''Mountaintop Removal'' is a 2007

documentary film A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional film, motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". Bill Nichols (film critic), Bil ...

directed by Michael O'Connell. The film explores how mountaintop removal mining in

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...

has affected local communities. Filmed over a two-year period, ''Mountain Top Removal'' features community advocates, such as Ed Wiley, Larry Gibson,

Julia Bonds Julia "Judy" Belle Thompson Bonds (August 27, 1952 – January 3, 2011) was an organizer and activist from the Appalachian Mountains of West Virginia, United States. Raised in a family of coalminers, she worked from an early age at minimum wag ...

Maria Gunnoe Maria Gunnoe (born 1968) is an environmentalist who opposes mountaintop removal mining, and is a winner of the Goldman Prize and Wallenberg Medal. Early life Maria was born in Boone County, West Virginia, where she continues to reside. She is a ...

, and Mountain Justice Summer volunteers, in their efforts to oppose the destruction of Southern

Appalachia Appalachia () is a cultural region in the Eastern United States that stretches from the Southern Tier of New York State to northern Alabama and Georgia. While the Appalachian Mountains stretch from Belle Isle in Newfoundland and Labrador, Ca ...

's natural landscape. The film includes commentary from

Jeff Goodell Jeff Goodell is an American author and contributing editor to ''Rolling Stone'' magazine. Goodell's writings are known for a focus on energy and environmental issues. He is Senior Fellow at the Atlantic Council and a 2020 Guggenheim Fellow. ...

, author of '' Big Coal: The Dirty Secret Behind America's Energy Future'', geologists Dr. William Schlesinger and Dr. Peter Taft, and also Bill Raney, President of the

West Virginia Coal Association Friends of Coal is a 501(c)(6) nonprofit trade group Al Gore Albert Arnold Gore Jr. (born March 31, 1948) is an American politician, businessman, and environmentalist who served as the 45th vice president of the United States from 1993 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. Gore was the Democratic Part ...

) at the 2008 Nashville Film Festival. ''Mountaintop Removal'' also received a Jury award at the 2008 Wild and Scenic Film Festival, Audience award at the 2008 Woods Hole Film Festival and was screened at The Lincoln Center on

Earth Day Earth Day is an annual event on April 22 to demonstrate support for environmental protection. First held on April 22, 1970, it now includes a wide range of events coordinated globally by EarthDay.org (formerly Earth Day Network) including 1 b ...

April 22, 2008. The film is currently being distributed nationwide on

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcasting, public broadcaster and Non-commercial activity, non-commercial, Terrestrial television, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly fu ...

through NETA. The film's soundtrack includes music by

Jim Lauderdale James Russell Lauderdale (born April 11, 1957) is an American country, bluegrass, and Americana singer-songwriter. Since 1986, he has released 31 studio albums, including collaborations with artists such as Dr. Ralph Stanley, Buddy Miller, and ...

, Donna the Buffalo, John Specker and Sarah Hawker.

References

External links

Books, Articles, Movies, and Websites about Mountaintop Removal Coal Mining
* *, from Marsh Fork Elementary School (2007 archive copy) 2007 films 2007 in the environment American documentary films Mountaintop removal mining Coal mining in the United States Documentary films about coal in the United States Environmental impact of mining Mining in West Virginia Documentary films about Appalachia 2007 documentary films Works about the history of mining 2000s English-language films 2000s American films {{environment-documentary-film-stub

See also

References

External links