Prominent Kentucky environmentalists declared Thursday they've had enough of the state General Assembly. "We have petitioned, marched, sung, written, lobbied, testified and pleaded — all to no avail," said Kentucky author and farmer Wendell Berry, left. "But today we declare that business as usual in Frankfort — long intolerable — has now become unacceptable." Berry and other members of Kentuckians for the Commonwealth took turns reading a Declaration of Independence-type statement Thursday in a room adjacent to a research presentation on the health effects of coal, Andy Mead of the Lexington Herald-Leader reports.The declaration listed desires including a request for "the state's political leaders to break their close ties with coal, remove legislators with ties to coal companies from leadership positions, and call for an end to 'extreme and sometimes violent speech' directed at people who speak out against coal in the coalfields," Mead writes. The KFTC members said coal demand was ebbing, but Kentucky was not taking appropriate steps toward alternative energy sources and jobs. "Environmentalists characterized the declaration as a major step," Mead writes, "but its effectiveness is doubtful." (Read more)
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