Mountain Heroes: Alexandra Cousteau
Alexandra Cousteau: My Mountain Story
A National Geographic "Emerging Explorer," filmmaker and globally recognized advocate on water issues, Alexandra Cousteau continues the work of her renowned grandfather Jacques-Yves Cousteau and her father Philippe Cousteau, Sr. In 2008, Alexandra established Blue Legacy International to continue her family's work to protect the planet's waters. Carrying on her family tradition of remarkable storytelling, Alexandra inspires audiences worldwide on issues of policy, politics and action. She has served as the Water Advisor and spokesperson for the global Live Earth 2010 Run for Water, she has hosted and broadcasted on water issues on the Discovery Channel and its show Planet Green, and she has received numerous honors and recognitions, including from the United Nations, CNN International, Vanity Fair, and more. She currently serves as a Senior Advisor for Oceana; on the prestigious Young Global Leaders Council and Global Agenda Council on Oceans of the World Economic Forum; the Board of Directors of the Global Water Challenge, Mother Nature Network, and EarthEcho; the Leadership Council for the Waterkeeper Alliance; and on the Science Advisory Council for George Mason University. In all of her work, Alexandra is dedicated to advocating the importance of conservation and sustainable management of water in order to preserve a healthy planet. Her global initiatives seek to inspire and empower individuals to protect not only the ocean and its inhabitants, but also the human communities that rely on freshwater resources.
Here is Alexandra's story:
The Dirty, Destructive Truth Behind “Clean Coal”
By Alexandra Cousteau
We live on a water planet. This transparent liquid is the foundation of all life on Earth. It ensures our survival, fosters our development, and enriches the cultures of our civilizations. Yet despite the best efforts of scientists, filmmakers, and explorers, like my father and grandfather, our generation knows little more than theirs did about its ocean depths or the fragile scarcity of our freshwater resources.
Water is Earth’s great storyteller. It is the mark of sustainability in a society and the telltale measure of our ability to maintain balance. What we do on land ripples throughout our water systems, and it is within these telling ripples—the shrinking surfaces of our ice stores, the erratic runnings of our rivers, the shifting patterns of precipitation, and the rising of our seas—that we’ll feel the effects of climate change first. In the face of such a challenge, we can’t afford to divide over protecting fresh water or focusing on the world’s oceans, as though they are unrelated goals. If we are to solve any of our problems, we can’t continue to focus just on individual problems, such as the fragility of coral reefs, the scarcity of free-flowing river habitat, or the depletion of fish stocks. We have to return to the simple truth so many of us learned in grade school science courses: Our planet’s hydrosphere is a single, inter-connected system.
This realization was the beginning of a new era in my work—one recognizing that it is the “compartmentalized” understanding of water that has led to so many of the problems we face, and the poor management practices we’ve constructed as a society to address them. Confined to neat bubbles of discussion and management, we’ve failed to build and maintain intelligent infrastructure, and too often, we’ve completely destroyed the water-shaping ecosystems that could have provided sustainable solutions. It truly is time for us to redefine what it means to live on a water planet.
For this reason, I unequivocally extend my support to promoting the discussion on the dangers of mountaintop removal and raising awareness of its devastating impacts not only on the environment—but also the communities downstream. This issue connects all of the ill-conceived dots: our misguided and short-term energy policies, the lingering myth that somehow this dirty and climate-altering source of energy can be “clean,” and the environmental and social consequences of leveling mountains to extract coal to fuel our power plants which power our increasingly unsustainable society. We are filling our streams and choking-off the sources of our great Eastern rivers that millions of people depend upon. And in the process, we are marginalizing rural communities who are left in the wake of this destructive practice—their voice drowned out by the tons of rock rubble that are the remnants of the ancient mountains of Appalachia.
The practice of mountaintop removal is just another facet of a crumbling argument for “clean coal.” In 2010, Blue Legacy, the non-profit organization I founded, traveled to Tennessee to document the lingering consequences of the worst industrial spill, by volume, ever to take place in the United States: the TVA Kingston Fossil Plant coal fly ash slurry spill. This disaster decimated communities and brought the freshwater ecosystems of the Emory and Clinch Rivers to the brink of collapse.
But, further upstream, at the beginning of the coal-energy nexus lifecycle, there is another spill taking place—one that is being condoned under the auspices of our government and regulators. I am talking about mountaintop removal, and the filling of the surrounding streams and wetlands that serve as the source of our great rivers—the lifeblood of our communities. And ever since former President George W. Bush created a loophole in the Clean Water Act in 2002, mining companies have been able to dump their toxic mining waste directly into the water—including the mountaintops of the majestic Appalachians.
This destructive practice has to stop. We are fragmenting our watersheds, destroying freshwater ecosystems, ruining people’s lives downstream, and accelerating our planet towards irreversible climate change by burning the coal extracted through this harmful process.
Water is the thread that connects us—we cannot allow it to be buried in the pursuit of shortsighted energy policies that, in the end, will undermine both our economy and our environment.
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Jonathan Gensler
A former officer for the United States Army and Iraq War veteran, he is working on transforming the energy profile of the one of the largest energy consumers in the world, the Department of Defense.
"We can make a similar choice today, if we want: We can say 'Yes' to growing our economy beyond reliance on deadly fossil fuels, which will inevitably run out, and embrace a profitable future with a balance of renewable energy and enhanced efficiency, supporting healthy communities for generations to come."
Read Jonathan's Story -
Dustin White
Dustin works to educate the public, elected officials, and members of Congress on the devastation mountaintop removal mining.
"Many don't realize the thing they cling to, coal, is the thing that is harming us. Even at home it is hard to get people to understand."
Read Dustin's Story -
Ken Hechler
In his early years in Congress, Rep. Hechler became an outspoken opponent of strip mining — and drafted the nation’s first law setting up safety measures for coal miners.
"There have been many uphill fights that have come out successful, and I wish we could see it for the fight to end mountaintop removal mining. There is a light at the end of the tunnel, but the tougher it gets, the more exciting it gets when you can see victory."
Read Ken's Story -
James Tawney
The son of a coal miner, James grew up on a small farm on Daupinspeck Mountain, in the scenic Gauley River canyon. Now, this area famous for its whitewater rapids is being trashed by mountaintop removal.
"To me, nothing is worth the loss of our mountains and streams. Without drinkable water, there is no life."
Read James's Story -
Donetta Blankenship
Donetta and her family's only source of water was contaminated with toxic chemicals. Hospitalized twice for liver problems due to the poisonous water, Donetta's resolve to stand up against mountaintop removal has only strengthened.
"I am going to do all I can to try to help, to save people's lives, and help them so that they won't have to go through this with their water."
Read Donetta's Story -
Teri Blanton
Teri has been fighting mountaintop removal mining and toxic pollution in her home state of Kentucky for 20 years. Along with thousands of her Kentucky comrades, Teri is at the forefront of the movement for healthy communities in America.
"My children didn’t get to enjoy the creek the way I did; they grew up in the midst of coal muck in the ’80s and early ’90s."
Read Teri's Story -
Mickey McCoy
Mickey is the former mayor of Inez, Kentucky, a town that captured the nation’s attention when a massive coal waste dam failed and flooded it in 2000.
"You have just got to give the human race a big high five when you see some of these people who are getting involved in this peaceful movement to stop mountaintop removal, many of them young people — it’s just wonderful ... To all my brothers and sisters who are in this movement and to those who are ready to join us, I cry, 'Hoka Hey!'"
Read Mickey's Story -
Jane Branham
Jane is vice president of the Southern Appalachian Mountain Stewards, a citizen group in southwest Virginia that is working to protect communities from coal pollution and end mountaintop removal mining.
"My hope is that we start rebuilding our community to what it used to be before coal ever invaded our lives."
Read Jane's Story -
Cindy Rank
Cindy is the humble backbone of decades of efforts to hold accountable the agencies whose responsibilities are to strictly enforce federal and state mining laws.
"I do believe that even what appear to be small victories make a difference, slow the tide of destruction, and are worth whatever improved mining practices that occur as a result. People in Appalachia are still suffering greatly, but were it not for those small victories many more communities would already be gone."
Read Cindy's Story -
Allen Johnson
With his strong faith and his generous heart, Allen reaches out to Christians and their congregations to educate and motivate them on injustices of mountaintop removal mining.
"These areas where they are extracting all this coal are the poorest in the country. It’s take, take, take, and not give back...Answering this call involves rebuilding central Appalachia, with a sustainable, clean, vibrant economy; a renewal of our culture of hospitality and neighborliness."
Read Allen's Story -
Karen Woodrum
Karen is proud of her work as an underground miner and wants to make her message clear: she is not against coal; she is against mountaintop removal coal mining.
"There would be more jobs if they would mine it underground, and I think people’s lives would not be disrupted as they are with mountaintop removal going on. And there’s less damage done to the earth."
Read Karen's Story -
Sid Moye
Sid never considered himself an environmentalist—just a regular mountain man who loves his family, loves his garden, and loves life in the mountains. But that all changed when he went to fulfill his lifelong dream of a retiring to fish in nearby mountain streams.
"When they leave, after the coal company is done with this, we'll not have any resources, we'll not have any land, we'll not have any water, the air is already poisoned."
Read Sid's Story -
John Slattery
John Slattery is an actor and director, best known for his role as Roger Sterling on AMC's series Mad Men. In joining this Earthjustice campaign, John Slattery is standing with all Mountain Heroes in opposition to mountaintop removal mining.
"My name is John. Some things are better with their tops left on. I stand with the Mountain Heroes. Let's stop removing the tops off mountains."
Read John's Story -
Wendell Berry
The author of more than 40 books of poetry, fiction, and essays, Wendell Berry is the recipient of numerous awards and honors. He has dedicated much of his energy and time to the cause of saving mountains and waters.
"My connection to mountaintop removal mining is the Kentucky River, beside which I live, and I know that surface mining in the mountains of Kentucky damages the river."
Read Wendell's Story -
Lisa Henderson
Born in a town that went vacant because of pollution from mountaintop removal mining, she was raised under the wing of one country’s most ardent voices for environmental justice, Judy Bonds.
"We traced the polluted creek to mountaintop removal mining. We started talking to community members from the other side of the mountain, and the more we talked to people, the more we heard, "Oh, you just wait. There’s more in store for you." They were right."
Read Lisa's Story -
Junior Walk
From living with contaminated water in his own home as a child, to being kicked out of the house for speaking out against the coal company, Junior has had to muster courage at every step along the way.
"I knew I couldn’t live with myself if I just sat on my hands, knowing that my friends and family were being poisoned, so I started to speak out against mountaintop removal mining."
Read Junior's Story -
Julian Martin
In 1999, Julian walked across the state of West Virginia with another Mountain Hero, Larry Gibson, in protest of mountaintop removal mining. He hasn’t stop marching since.
"Mountaintop removal mining is just a one-shot deal. It kills everything and then leaves. These mountains will never be replaced, and nothing good is ever going to happen on these mountains again. They’re finished."
Read Julian's Story -
Debbie Jarrell
Co-director of Coal River Mountain Watch, Debbie brings her caring spirit and indomitable dedication to the movement to end mountaintop removal mining.
"I have two grown children and three grandchildren. What’s similar about their experience is the amazement and the enjoyment that they get from being out in the woods and around the rivers. But a major difference is that my grandchildren can’t kneel down and get a drink in these streams whenever they want to, because of the pollution and contamination from mountaintop removal mining."
Read Debbie's Story -
Bo Webb
A no-nonsense Vietnam War veteran, Bo is determined to fight for the health of communities near mountaintop removal mining. He won't give up until protections are brought to Appalachia.
"After mountaintop removal is over we will work to build sustainable economies within our communities. For now, we must focus on this fight, because we are fighting for our survival. We and the mountains are connected; one and the same. As they are being destroyed, so are we."
Read Bo's Story -
Amber Whittington
Amber's younger brother is only five years old, and he will spend his entire childhood growing up next to a mountaintop removal mining site. For his sake, she's pledged to work to end mountaintop removal mining.
"It seems hopeless at times, but it’s not. I have to remind myself that it will get better as long as I keep fighting. I’m inspired by the amazing people I’ve met who won’t back down on this. We need more people from all over the country fighting to stop this."
Read Amber's Story -
Terry Tempest
Highly celebrated and decorated literary icon Terry Tempest Williams stands firmly against mountaintop removal mining. Williams' writings and books have earned her critical acclaim, and now she is using her vaunted name to try to stop this devastating mining practice and protect families across Appalachia. Join her.
Read Terry's Story -
Jerry Cope
Writer, filmmaker, designer, and activist Jerry Cope is standing up for justice, clean water, healthy communities, and mountains by standing against destructive mountaintop removal mining. Will you join him?
Read Jerry's Story -
Daryl Hannah
Award-winning actress Daryl Hannah has thrown herself into the fight to stop mountaintop removal mining. She stands in solidarity with all Mountain Heroes. Will you join her?
Read Daryl's Story -
Warren Haynes
Widely considered one of rock & roll’s greatest guitarists of all time, Warren Haynes has performed on stage and in the recording studio with a diverse array of musicians including Phil Lesh & Friends, James Hetfield, Bob Dylan, John Lee Hooker, Eric Clapton, Bonnie Raitt and many more.
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Alex Honnold
World-renowned climber Alex Honnold, whose famed record-setting climbs are unrivaled in the climbing world, joins thousands of Mountain Heroes in standing up to defend Appalachia's mountains and communities.
"My name is Alex. Climbing mountains is my life. We should protect them."
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My Morning Jacket
"We are My Morning Jacket. We want to see an end to mountaintop removal. We care about our mountains and Appalachia."
Read My Morning Jacket's Story -
Mari-Lynn
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Silas House
I'm an Appalachian. And my homeland is being destroyed.
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Joan Mulhern
Earthjustice mourns the passing of the strongest and bravest advocate for clean water and justice that we have ever known, our very own senior legislative counsel Joan Mulhern.
A fighter for the planet and for all people who suffered environmental injustice, Joan was a tireless advocate for the underdog in every situation, and she seldom if ever lost.
Read Joan's Story -
Maria Gunnoe
Maria's life has been threatened numerous times for her criticism of the coal industry, and she’s been assaulted and harassed, but she has refused to be silenced.
"We do not have to blow up our mountains and poison our water to create energy. I will be here to fight for our rights. My family is here, we’ve been here for the past 10 generations, and we’re not leaving."
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Edward Norton
An actor and filmmaker, Edward Norton is standing with all Mountain Heroes in opposition to mountaintop removal mining.
"Mountaintop removal coal mining destroys our natural resources, our communities, our health. It privatizes all the profit of dirty energy and socializes all the costs to the rest of us. It's a travesty and a scam and needs to be stopped."
Read Edward's Story -
Larry Gibson
Considered the father of the movement to stop mountaintop removal mining, he travels the country in his signature fluorescent shirts educating the public on through his Keeper of the Mountains Foundation.
"We didn’t know what it was, or if it was legal to blow up a mountain. I mean, who does that? I just didn’t believe it, I couldn’t fathom it. But I was hearing it, and I was seeing it in the distance, and then finally I could throw a rock and hit it."
Read Larry's Story -
Chuck Nelson
For nearly 30 years he worked as an underground coal miner. When mountaintop removal mining came to his area, Chuck watched the communities around him fall apart. And so his journey began.
"Being a coal miner, I depended on coal to raise the family. But I knew when I went into the underground mine, I was sacrificing my own health. It was my choice, as an underground coal miner. But mountaintop removal mining is different, because it affects whole communities — people who don’t get a choice in the matter."
Read Chuck's Story -
Alexandra Cousteau
A National Geographic "Emerging Explorer," filmmaker, and globally recognized advocate on water issues, Alexandra sees the link between our oceans and the waters that connect to them, including the important headwaters that begin in the Appalachian Mountains.
"We are drawn to the mountains like we are drawn to the sea. Could you imagine a world without either?"
Read Alexandra's Story -
Leilani Munter
A biology graduate who became a race car driver and environmental activist, Leilani is now directing her attention to the mining practice that is devastating Appalachia. She stands with all Mountain Heroes in opposition to mountaintop removal mining.
"Mountains are being destroyed for corporate greed. There is no Planet B. Let's save this one."
Read Leilani's Story -
Woody Harrelson
Woody Harrelson is an award-winning actor and longtime environmental activist, and a steadfast ally in the movement to stop mountaintop removal mining.
"Mountains, forests, streams, birds, fauna are sacred. The closest we get to God."
Read Woody's Story -
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. is one of our nation's leading environmental advocates and litigators. Named one of TIME magazine’s “Heroes for the Planet," Kennedy works to defend our nation's clean waterways and oppose mountaintop removal coal mining.
Read Robert's Story
Comments
Stop destroying our world, please! Find other sources of energy rather than coal and the problem would go away...
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People who take part in mountaintop removal are criminal in my opinion. What is wrong with these nimrods? They won't be satisfied until they tear down every tree on earth and put up houses and parking lots!
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Alexandra is a true hero and we should all get serious about saving the planet..
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Thanks for sharing.
No coal is ever clean in my opinion. It also distresses me to hear people speak of water as the "new oil". It's water - it is a life force and as you so eloquently put it, it is the greatest story teller.
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true! i loved your caption! Am totally against mining. We are devastating our own world and thats bad!
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Thank you for bringing our attention to this. I treasure our woods, nearby streams, a lake we visit in the summer and all the little creatures and bugs that go along with it. ceasuri de mana
The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure. http://binaereoptionenbroker.blogspot.com Coal is composed primarily of carbon along with variable quantities of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen.
for me alexandra is a hero yeah thats true and she is really great because she receives lots of rewards. great work alexandra.
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I enjoy the extra warmth and appreciate the fact that we no longer need oil deliveries during the
cold months, I wonder if it's a positive enviromental trade off. Even with the catalytic
converter and the fact that we burn wood that comes from fallen trees on our
property and castoffs from a local tree surgeon, there's still smoke.
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As a Florida resident, you should see what is happening to our beautiful springs. Pollutions, storm runoff, and tearing down every tree along the bak is simply kiling God's natural beauty. If you need assitance with any attempts to save our planet, please contact me using the form on my website, http://www.ocalaseniorcare.com
Thank you for bringing our attention to this. So it seems that "clean coal" is yet another brand name that creates an image of new hope. Yet it is merely the same negative nature impact with a new name. Though clean coal is yet to reach China, industrial spills and other nature impacting disasters are commonplace. I'm always looking for options on how I could return my impact as a concerned individual and so far I see spreading information as the best I can do. One such channel is the Asia Nature from the land of excessive coal use. Covering nature policy issues that impact the whole world.
There is nothing wrong with reusing the research papers or notes. There is need to review text books on regular basis.
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Nice post Alexandra Cousteau. Definitely we cant live without any of the two. Your story really is great. Water is one of the important thing that we require to live on. Thanks for sharing the post.
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Great Story. Never knew this before. Thanks for sharing.
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Alexanra have you heard of the naturalist and author Brenda Peterson? She has written and spoken about US navy submarine research that is using high frequency sound that is killing blue whales. I have heard no one else mention this but her. Do you have an opinion on this? Is it true?
I look forward to watching your tv show upcoming on National Geo March 10, 2013.
This one here is an enlightened hero.
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Destroying whole mountains to extract coal can never be our energy answer. My
husband installed an outside wood furnace to heat our house. Although I enjoy the
extra warmth and appreciate the fact that we no longer need oil deliveries during the
cold months, I wonder if it's a positive enviromental trade off. Even with the catalytic
converter and the fact that we burn wood that comes from fallen trees on our
property and castoffs from a local tree surgeon, there's still smoke.
I treasure our woods, nearby streams, a lake we visit in the summer and all the
little creatures and bugs that go along with it. But I'm just one more mother begging
for something to leave behind to my daughter and future daughters and sons.
Unfortunately it comes down to population. There is no perfect energy source.
And there are alot of people wanting the next electrically driven gadget.
I am a outdorsman and conservationist. My concerns are the government's desire to take over water rights from private land owners using green organizations to accomplish their goal.I would like to know your views on this matter. I feel education of the land owners will accomplish true conservation of our resources without taking more steps toward a socialist society.
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