is moved to a safer location by TVA.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 26, 2009 Monday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
Bonnie Swinford, UMD’s volunteer coordinator and grant writer has provided major support of ALL of the work that has occurred around TVA’s coal ash disaster. Today Bonnie submitted receipts for multiple grants, updated UMD’s project budget, and made copies of TVA’s Material Safety Data Sheets.
Matt Landon got an email from TDEC about their air quality monitoring after calling TDEC to figure out why they had not installed the high volume air quality monitors around the disaster site. He learned that TDEC had chosen to not install more than one high volume air monitor.
Matt Landon got background air monitoring data from the Great Smoky Mountains National Park for the past 20 years after emailing Jim Renfro for assistance in Harriman, TN.
It was finally time to get back down to get back to the disaster site. Matt Landon had promised to take a Eva to the doctor on the previous Friday due to her deep lung cough. Unfortunately he was not able to take her on Friday and so awoke early Monday morning and drove her to the doctor. Her doctor could not give her a diagnosis but did offer to set up an appointment with a lung specialist in Oak Ridge, TN and gave her a prescription for Cipro, a strong antibiotic. The doctor thought that her deep lung cough was caused by a bacteria. Eva was not able to afford the anti biotic so she had to wait until Feb 1 to get the prescription.
After the doctor’s visit I offered to drive Eva around to see the rest of the disaster site. Eva does not have a vehicle and walks everywhere because she is legally blind in one eye. Her grand daughter is not old enough to drive either. Even though she lives within ½ a mile of the disaster site she has not seem it yet as no one helped her get there yet.
As we drove around the Swan Pond Community we saw that one of the local churches driveways was open after being blockaded for the past four weeks. As we drove up to the cemetery overlooking the disaster site Eva gasped as she saw the destruction. She commented that she had fished many an afternoon in that part of the lake that was now completely filled in by TVA’s coal ash. She just kept repeating that TVA had made such a mess, TVA had made such a mess.
While we were peacefully observing the work at the disaster site a TVA police officer came up the driveway and pulled to a halt in front of our vehicle. Matt Landon was recording and turned the camera on the TVA officer. This officer did not like the camera and asked for identification which Matt Landon produced. The officer got back in his vehicle and drove away with his ID. Upon returning the officer instructed Landon and Eva to evacuate the premises. Of course they complied immediately.
The whole time the video tape was rolling UMD was recording dirty dump trucks and other unwashed vehicles leaving TVA’s coal ash disaster site while tracking coal fly ash out onto the public roads of Roane County and East TN.
As Landon and Eva drove around on the public roads of Roane County they videotaped the work at TVA’s coal ash disaster. Upon driving on Berkshire Rd they were once again pulled over by the TVA police and Landon was given a citation for trespassing, his second citation for trespassing from TVA. Later Landon found out that TVA has bought all of the property along Berkshire Rd so it is their property.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 25, 2009 Sunday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
Today we celebrated Tom’s birthday. Tom is Bonnie’s dad and he recently chose to move down to TN from Indianapolis. He was temporarily living at the UMD volunteer house until he found a house of his own. He did find a house and then this coal ash disaster occurred and he has been on the ground since Dec 22, 2008.
Matt Landon of United Mountain Defense sent out a procedure for doing a swipe test to the Swan Pond community email list serve after receiving multiple requests.
Chris Irwin, UMD staff attorney took a Gentlemen’s Quarterly reporter and photographer up to the King Mountain Mountainside Coal surface mine in Claiborne County near Eagan, TN to photograph the complete cycle of coal, from the cradle to the grave.
Later in the evening UMD had a board meeting where a plan of action was generated for the upcoming week.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 24, 2009 Saturday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
A good portion of the day was spent helping get the carpet installed in the United Mountain Defense volunteer house. Chris Irwin, UMD staff attorney, took GQ magazine in a Southwings flyover of the TVA coal ash disaster site, the windfarm on Buffalo Mountain, and the surface coal mines of East Tennessee. GQ is writing about coal from the cradle to the grave with surface mines and destruction of the highland watersheds being the cradle. The TVA coal ash disaster shows the end product of coal cycle, the grave.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
Today was the second day of training from the Global Community Monitor. Today Diana Anderson of the TN Coal Ash Survivors Network and Matt Landon of United Mountain Defense learned how to operate Air Metric’s Mini Volume air monitor. This machine is very user friendly and maintains its calibration for one year.
The air monitoring volunteers learned about how to use various filters for the monitors and how to maintain the integrity of the filter sample. They learned how to troubleshoot the monitoring machine. They also learned about properly mounting the monitor on power poles or house roofs and other important sighting instructions.
Anderson and Landon also learned about filling out chain of custody forms, and how to tamper proof the filter cases for shipping to the lab.
We finally got back to TN’s community map we had drawn two days prior. After reviewing this map with GCM staff we decided on locations for Swipe Testing and then Air Quality Testing.
More importantly we learned about the impacts of air pollution on other communities and how similar their concerns are to our own concerns.
We ended the training by looking to the future. Matt Landon of United Mountain Defense helped bring the Bucket Brigade to Appalachia in order to provide another community organizing tool that would give back to the communities. He envisioned using TVA’s coal ash disaster as a pilot project to show how easy it is for communities to do this type of monitoring and help bring it to coal impacted communities across the region. He wants to see Bucket Brigades at Marsh Fork Elementary School in West Virginia and at surface coal mines, coal processing plants, and coal burning plants across the region. Won’t you help?
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Feb 1, 2009 Sunday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
Super Bowl Sunday was spent researching a number of online sources of data that we had left untapped till this point.
Matt Landon, United Mountain Defense volunteer staff person, took a virtual car ride through the Swan Pond Community before the coal ash disaster using Google Street View. He found photos of the leaking dam located at 1222 Swan Pond Rd. There was photographic evidence of red iron oxide and heavy metal laden water leaking from the toe of the dam. Whenever water is leaking from the base of the damn it is a bad sign and could foreshadow failure.
We also viewed Roane County property tax maps online. These property maps incorporated aerial photography as well making the property searches so much easier. These maps were not up to date as they did not show the properties recently purchased by TVA along Berkshire Ln and Lakeshore Rd.
Diana Anderson of the TN Coal Ash Survivors Network and Matt Landon of United Mountain Defense met with Sarah Goldberg of the Kelley Campaign, a Public Relations group based in Washington DC. Sarah Goldberg was very excited to meet with us and learn more information about what was happening from our firsthand accounts. The Kelley Campaign has been working on a campaign to counter the “Cl*** Coal” campaign of 2008. The Kelley Campaign is working with United Mountain Defense to help amplify our media presence. They have a staff dedicated to writing press releases, distributing them to national and international media, and helping with ground work logistics like setting up citizen press conferences. This is the start to be a beautiful relationship……
After catching the last 15 minutes of the Super Bowl and seeing that incredible touchdown play by the PA Steelers Matt Landon helped Diana Anderson create her first blog. The blog’s title is the Tennessee Coal Ash Survivors Network. The blog’s address is http://tncasn.blogspot.com
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 31, 2009 Saturday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
Diana Anderson of the TN Coal Ash Survivors Network and Matt Landon of United Mountain Defense traveled to Deleware today to receive training from the Global Community Monitor (GCM) organization. www.gcmonitor.org
Matt Landon of UMD video taped the entire two day training session so that other community members in Deleware, TN, and the world could review the training. Today’s training consisted of learning about the history and successes of the Bucket Brigade, GCM’s most notable air monitoring project. The community that hosted us today was plagued by numerous polluting industries and was in the first steps of beginning to self monitor the air quality. One of the first steps in the process was called a log sheet. A brainstorming session led to the development of the “I SEE, I SMELL, I FEEL” sections for residents to fill out for each air pollution event. Based on these pollution log sheets GCM and the community would be able to decide where to put up Swipe Tests and then Mini Volume Air Monitors.
A really good excerise was for the community members to make a map of the major polluters in the area and show the locations of surrounding houses and other points of interest such as schools, hospitals, existing air monitors, and prevailing wind directions.
This training provided a good basis for how the Bucket Brigade would proceed in TN and we got one step closer to having a solid monitoring plan. Thank you Global Community Monitor for providing a helpful training session.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 30, 2009 Friday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
United Mountain Defense volunteer staff person, Matt Landon was awoken to a call from a TN Highway Patrol officer calling from Arizona. The officer said he would send out an officer to the disaster site and would further investigate the CFR on solid waste to figure out about the solid waste regulations.
Landon traveled to the University of TN in Knoxville for a PodCast interview that was conducted at the college radio station, WUOT 91.9. The PodCast will be aired by On the Earth, a project of NRDC. Thanks, NRDC.
After the interview Landon did more research about the Mini Volume air samplers from Air Metrics and the different filters available for the sampler. He was also packing his bags at the same time for a flight to Washington DC.
Diana Anderson of TN Coal Ash Survivors Network and Matt Landon of United Mountain Defense boarded a flight to DC and then drove to Deleware for a two day training by the Global Community Monitor (GCM). GCM is a non profit organization that has trained community members around the globe to use various air monitoring techniques and equipment in order to gather independent data on their own. GCM is currently working with 18 impacted communities across the globe and is very excited about beginning to work in Appalachia on the issue of FILTHY COAL.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 29, 2009 Thursday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
Bonnie Swinford, UMD volunteer coordinator finalized the water monitoring data with Jeff Stant on UMD’s Google map for 3 hours. Good job, Bonnie!!
Matt Landon, UMD volunteer staff took a boat ride on Emory River with TN Wildlife Resources Agency. Until this point Landon had mistakenly thought that a rock weir had been constructed across the Emory River to contain the coal fly ash. Upon boating up the river he learned that TVA had temporarily abandoned this Emory River rock weir project. The boat shuttled the History Channel’s camera crew, reporter, and Matt Landon up and down the river next to the disaster site numerous times in order to get the best shots and to provide enough time to interview TWRA’s Bobby Brown and UMD’s Matt Landon. Landon used the new YSI digital water monitor purchased with a grant from the NRDC. Thank you NRDC!! We were able to check for specific conductivity, pH, dissolved oxygen, and temperature.
Once we got off the river and defrosted our hands Landon led the History Channel crew to Lakeshore Drive for an interview with Rick Cantrell, a local resident whose family was evacuated by TVA. Cantrell gave a stellar interview.
Landon called Paul Sloan of TDEC and the TN Highway Patrol after video taping vehicles exiting the disaster site without being washed first.
A community volunteer meeting was organized for the evening at the Roane State Expo Center. At this meeting the volunteers decided on what content to put on their website, what was their group’s name, and when and where the next volunteer meeting would be held. The Tennessee Coal Ash Survivors Network came into existence. Their website is www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com and they have a blog at http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Diana Anderson of TCASN offered to host the next volunteer meeting.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 28, 2009 Wenesday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
There was a fundraiser set up in Nashville, TN. Local resident, Rick Cantrell attended the fundraiser and spoke about the difficulties his community is facing at this time with TVA’s coal ash disaster. Cantrell reported that nearly 100 people attended the fundraiser where local old time musicians strummed banjos and guitars.
United Mountain Defense volunteer staff person, Matt Landon made phone calls reminding local residents about the volunteer meeting on Thursday night. Landon also received his first email from Bob Alexander of TDEC admitting that TDEC was allowing vehicles to drive off site with coal ash on them.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 27, 2009 Tuesday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
United Mountain Defense volunteer staff person, Matt Landon called all of the regulatory agencies to report the problems of coal ash tracking. Landon called TN Highway Patrol, TN Bureau of Investigation, Bob Alexander of TDEC, EPA criminal division. After speaking with the EPA criminal division Landon was told he would be called by TVA’s OIG in the next week. Landon learned that EPA can’t regulate coal fly ash tracking. EPA doesn’t investigate it because it is not a hazardous waste. After speaking with the TBI, Landon emailed the District Attorney about the tracking problem to file an official compliant.
United Mountain Defense volunteers worked on gathering releases from residents who received heavy metal exposure screening. They picked up disaster photos that were taken to Washington DC. Bonnie and Tom picked up some more human samples for the heavy metal exposure testing. These samples were kept on ice then refrigerated until they were delivered to Internal Balance on Wenesday Jan 28, 2009.
UMD volunteers distributed TVA’s coal fly ash Material Safety Data Sheets to the local residents as they drove around the community.
Matt Landon spoke with a local resident, Judy Scofield, who has had massive asthma attacks since the coal ash disaster occurred. She is now using a steroid inhaler to help her breath. Landon was near tears as she retold her story. He offered to have a call in day to the TVA to politely ask TVA to call Judy Scofield. Judy had not received any phone calls from TVA for nearly two weeks after requesting to be evacuated after a doctor’s suggestion about her respiratory distress being linked to TVA’s coal ash. After the first day of the call in campaign for Judy Scofield she received a phone call from TVA. They informed her they would send CTEH out to check the air quality. Unfortunately CTEH is using inadequate air monitoring equipment. CTEH showed up and after a few minutes told Judy the air was okay.
The call in campaign continues until Judy Scofield is moved to a safer location by TVA.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 26, 2009 Monday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
Bonnie Swinford, UMD’s volunteer coordinator and grant writer has provided major support of ALL of the work that has occurred around TVA’s coal ash disaster. Today Bonnie submitted receipts for multiple grants, updated UMD’s project budget, and made copies of TVA’s Material Safety Data Sheets.
Matt Landon got an email from TDEC about their air quality monitoring after calling TDEC to figure out why they had not installed the high volume air quality monitors around the disaster site. He learned that TDEC had chosen to not install more than one high volume air monitor.
Matt Landon got background air monitoring data from the Great Smoky Mountains National Park for the past 20 years after emailing Jim Renfro for assistance in Harriman, TN.
It was finally time to get back down to get back to the disaster site. Matt Landon had promised to take a Eva to the doctor on the previous Friday due to her deep lung cough. Unfortunately he was not able to take her on Friday and so awoke early Monday morning and drove her to the doctor. Her doctor could not give her a diagnosis but did offer to set up an appointment with a lung specialist in Oak Ridge, TN and gave her a prescription for Cipro, a strong antibiotic. The doctor thought that her deep lung cough was caused by a bacteria. Eva was not able to afford the anti biotic so she had to wait until Feb 1 to get the prescription.
After the doctor’s visit I offered to drive Eva around to see the rest of the disaster site. Eva does not have a vehicle and walks everywhere because she is legally blind in one eye. Her grand daughter is not old enough to drive either. Even though she lives within ½ a mile of the disaster site she has not seem it yet as no one helped her get there yet.
As we drove around the Swan Pond Community we saw that one of the local churches driveways was open after being blockaded for the past four weeks. As we drove up to the cemetery overlooking the disaster site Eva gasped as she saw the destruction. She commented that she had fished many an afternoon in that part of the lake that was now completely filled in by TVA’s coal ash. She just kept repeating that TVA had made such a mess, TVA had made such a mess.
While we were peacefully observing the work at the disaster site a TVA police officer came up the driveway and pulled to a halt in front of our vehicle. Matt Landon was recording and turned the camera on the TVA officer. This officer did not like the camera and asked for identification which Matt Landon produced. The officer got back in his vehicle and drove away with his ID. Upon returning the officer instructed Landon and Eva to evacuate the premises. Of course they complied immediately.
The whole time the video tape was rolling UMD was recording dirty dump trucks and other unwashed vehicles leaving TVA’s coal ash disaster site while tracking coal fly ash out onto the public roads of Roane County and East TN.
As Landon and Eva drove around on the public roads of Roane County they videotaped the work at TVA’s coal ash disaster. Upon driving on Berkshire Rd they were once again pulled over by the TVA police and Landon was given a citation for trespassing, his second citation for trespassing from TVA. Later Landon found out that TVA has bought all of the property along Berkshire Rd so it is their property.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 25, 2009 Sunday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
Today we celebrated Tom’s birthday. Tom is Bonnie’s dad and he recently chose to move down to TN from Indianapolis. He was temporarily living at the UMD volunteer house until he found a house of his own. He did find a house and then this coal ash disaster occurred and he has been on the ground since Dec 22, 2008.
Matt Landon of United Mountain Defense sent out a procedure for doing a swipe test to the Swan Pond community email list serve after receiving multiple requests.
Chris Irwin, UMD staff attorney took a Gentlemen’s Quarterly reporter and photographer up to the King Mountain Mountainside Coal surface mine in Claiborne County near Eagan, TN to photograph the complete cycle of coal, from the cradle to the grave.
Later in the evening UMD had a board meeting where a plan of action was generated for the upcoming week.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 24, 2009 Saturday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com
Check out www.tennesseecoalashsurvivorsnetwork.com
Check out http://tncasn.blogspot.com
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
A good portion of the day was spent helping get the carpet installed in the United Mountain Defense volunteer house. Chris Irwin, UMD staff attorney, took GQ magazine in a Southwings flyover of the TVA coal ash disaster site, the windfarm on Buffalo Mountain, and the surface coal mines of East Tennessee. GQ is writing about coal from the cradle to the grave with surface mines and destruction of the highland watersheds being the cradle. The TVA coal ash disaster shows the end product of coal cycle, the grave.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Friday, January 23, 2009
Jan 15- Jan 23, 2009 United Mountain Defense Updates Air Quality monitoring, MSDS sheets, independent contractors, and dump trucks
Jan 23, 2009 Friday
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com/
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
United Mountain Defense volunteers have been waiting to get new carpet put in the UMD volunteer house since we had an indoor flood on sunday night. We've still been helping organize between vacumming water and working with carpet specialists, and the insurance man.
So we have also been hounding TVA about the Material Safety Data Sheets AND WE FINALLY GOT A COPY OF IT TODAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The copies that we have are for Class F fly ash and for bottom ash. The main chemicals listed are aluminum oxide, iron oxide, calcium oxide, magnesium oxide, titanium oxide, and inorganic arsenic at varying ranges. We will try to get these sheets up on UMD's website and this blog.
We have also spent the day working on figuring out the air quality thing. WE HAVE GOOD NEWS!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The Swan Pond community is so much further ahead than other communities because of all their documentation, diaries, doctor's visits, and keeping track of their symptoms. The community listserve serves as a historical document because people keep posting their health issues there.
We have been working on formulating an air quality monitoring program. We want to bring down the Bucket Brigade? These are low volume air monitors that each citizen could recieve training to use. We could set them up inside local houses and also outside. We are looking into Summa containers to test for Volitile Organic Compounds and other gases. We are also looking into high volume air monitors and TEOM infra red scanning particulate monitors. CTEH/ TVA and TDEC are only testing to PM10 which is okay but we want to test for Total Suspended Particles which will give us a fuller air quality picture.
We have learned that TDEC has still not installed the two high volume air monitors they promised on Jan 15, 2009 but instead only installed one on Lake shore Drive. Can anyone verify that a big loud vaccum air monitor is plugged in to an electrical outlet out on Lakeshore drive with a smaller CTEH monitor next to it?
Yesterday I tried to find the air monitor on Berkshire Drive and only saw and video taped the small low volume CTEH/ TVA monitors. Is there a big air monitor plugged in to an electrical outlet there on Berkshire? So CTEH/ TVA is using low volume air monitors that would typically be used for indoors. The equipment they are using can not show compliance or non compliance with the EPA ambient air quality standards. Basically their equipment is too small. If you are so inclined you should call Tom Welborn of EPA at (404) 562 9354 and tell him that TVA is using low volume monitors to say they are achieving EPA ambient air quality standards. Request more high volume air monitoring equipment now. TELL HIM ABOUT THE HEALTH IMPACTS OF THE COMMUNITY including nose bleeds and respiratory problems. The air is also turning gold and silver jewelery black. Ask to file an official complaint.
Also call TDEC at (615) 532 0562 and tell them they need to order TVA to install more high volume air monitors as per the EPA's and TDEC's monitoring and reporting requirements. TDEC is the lead enforcement agency right now so we should focus our energies on them. Tell them about your communities health. Call TDEC and file a complaint, ask them to install more high volume air monitors.
Also we made a call today to OSHA about the fact that a lot of the independent contractors did not give TVA's MSDS sheets to their workers. These workers aren't informed about the toxins they are working with and their employers are not supplying them with the appropriate safety equipment. We called Phillip Harrell of OSHA at (615) 232 3803. OSHA needed to know the names of the contractors so that they could follow up on getting MSDS sheets out to the workers. Either call OSHA with the names of the contractors or email us and we will call them for you.
Also about the dump trucks tracking coal fly ash out onto the roads. We need to be more diligent about the trucks because we witnessed trucks traveling out of the disaster site without being washed. We were able to identify them because they had mud caked up on the sides, back, and wheel wells of the trucks. This has and will continue to be an ongoing problem for your community, but we can put a stop to it by reporting the dirty trucks. The following is a breif history of the dirty dump truck situation. On Jan 6, 2009 Mr. Graves first recorded and made official complaints to the TN Highway Patrol, TDEC, EPA, TVA, and Howie Rose of Roane County Emergency Management Agency. On Jan 9, 2009 we reported dirty dump trucks. On Jan 12, 2009 Howie Rose told me TVA had purchased three truck washers to be installed. On Jan 15, 2009 we told Gill Francis of TVA not to forget the truck washers. On Jan 22, 2009 we called to report dirty dump trucks. As of Jan 23, 2009 TVA had still not installed the truck washers and Howie Rose said TVA will be installing them by this coming Tuesday Jan 27, 2009. This means that all of these agencies and TVA have knowingly been tracking coal fly ash out onto your roads for more than 17 days. This is unacceptable.
Please call TDEC (865) 594 6035
EPA (404) 562 9354
TN Highway Patrol (865) 594 5793
Howie Rose Roane County Emergency Management (865) 250 7347
TVA (865) 717 4006
File official complaints and make a paper trail for these injustices.
Alright, thanks for hanging in there.
I thank you for your help, support, courage, and kind words.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 22, 2009 Thursday
Dear folks,
(Please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com/
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
Today started out as we facilitated an interview between a community member and GQ magazine. As we were driving up to the road block on South Swan Pond Rd we were halted even though we had a community resident pass. The TVA police officers questioned us about our intentions for driving onto the public road. Of course the rolling video camera may have had some impact on the situation. Our license plate was radioed in and we were allowed to enter this distressed community. For the most part the corporate media has not reported the stories of many of the residents living on this portion of Swan Pond Rd because they don’t have coal fly ash in their front yards though they did drink tap water impacted by the coal ash disaster for nearly 10 days.
This particular resident was more than happy to share her story about how she got blisters on the roof of her mouth on Dec 24, 2008 after boiling and drinking the tap water and cooking Christmas Eve dinner with it. She was very happy to receive the 10 gallons of bottled water we delivered for her today.
After the interview United Mountain Defense volunteers headed to the citizen’s press
conference at the Harriman community center. This press conference garnered more media attendance than any of the TVA press conferences attended by Independent Media outlets. There were at least four television stations including the Jim Lehrer News Hour and more than four news papers with large readerships including GQ, the Tennessean, and the Chattanooga Times Free Press. The main topics of the citizen’s press conference detailed the health concerns of the community members and exposed TVA’s cover up of the doctor ordered evacuations due to negative health impacts. To this point TVA has said that everything is fine with the air quality in the area while paying to temporarily relocate families living next to the coal ash disaster. The people are in respiratory distress because of TVA’s coal ash disaster.
After the successful citizen’s press conference United Mountain Defense volunteers traveled down to Swan Pond Circle Dr to do an interview with the Jim Lehrer News Hour. It was very productive and we used the time to record TVA’s changes to the disaster site. After the interview we visited a local volunteer who had recently gotten home from the hospital, and then we headed home.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 21, 2009 Wednesday
Dear folks,
(Please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com/
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
Today volunteers for United Mountain Defense traveled to Harriman, TN for a media messaging workshop. There were a few local residents who attended the media training. It was a very effective session where the residents crafted their message for the press conference and worked on their sound bites.
United Mountain Defense volunteers made follow up phone calls to the media that received press releases about the citizen’s press conference. We also called other media outlets that were not on the email list.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 20, 2009 Tuesday
Dear folks,
(Please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com/
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
It has been interesting and hard to continue working on the TVA coal ash disaster while taking care of the flooded United Mountain Defense volunteer house as well. None the less United Mountain Defense volunteers set up a media messaging workshop and a citizen’s press conference in Harriman, TN.
United Mountain Defense volunteers emailed out a press release announcing the citizen’s press conference to all the media outlets that have been reporting on the TVA coal ash disaster.
Hey we need independent air quality monitoring!!!! Local residents are reporting that their gold and silver jewelry is being turned black and the tarnish can not be removed. They are reporting that they and their animals are having uncontrollable nose bleeds. There is one report of one dog’s black nose turning red. Local residents are missing work because of respiratory distress. They are reporting shortness of breath. As soon as they travel out of the immediate disaster area some of these resident’s symptoms clear up. I got a phone call yesterday from a lady who lives in Rockwood about 10 miles southwest of the disaster site. Rockwood is located in the path of the prevailing winds. The woman has an evacuation notice from her doctor because of respiratory distress.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 19, 2009 Monday
Dear folks,
(Please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com/
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
Happy MLK day!! So as the United Mountain Defense volunteers were vacuuming water logged carpets a lively statewide protest against TVA was occurring. There were protests in Johnson City, Knoxville, Chattanooga, and Nashville, TN.
There was an incredible amount of media coverage on the Chattanooga protests. There have been two Youtube videos created about the Knoxville protests. The Nashville protesters infiltrated the MLK Day March and distributed information about TVA’s coal ash disaster.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 18, 2009 Sunday
Dear folks,
(Please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com/
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
United Mountain Defense’s Harriman field team traveled to Knoxville for a board meeting that also served as a planning meeting for the next week. It was good to see our Knoxville friends and catch up on the latest news from the BIG city.
Later in the evening we traveled to the United Mountain Defense volunteer house to discover that a minor flood had occurred inside the house. We found a copper pipe fitting that had come loose and had been flowing for an untold number of days. There was about 3 inches of water in the wall to wall carpet. It has added another level of disaster to our list of tasks. We got 4 hours of sleep this night.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 17, 2009 Saturday
Dear folks,
(Please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com/
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
United Mountain Defense volunteers awoke to good news when we found out about receiving a $3,000 Technical Assistance Grant from the Appalachian Community Fund for heavy metal screenings for local residents impacted by TVA’s coal ash disaster. We want to thank the Appalachian Community Fund for all of the support they have given us over the past year including supporting the Portrait Story Project and the Harriman Resident Heavy Metal Screening. Thank you Appalachian Community Fund!!!
There was a volunteer meeting set up for local residents who wanted to get started working on projects. The meeting agenda was made by the people who showed up for the meeting. Topics of discussion included water monitoring, air monitoring, truck traffic, rock quarry blasting, and human health. The meeting lasted for an hour and there were a few break outs/ workshops that followed the meeting. The workshop groups included email listserve moderator training, water quality monitoring training, and media training.
Two volunteers signed up to be moderators of the community email listserve and received training to do this job effectively.
The media workshop decided to hold a citizen press conference on January 22, 2009 to mark the one month anniversary of TVA’s coal ash disaster. The main theme of the press conference would be the health concerns and evacuations ordered by local doctors.
The water monitoring workshop saw the creation of a new citizen monitoring team. The new monitoring team made a plan to gather four gallons of polluted water to be shipped to Colorado for testing.
This volunteer meeting was very productive. It was conducted without an organizational structure. There was a facilitator that kept the meeting flowing in an orderly fashion.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 16, 2009 Friday
Dear folks,
(Please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com/
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
United Mountain Defense volunteers spent the day on the phone and doing much needed computer work. At 10 AM United Mountain Defense full time volunteer staff person, Matt Landon, participated in a conference call with TN and national environmental groups. He was able to give a detailed update from the front lines. There were some strong resolutions and plans of action charted that may help bring some positive results to the coal impacted community of Harriman and other such communities across the country.
Another United Mountain Defense volunteer spent the day informing Swan Pond community members about the volunteer meeting on Saturday and checking in with residents who got tested for heavy metals.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 15, 2009 Thursday
Dear folks,
(Please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com/
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
Volunteers from United Mountain Defense went down to the American Legion and opened the doors at 10 AM to gather the samples from the Tuesday Jan 13, 2009 human heavy metal screening. The doors opened there was a steady trickle of locals who dropped off their samples. UMD volunteers stayed at the American Legion until nearly 3 PM.
At 3 PM we closed shop and began preparing for the TVA Open House at the Roane County Community College. A representative of the Knoxville Independent Media took his camera and began going from table to table asking hard questions of each of the representatives. The floor of the gym was divided up into different areas including air quality, water quality, independent contracting, TVA activities, TN Department of Environment and Conservation, TN Department of Health, and EPA.
The Knoxville Independent Media representative made an effort to go to each table and speak with and video tape all of the participants. The most interesting interviews came from the corporation doing the air monitoring and the TDEC air quality specialists. I learned from TDEC that the air quality monitors that CTEH Corporation was using were “low volume” air monitors which would not provide a definitive compliance or non compliance measure for EPA’s Ambient Air Quality Standard. Knoxville Independent Media has the TDEC official on video tape making this statement. TVA has been passing off this less than adequate information to the EPA, TDEC, the public, and the media to say that the air is safe to breathe. There is no monitoring for VOC’s or indoor air quality. TDEC installed two “high volume” air monitors on Jan 14, 2009 along the northern and northeastern edges of the coal ash disaster that would provide parallel samples of CTEH’s low volume equipment. It has been 24 days since TVA’s coal ash disaster occurred and the state of TN is finally installing air monitors. What a joke.
So when the Knoxville Independent Media representative asked about additional monitors the TDEC official said they would not be necessary based on the present locations of the existing air monitors.
A member of United Mountain Defense and the Knoxville Independent Media representative attended the TVA open house from 4 PM- 8 PM and recorded about two and half hours of video tape.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Dear folks,
(please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com/
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
United Mountain Defense volunteers have been waiting to get new carpet put in the UMD volunteer house since we had an indoor flood on sunday night. We've still been helping organize between vacumming water and working with carpet specialists, and the insurance man.
So we have also been hounding TVA about the Material Safety Data Sheets AND WE FINALLY GOT A COPY OF IT TODAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The copies that we have are for Class F fly ash and for bottom ash. The main chemicals listed are aluminum oxide, iron oxide, calcium oxide, magnesium oxide, titanium oxide, and inorganic arsenic at varying ranges. We will try to get these sheets up on UMD's website and this blog.
We have also spent the day working on figuring out the air quality thing. WE HAVE GOOD NEWS!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The Swan Pond community is so much further ahead than other communities because of all their documentation, diaries, doctor's visits, and keeping track of their symptoms. The community listserve serves as a historical document because people keep posting their health issues there.
We have been working on formulating an air quality monitoring program. We want to bring down the Bucket Brigade? These are low volume air monitors that each citizen could recieve training to use. We could set them up inside local houses and also outside. We are looking into Summa containers to test for Volitile Organic Compounds and other gases. We are also looking into high volume air monitors and TEOM infra red scanning particulate monitors. CTEH/ TVA and TDEC are only testing to PM10 which is okay but we want to test for Total Suspended Particles which will give us a fuller air quality picture.
We have learned that TDEC has still not installed the two high volume air monitors they promised on Jan 15, 2009 but instead only installed one on Lake shore Drive. Can anyone verify that a big loud vaccum air monitor is plugged in to an electrical outlet out on Lakeshore drive with a smaller CTEH monitor next to it?
Yesterday I tried to find the air monitor on Berkshire Drive and only saw and video taped the small low volume CTEH/ TVA monitors. Is there a big air monitor plugged in to an electrical outlet there on Berkshire? So CTEH/ TVA is using low volume air monitors that would typically be used for indoors. The equipment they are using can not show compliance or non compliance with the EPA ambient air quality standards. Basically their equipment is too small. If you are so inclined you should call Tom Welborn of EPA at (404) 562 9354 and tell him that TVA is using low volume monitors to say they are achieving EPA ambient air quality standards. Request more high volume air monitoring equipment now. TELL HIM ABOUT THE HEALTH IMPACTS OF THE COMMUNITY including nose bleeds and respiratory problems. The air is also turning gold and silver jewelery black. Ask to file an official complaint.
Also call TDEC at (615) 532 0562 and tell them they need to order TVA to install more high volume air monitors as per the EPA's and TDEC's monitoring and reporting requirements. TDEC is the lead enforcement agency right now so we should focus our energies on them. Tell them about your communities health. Call TDEC and file a complaint, ask them to install more high volume air monitors.
Also we made a call today to OSHA about the fact that a lot of the independent contractors did not give TVA's MSDS sheets to their workers. These workers aren't informed about the toxins they are working with and their employers are not supplying them with the appropriate safety equipment. We called Phillip Harrell of OSHA at (615) 232 3803. OSHA needed to know the names of the contractors so that they could follow up on getting MSDS sheets out to the workers. Either call OSHA with the names of the contractors or email us and we will call them for you.
Also about the dump trucks tracking coal fly ash out onto the roads. We need to be more diligent about the trucks because we witnessed trucks traveling out of the disaster site without being washed. We were able to identify them because they had mud caked up on the sides, back, and wheel wells of the trucks. This has and will continue to be an ongoing problem for your community, but we can put a stop to it by reporting the dirty trucks. The following is a breif history of the dirty dump truck situation. On Jan 6, 2009 Mr. Graves first recorded and made official complaints to the TN Highway Patrol, TDEC, EPA, TVA, and Howie Rose of Roane County Emergency Management Agency. On Jan 9, 2009 we reported dirty dump trucks. On Jan 12, 2009 Howie Rose told me TVA had purchased three truck washers to be installed. On Jan 15, 2009 we told Gill Francis of TVA not to forget the truck washers. On Jan 22, 2009 we called to report dirty dump trucks. As of Jan 23, 2009 TVA had still not installed the truck washers and Howie Rose said TVA will be installing them by this coming Tuesday Jan 27, 2009. This means that all of these agencies and TVA have knowingly been tracking coal fly ash out onto your roads for more than 17 days. This is unacceptable.
Please call TDEC (865) 594 6035
EPA (404) 562 9354
TN Highway Patrol (865) 594 5793
Howie Rose Roane County Emergency Management (865) 250 7347
TVA (865) 717 4006
File official complaints and make a paper trail for these injustices.
Alright, thanks for hanging in there.
I thank you for your help, support, courage, and kind words.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 22, 2009 Thursday
Dear folks,
(Please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com/
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
Today started out as we facilitated an interview between a community member and GQ magazine. As we were driving up to the road block on South Swan Pond Rd we were halted even though we had a community resident pass. The TVA police officers questioned us about our intentions for driving onto the public road. Of course the rolling video camera may have had some impact on the situation. Our license plate was radioed in and we were allowed to enter this distressed community. For the most part the corporate media has not reported the stories of many of the residents living on this portion of Swan Pond Rd because they don’t have coal fly ash in their front yards though they did drink tap water impacted by the coal ash disaster for nearly 10 days.
This particular resident was more than happy to share her story about how she got blisters on the roof of her mouth on Dec 24, 2008 after boiling and drinking the tap water and cooking Christmas Eve dinner with it. She was very happy to receive the 10 gallons of bottled water we delivered for her today.
After the interview United Mountain Defense volunteers headed to the citizen’s press
conference at the Harriman community center. This press conference garnered more media attendance than any of the TVA press conferences attended by Independent Media outlets. There were at least four television stations including the Jim Lehrer News Hour and more than four news papers with large readerships including GQ, the Tennessean, and the Chattanooga Times Free Press. The main topics of the citizen’s press conference detailed the health concerns of the community members and exposed TVA’s cover up of the doctor ordered evacuations due to negative health impacts. To this point TVA has said that everything is fine with the air quality in the area while paying to temporarily relocate families living next to the coal ash disaster. The people are in respiratory distress because of TVA’s coal ash disaster.
After the successful citizen’s press conference United Mountain Defense volunteers traveled down to Swan Pond Circle Dr to do an interview with the Jim Lehrer News Hour. It was very productive and we used the time to record TVA’s changes to the disaster site. After the interview we visited a local volunteer who had recently gotten home from the hospital, and then we headed home.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 21, 2009 Wednesday
Dear folks,
(Please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com/
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
Today volunteers for United Mountain Defense traveled to Harriman, TN for a media messaging workshop. There were a few local residents who attended the media training. It was a very effective session where the residents crafted their message for the press conference and worked on their sound bites.
United Mountain Defense volunteers made follow up phone calls to the media that received press releases about the citizen’s press conference. We also called other media outlets that were not on the email list.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 20, 2009 Tuesday
Dear folks,
(Please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com/
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
It has been interesting and hard to continue working on the TVA coal ash disaster while taking care of the flooded United Mountain Defense volunteer house as well. None the less United Mountain Defense volunteers set up a media messaging workshop and a citizen’s press conference in Harriman, TN.
United Mountain Defense volunteers emailed out a press release announcing the citizen’s press conference to all the media outlets that have been reporting on the TVA coal ash disaster.
Hey we need independent air quality monitoring!!!! Local residents are reporting that their gold and silver jewelry is being turned black and the tarnish can not be removed. They are reporting that they and their animals are having uncontrollable nose bleeds. There is one report of one dog’s black nose turning red. Local residents are missing work because of respiratory distress. They are reporting shortness of breath. As soon as they travel out of the immediate disaster area some of these resident’s symptoms clear up. I got a phone call yesterday from a lady who lives in Rockwood about 10 miles southwest of the disaster site. Rockwood is located in the path of the prevailing winds. The woman has an evacuation notice from her doctor because of respiratory distress.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 19, 2009 Monday
Dear folks,
(Please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com/
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
Happy MLK day!! So as the United Mountain Defense volunteers were vacuuming water logged carpets a lively statewide protest against TVA was occurring. There were protests in Johnson City, Knoxville, Chattanooga, and Nashville, TN.
There was an incredible amount of media coverage on the Chattanooga protests. There have been two Youtube videos created about the Knoxville protests. The Nashville protesters infiltrated the MLK Day March and distributed information about TVA’s coal ash disaster.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 18, 2009 Sunday
Dear folks,
(Please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com/
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
United Mountain Defense’s Harriman field team traveled to Knoxville for a board meeting that also served as a planning meeting for the next week. It was good to see our Knoxville friends and catch up on the latest news from the BIG city.
Later in the evening we traveled to the United Mountain Defense volunteer house to discover that a minor flood had occurred inside the house. We found a copper pipe fitting that had come loose and had been flowing for an untold number of days. There was about 3 inches of water in the wall to wall carpet. It has added another level of disaster to our list of tasks. We got 4 hours of sleep this night.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 17, 2009 Saturday
Dear folks,
(Please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com/
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
United Mountain Defense volunteers awoke to good news when we found out about receiving a $3,000 Technical Assistance Grant from the Appalachian Community Fund for heavy metal screenings for local residents impacted by TVA’s coal ash disaster. We want to thank the Appalachian Community Fund for all of the support they have given us over the past year including supporting the Portrait Story Project and the Harriman Resident Heavy Metal Screening. Thank you Appalachian Community Fund!!!
There was a volunteer meeting set up for local residents who wanted to get started working on projects. The meeting agenda was made by the people who showed up for the meeting. Topics of discussion included water monitoring, air monitoring, truck traffic, rock quarry blasting, and human health. The meeting lasted for an hour and there were a few break outs/ workshops that followed the meeting. The workshop groups included email listserve moderator training, water quality monitoring training, and media training.
Two volunteers signed up to be moderators of the community email listserve and received training to do this job effectively.
The media workshop decided to hold a citizen press conference on January 22, 2009 to mark the one month anniversary of TVA’s coal ash disaster. The main theme of the press conference would be the health concerns and evacuations ordered by local doctors.
The water monitoring workshop saw the creation of a new citizen monitoring team. The new monitoring team made a plan to gather four gallons of polluted water to be shipped to Colorado for testing.
This volunteer meeting was very productive. It was conducted without an organizational structure. There was a facilitator that kept the meeting flowing in an orderly fashion.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 16, 2009 Friday
Dear folks,
(Please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com/
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
United Mountain Defense volunteers spent the day on the phone and doing much needed computer work. At 10 AM United Mountain Defense full time volunteer staff person, Matt Landon, participated in a conference call with TN and national environmental groups. He was able to give a detailed update from the front lines. There were some strong resolutions and plans of action charted that may help bring some positive results to the coal impacted community of Harriman and other such communities across the country.
Another United Mountain Defense volunteer spent the day informing Swan Pond community members about the volunteer meeting on Saturday and checking in with residents who got tested for heavy metals.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Jan 15, 2009 Thursday
Dear folks,
(Please repost to all news sources)
Check out www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Check out http://dirtycoaltva.blogspot.com/
Check out http://www.roaneviews.com/
Check out Swan Pond Resident: http://lifeonswanpond.livejournal.com/
Volunteers from United Mountain Defense went down to the American Legion and opened the doors at 10 AM to gather the samples from the Tuesday Jan 13, 2009 human heavy metal screening. The doors opened there was a steady trickle of locals who dropped off their samples. UMD volunteers stayed at the American Legion until nearly 3 PM.
At 3 PM we closed shop and began preparing for the TVA Open House at the Roane County Community College. A representative of the Knoxville Independent Media took his camera and began going from table to table asking hard questions of each of the representatives. The floor of the gym was divided up into different areas including air quality, water quality, independent contracting, TVA activities, TN Department of Environment and Conservation, TN Department of Health, and EPA.
The Knoxville Independent Media representative made an effort to go to each table and speak with and video tape all of the participants. The most interesting interviews came from the corporation doing the air monitoring and the TDEC air quality specialists. I learned from TDEC that the air quality monitors that CTEH Corporation was using were “low volume” air monitors which would not provide a definitive compliance or non compliance measure for EPA’s Ambient Air Quality Standard. Knoxville Independent Media has the TDEC official on video tape making this statement. TVA has been passing off this less than adequate information to the EPA, TDEC, the public, and the media to say that the air is safe to breathe. There is no monitoring for VOC’s or indoor air quality. TDEC installed two “high volume” air monitors on Jan 14, 2009 along the northern and northeastern edges of the coal ash disaster that would provide parallel samples of CTEH’s low volume equipment. It has been 24 days since TVA’s coal ash disaster occurred and the state of TN is finally installing air monitors. What a joke.
So when the Knoxville Independent Media representative asked about additional monitors the TDEC official said they would not be necessary based on the present locations of the existing air monitors.
A member of United Mountain Defense and the Knoxville Independent Media representative attended the TVA open house from 4 PM- 8 PM and recorded about two and half hours of video tape.
There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.
If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.
If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org
Till then ,matt landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
United Mountain Defense needs help with air quality monitoring and buying respirators
Dear folks,
Please forward far and wide!
WE NEED INDEPENDENT AIR MONITORS NOW!!!!!!!!!! Bring a hazmat respirator seriously.
United Mountain Defense has been leading the charge for the on the ground response here in Harriman. We have been here since day one gathering more than 80 water and coal samples and more than 50 hours of video footage. Because of your help we have gotten free heavy metal testing for more than 29 local residents impacted by the disaster. The next big push for help that we need is probably the one that will impact you the most, AIR, AIR, AIR. No one is testing the air except TVA and the private corporation that they hired. And guess what they are saying every thing is fine. Please donate hazmat respirators.
They have 5 stationary particulate monitors and a few hand held monitors.
Well if you could feel the back of my throat and the hear the hacking coughs that eminate from DEEP in these folks lungs you would second guess about the data coming from TVA. TVA has lied about the water and they are currently lying about the air. People are being evacuated by doctor's orders because of respiratory damage due to fly ash. Doctors are prescibing respirators.
United Mountain Defense volunteers are wearing double filter respirators that filter lead, asbestos, and some fine particulates. It is still getting through these respirators. All of the reports are saying that the ash is wet and it is safe to breathe here. It is a lie. There was a little boy here who had fly ash flushed from his nasual cavity. It is in the air.
United Mountain Defense is requesting independent air monitors to show up and hang out for a day, the weekend, a week or longer. I don't know anything about air monitoring as I have been focused on water for the past 10 years but my sore throat and burning eyes tell me we need air monitors. We have been trying to mobilize the Bucket Brigade but they say $10,000 before they can come. We need testing for VOC's and particulates. PLEASE HELP!!!!!! We have spaces for you to stay for free and possibly gas money.
If you come down to monitor you are helping United Mountain Defense and we will help you write and distribute your results through press releases and online at our website, we don't need lone stars or cowboys down here. We know the areas that need testing and already have permission from land owners to install the monitors. PLEASE HELP, cough, cough.
Thank you, contact me directly at 865 689 2778 or 865 292 1710.
Matt Landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense on the ground of TVA's worst coal disaster since DEC 22, 2008
Please forward far and wide!
WE NEED INDEPENDENT AIR MONITORS NOW!!!!!!!!!! Bring a hazmat respirator seriously.
United Mountain Defense has been leading the charge for the on the ground response here in Harriman. We have been here since day one gathering more than 80 water and coal samples and more than 50 hours of video footage. Because of your help we have gotten free heavy metal testing for more than 29 local residents impacted by the disaster. The next big push for help that we need is probably the one that will impact you the most, AIR, AIR, AIR. No one is testing the air except TVA and the private corporation that they hired. And guess what they are saying every thing is fine. Please donate hazmat respirators.
They have 5 stationary particulate monitors and a few hand held monitors.
Well if you could feel the back of my throat and the hear the hacking coughs that eminate from DEEP in these folks lungs you would second guess about the data coming from TVA. TVA has lied about the water and they are currently lying about the air. People are being evacuated by doctor's orders because of respiratory damage due to fly ash. Doctors are prescibing respirators.
United Mountain Defense volunteers are wearing double filter respirators that filter lead, asbestos, and some fine particulates. It is still getting through these respirators. All of the reports are saying that the ash is wet and it is safe to breathe here. It is a lie. There was a little boy here who had fly ash flushed from his nasual cavity. It is in the air.
United Mountain Defense is requesting independent air monitors to show up and hang out for a day, the weekend, a week or longer. I don't know anything about air monitoring as I have been focused on water for the past 10 years but my sore throat and burning eyes tell me we need air monitors. We have been trying to mobilize the Bucket Brigade but they say $10,000 before they can come. We need testing for VOC's and particulates. PLEASE HELP!!!!!! We have spaces for you to stay for free and possibly gas money.
If you come down to monitor you are helping United Mountain Defense and we will help you write and distribute your results through press releases and online at our website, we don't need lone stars or cowboys down here. We know the areas that need testing and already have permission from land owners to install the monitors. PLEASE HELP, cough, cough.
Thank you, contact me directly at 865 689 2778 or 865 292 1710.
Matt Landon full time volunteer staff person for United Mountain Defense on the ground of TVA's worst coal disaster since DEC 22, 2008
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