Old King Coal

A variation from ... the merry old soul

Old King Coal

Lorne Fitch, P. Biol.

It should be abundantly clear to most that the coal industry, coal companies, coal apologists, and the Alberta government have abandoned any attempt to tell the truth and are now on a search for a good fantasy and conspiracy theories to explain to us non-believers and skeptics why coal is good for us and why we shouldn’t worry.

The most laughable fantasy is the contention there is effective regulatory oversight and Albertans can trust the process. If that were true, the proposed Grassy Mountain mine would not be getting another kick at the can despite being roundly rejected by a joint federal/provincial panel. If the process worked there would not have been an unprecedented cancellation of the Mine 14 public hearing by the AER.

Nothing they have said should change your mind and this might even stiffen your resolve that coal is not in Alberta’s future. The facts are in evidence and if you read carefully the rhetoric of the coal side, you will see their difficulty in explaining away issues with environmental impacts, economic reality, and human health concerns.

There is nothing new or innovative about blowing the tops off mountains and dumping the tops into valleys where issues with water quality, hydrologic effects, fish and wildlife losses, recreational/tourism impairment, and downwind deposition of possible carcinogenic compounds will be evident. Measures to minimize these impacts or to mitigate them have been largely ineffective. There is no technological silver bullet or wand available to wave these issues away.

If you are told differently, ask for the evidence that has been collected by an objective, arm’s length third party with appropriate credentials. It should be published in an established scientific journal.

I could repeat myself, as I have done in numerous forms and forums, but at this point, here is a bit of poetic doggerel that is an appropriate response to those with coal on the brain:

Old King Coal is a dirty old soul,

And a dirty old soul is he.

He called for the right,

in the middle of the night,

to mine the mountains, just in sight.

Albertans said, it just ain’t right,

and had a screaming fit.

Said they, we won’t swallow this lump of sh*t.

Old King Coal said we’ll make you rich,

And provided a dubious pitch.

We’ll blast and dump and turn the waters black,

But you know we’ve all got your back.

We won’t prevaricate, pollute, or poison,

At least not much above reason.

Our government said that sounds just fine,

You don’t even have to sign on the dotted line.

But some of us have seen a mine or two,

And know this just isn’t true.

Old King Coal, what are we gonna do,

when the mountains are gone and so are you?

Old King Coal is a rascal of a soul,

And all we’ll be left with is a great big hole.

Lorne Fitch is a Professional Biologist, a retired Fish and Wildlife Biologist and a former Adjunct Professor with the University of Calgary. He is the author of Streams of Consequence, Travels Up the Creek, and Conservation Confident