John Yarmuth: “Thank you, Mr. Holt, for yielding. Mr. Chairman, this bottle is filled with water from a well near a mountaintop removal…”

“Thank you, Mr. Holt, for yielding. Mr. Chairman, this bottle is filled with water from a well near a mountaintop removal mining site in eastern Kentucky. In case you can't see it, the water is orange. This is what comes out of the taps in Appalachian communities where the water is contaminated by dangerous mine waste, which fills their wells and flows through the streams in their yards. It is the result of an inadequate law that is failing to protect public health and safety near mountaintop removal mining sites; but today, rather than examining ways to strengthen that law and begin to address the public health crisis that accompanies mountaintop removal mining in Appalachia, we are debating a bill that would make it worse. Mining communities already have more instances of chronic pulmonary disorders and hypertension, as well as higher mortality rates, lung cancer rates, and instances of chronic heart, kidney, and lung disease. Proximity to mountaintop removal mining operations also correlates with a higher risk of birth defects and damage to the circulatory and central nervous systems. Yet, instead of finding ways to better balance public health and safety with coal mining--or at least working to prevent mining companies from turning our water supply this shade of toxic orange, we are debating a bill to roll back what little protection the Federal Government currently offers these Appalachian communities.…”