Byrd on West Virginia's coal industry "our /people/ are West Virginia's most valuable resource"

May 05, 2010

Opinion Piece: "Our Greatest Resource"

News organizations seeking more information should contact Senator Byrd's Communications Office at (202) 224-3904.

The recent explosion at the Upper Big Branch coal mine in my home county of Raleigh, which killed 29 West Virginians and injured 2 others, has brought West Virginia statewide sorrow and worldwide attention.

Reflecting on President John F. Kennedy's death, Robert F. Kennedy once said, "Tragedy is a tool for the living to gain wisdom."

As we seek to understand how and why the Upper Big Branch disaster occurred, we might also re-examine conventional wisdom about the future of the coal industry in our state.

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But the coal industry has an immensely powerful lobby in Washington and in Charleston. For nearly a hundred years they have come to our presidents, our members of Congress, our legislators, our mayors, and our county commissioners to demand their priorities. It is only right that the people of West Virginia speak up and make the coal industry understand what is expected of it in return.

The old chestnut that "coal is West Virginia's greatest natural resource" deserves revision. I believe that our people are West Virginia's most valuable resource. We must demand to be treated as such.

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