Appalshop is a multi-disciplinary arts and education center in the heart of Appalachia producing original films, video, theater, music and spoken-word recordings, radio, photography, multimedia, and books.
One of the many documentaries that looked great for our project was "Strip Mining: Energy, Environment, and Economics" directed by: Frances Morton and Gene DuBey 1979.
Strip mining accounts for over half of the coal produced in Appalachia as well as the region’s most conspicuous environmental problem. It forces people to choose between jobs and the beauty, ecology, and, in some cases, the existence of the mountains on which they live. Strip Mining: Energy, Environment, and Economics looks at the history of this controversial mining method, the citizens movement organized to stop it, and the battle to regulate strip mining that culminated in passage of the federal Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977. Filmed during the midst of the energy crisis of the 1970s, the film retains its relevance as a U.S. energy policy based on unfettered consumption again comes into question and more people weigh the enviromental impact of their work and lifestyle.
There was also one called "Strip mining in Appalachia" directed by Gene DuBey in 1973.
Strip Mining In Appalachia is an early Appalshop examination of the desecration of land and communities that is brought about by surface mining of coal. A mine operator’s opinion that environmental impact is minimal is contrasted with statements from people whose homes have been ruined by bad mining practices. Aerial footage is used to show strip mines while a biologist provides a scientific explanation of what this mining method does to the land.
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