UTK Students Protest Mountain Top Removal

University of Tennessee students held a press conference last Thursday to show support for the good environmental work their chancellor is already doing, and to promote extending that work. Students have been working with coalfield residents from Save Our Cumberland Mountains fighting strip mining in their communities and a couple residents even drove a couple hours to speak and support the students’ efforts.


The students have passed a proposal asking for UT to continue buying only deep-mined coal (which they currently do) and take a stand against purchasing Mountain Top Removal Coal in the future. Check out a video of the press conference.And we are pumped! This proposal has already passed through the Student Government Association, the Faculty Senate, the Graduate Student Senate, and the Campus Committee on the Environment. But the chancellor failed to send a representaitve to respond at the press conference on what action they are going to take on this proposal!

They might just want this issue to go away, but it is not going to. Since last week, there have been several misunderstandings between the Vice Chancellor and the students. He is concerned about the "genuine" quality of the press conference. But he has only become concerned since the PRESS put PRESSURE on the administration. Let’s keep getting out messages out in the media and continue to increase the pressure on our administrations and beyond!