Event

ON COAL RIVER

Do Something Reel Film Festival
Sunday, April 17 at 2:15pm
Reception at 1:45pm open to ticket holders
for both Bag It! and On Coal River

Coal River Valley, West Virginia is a community surrounded
by lush mountains and a looming toxic threat. On Coal River
follows a former miner and his neighbors in a struggle for the
future of their community. Ed Wiley once worked at the same coal
waste facility that now threatens his granddaughter's elementary
school. Ed confronts his school board, the state government,
and a notorious coal company Massey Energy for putting
his community at risk. Ex-marine Bo Webb retired to his childhood
home only to discover that this once-idyllic valley is being transformed
by "mountaintop removal" - blowing up mountains to extract
coal. Judy Bonds was forced to leave her ancestral home when
the same company opened a mine next door - sending dangerous
black water down the creek where her grandson played. Maria
Lambert recognizes a pattern in the unusual health problems
plaguing her community, and gathers evidence suggesting that
the coal companies have contaminated their water supply. Shot
over a five-year period, On Coal River follows the transformation
of these remarkable individuals as they fight for the valley they
love and for future generations. 2010, USA, 81 min.