Mode of Program Participation
Community Organizing and Educational Programming
Participation Type
Roundtable
Session Title
The Line Stops Here! Telling Our Stories and Uniting Our Struggles Against Fracked Gas and Byproducts Pipelines in the Appalachia Region
Session Abstract or Summary
With the coal industry in decline and the production of fracked gas on the rise, those wishing to be the earth's advocates and protectors have gone on the offensive seeking to curb new pipeline construction and the repurposing of old ones. This group of roundtable presenters features a broad representation of grass-roots activists acting to stop the spread of gas pipelines and the repurposing of them for the transport of the more explosive fracked byproducts in several neighboring Appalachian states. The presenters will include Appalachian activists from Ohio, Kentucky, West Virginia, and Virginia who will share their successes, setbacks and strategies in seeking to obstruct if not halt the gas industry's recent and recently proposed pipeline projects. The four presenters will share information about the projects, both under construction or proposed, they are seeking to obstruct or halt and their experiences with educating other citizens along with local and state officials in order to connect and support further citizen action against the spread of fracked materials through these four Appalachian states and beyond. Discourse in the form of stories about audience's experiences will also be encouraged.
Presentation #1 Title
The Line Stops Here! Telling Our Stories and Uniting Our Struggles Against Fracked Gas and Byproducts Pipelines in the Appalachia Region
Presentation #1 Abstract or Summary
With the coal industry in decline and the production of fracked gas on the rise, those wishing to be the earth's advocates and protectors have gone on the offensive seeking to curb new pipeline construction and the repurposing of old ones. This group of roundtable presenters features a broad representation of grass-roots activists acting to stop the spread of gas pipelines and the repurposing of them for the transport of the more explosive fracked byproducts in several neighboring Appalachian states. The presenters will include Appalachian activists from Ohio, Kentucky, West Virginia, and Virginia who will share their successes, setbacks and strategies in seeking to obstruct if not halt the gas industry's recent and recently proposed pipeline projects. The four presenters will share information about the projects, both under construction or proposed, they are seeking to obstruct or halt and their experiences with educating other citizens along with local and state officials in order to connect and support further citizen action against the spread of fracked materials through these four Appalachian states and beyond. Discourse in the form of stories about audience's experiences will also be encouraged.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #1
Suzanne Tallichet is a professor of sociology at Morehead State University who has held a number of county-level and statewide positions with KFTC, including Chair since 2004. Most notably, she was on the Litigation Team representing KFTC in cases against coal companies involving thousands of discharge monitoring violations. Currently, she is active at the local level, most recently regarding Kinder-Morgan’s proposal for a repurposed NGL pipeline 18 eastern and central Kentucky counties, including Rowan.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #2
Kevin Campbell grew up in northeastern Ohio and relocated to the Appalachian mountains. He is a volunteer firefighter and EMT, a businessman and is co-director for the Doddridge County Watershed Association supporting citizens’ monitoring of stream and groundwater pollution, reporting of violations and advocating for state legislation regulating Marcellus drilling. Currently, he is working on stopping two major pipelines from being built in his community and beyond.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #3
Jarred (Parson) Brown grew up along the Shenandoah River in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. In 2009, he received his BA in Film & Video Production from Columbia College in Chicago. He created the environmental justice media organization, Topless America, documenting the movement to end mountaintop removal coal mining and to build connections between impacted communities. He is Vice-Chair of Friends For Environmental Justice working on proposed natural gas pipelines in Virginia and the region.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #4
Elaine Tanner, a lifetime resident of Ohio, connects with Appalachia through her deep roots in the region through her Native American Grandmothers and summers with her family in the Daniel Boone National Park experiencing nature untouched by development creating a connection to the land and the people of Appalachia. She has spent the last fourteen years challenging mining actions in SE Kentucky around water quality issues and now the issue of fracking. She has spoken at state and federal EPA hearings and other public forums. Currently, she was a founding director and is now Program Director for Friends For Environmental Justice (FFEJ).
The Line Stops Here! Telling Our Stories and Uniting Our Struggles Against Fracked Gas and Byproducts Pipelines in the Appalachia Region
With the coal industry in decline and the production of fracked gas on the rise, those wishing to be the earth's advocates and protectors have gone on the offensive seeking to curb new pipeline construction and the repurposing of old ones. This group of roundtable presenters features a broad representation of grass-roots activists acting to stop the spread of gas pipelines and the repurposing of them for the transport of the more explosive fracked byproducts in several neighboring Appalachian states. The presenters will include Appalachian activists from Ohio, Kentucky, West Virginia, and Virginia who will share their successes, setbacks and strategies in seeking to obstruct if not halt the gas industry's recent and recently proposed pipeline projects. The four presenters will share information about the projects, both under construction or proposed, they are seeking to obstruct or halt and their experiences with educating other citizens along with local and state officials in order to connect and support further citizen action against the spread of fracked materials through these four Appalachian states and beyond. Discourse in the form of stories about audience's experiences will also be encouraged.
