Intro to Wheeling and Coal Mining Thoughts by Moniz, Joshua C.

What was your initial reaction to the visuals and data presented in the talk? Did anything surprise you?

jmoniz2_1 — 2025-01-26 20:44:48 UTC

Choose one sentence or image from the article that stood out to you

jmoniz2_1 — 2025-01-26 20:45:31 UTC

mklein1_21 — 2025-01-26 20:50:21 UTC

I was a little surprised because I didn't realize all of the damage that has been caused and to what extent it was.

knault5 — 2025-01-26 20:50:25 UTC

My initial reaction was that tragedies look different for everyone, and sometimes we do not think about the adverse ones people experience

Did any part of the talk and/or article remind you of issues in your own community or life experience? How so?

jmoniz2_1 — 2025-01-26 20:50:40 UTC

knault5 — 2025-01-26 20:51:09 UTC

“I’m hearing more conversations acknowledging that coal isn’t coming back,” Rosser said. “There’s a lot of fear and anxiety actually that maybe we waited too long.”

2025-01-26 20:51:21 UTC

I was surprised that I knew practically nothing about this issue and how greatly it impacts the workers of WV. Initially it makes sense that many people would want to switch to cleaner energy sources, however the issue is far more complicated than that and there is a lot of disagreement.

How do you think geography or urban planning influenced the inequalities highlighted in the talk?

jmoniz2_1 — 2025-01-26 20:51:43 UTC

2025-01-26 20:52:17 UTC

The visuals were very raw/hard to look for me.

knault5 — 2025-01-26 20:52:24 UTC

The talk and the article reminded me of many people's lives after natural disasters—the loss of stability when they endure tragedy.

mklein1_21 — 2025-01-26 20:52:33 UTC

This picture stood out to me

2025-01-26 20:53:01 UTC

In a state prized for its natural beauty, the environmental situation is no better” (than the issue of population decline)

mloftin3 — 2025-01-26 20:53:02 UTC

“When you talk about clean energy or something like manufacturing electric vehicles, West Virginians are extremely interested,” she said. “But politicians aren’t having these conversations with us. Instead, they make assumptions about what we want.”

What alternative industries or energy sources could be viable for West Virginia to explore in response to the diminishing coal market?

jmoniz2_1 — 2025-01-26 20:53:06 UTC

West Virginia is ripe for reinvestment

ngphanuyen — 2025-01-26 20:53:24 UTC

adagostino15 — 2025-01-26 20:53:38 UTC

I was very interested in the connection between the beautiful mountain region and the environment and the connection between those in comparison with the job market and the developing society with new technologies and values.

knault5 — 2025-01-26 20:53:41 UTC

I think it is more about the composition of the population of those areas. The article mentioned how West Virginia is primarily white, and when the coal workers had to choose people to lay off, it was always the people of color first.

How has coal mining shaped the cultural identity of West Virginia communities?

jmoniz2_1 — 2025-01-26 20:53:55 UTC

How does the information in the article challenge or reinforce your views on the balance between economic development and environmental stewardship?

jmoniz2_1 — 2025-01-26 20:54:32 UTC

knault5 — 2025-01-26 20:54:38 UTC

I think the revolutionary work of wind turbines that have recently become prevalent in our country could benefit the people of West Virginia.

2025-01-26 20:54:44 UTC

The talk reminded me of issues of water conservation and clean energy on cape cod.

mklein1_21 — 2025-01-26 20:55:05 UTC

There was nothing that stood out to me that reminded me of my own community but it mentioned climate change and I think that is affecting places all around the world and the effects can be seen anywhere as long as you are looking for it.

knault5 — 2025-01-26 20:55:43 UTC

Many people relied heavily on the work of coal mining to support their lives and their families. Like farming or any labor-intensive job, it pays the bills and puts food on the table for many families.

2025-01-26 20:55:51 UTC

The part of the article that discussed that often what happens on the government level does not align with what the majority of people wanted reminded me of other concerns like health-care, education, etc. Often what the majority of people want doesn't end up happening.

mloftin3 — 2025-01-26 20:56:11 UTC

I think a lot of communities that have always relied on a particular industry, especially one that is rapidly changing or disappearing, have experienced the frustration of politicians making assumptions about what people want. My hometown has been incredibly impacted by climate change, and it's very connected to the shipping and commercial fishing industries, which are directly contributing to climate change. It's difficult to reconcile people making a livelihood with the need for positive change.

adagostino15 — 2025-01-26 20:56:16 UTC

When they called the flood a "thousand year event" but then mentioned that with climate change trends this wouldn't be all that uncommon, it made me interested in how adjustments would be made to individuals' mindsets, societal practices, and developments in response to the changing environment.

knault5 — 2025-01-26 20:57:02 UTC

As history has shown, growing our economy is usually at the cost of our environment. There needs to be a balance between taking care of our planet and also finding a way to stabilize the economy.

2025-01-26 20:57:21 UTC

" “We put in the work to lift America into an industrialized power, through the use of coal,” Rosser explained. “Now, we deserve reinvestment.” "

mklein1_21 — 2025-01-26 20:57:26 UTC

They could look into doing solar energy by building solar fields, energy created from water, or wind. These are all much better and don't do much damage to the earth or people.

2025-01-26 20:57:28 UTC

I feel that urban planning from the Industrial Revolution set WV up for later struggles. The community relies so heavily on the coal industry and infrastructure was built around it. When the coal industry became less popular, its building and factories still remained

adagostino15 — 2025-01-26 20:58:58 UTC

In addition to wind power, I think with the local running water resources in the area, hydroelectric power could be utilized as well. Even if its not to such a large scale, but could be used even for individual use.

2025-01-26 20:59:24 UTC

Coal has become very tied to the identities of people from West Virginia and their economy. There is the phrase "‘What’s good for coal is good for West Virginia". When scientists point out the negative effects of coal, West Virginians take is very personally since many have risked their lives and made a living off of coal mining.

mloftin3 — 2025-01-26 20:59:37 UTC

Coal mining has been an integral part of the culture and economy of West Virginia for a long time. The music and art that has come out of Appalachia borrows heavily on themes of people working hard in a very dangerous profession. Additionally, many families have been part of the industry for generations and have that as part of their identity.

2025-01-26 20:59:50 UTC

Wind turbines, solar power

ngphanuyen — 2025-01-26 21:00:15 UTC

I found it interesting that Google Map didn’t capture the photos of the plastic bundles behind the fences. So from the outside, it shows beautiful houses with trees around. In reality, people are living with the plastics and the wastes of the factories.

mklein1_21 — 2025-01-26 21:01:29 UTC

many people who live in WV have built their lives around the coal mining industry and if that were to be taken away many people would end up losing their jobs which could cause a lot of issues.

mloftin3 — 2025-01-26 21:01:42 UTC

It reinforces my knowledge about how complicated it is to advocate for environmental stewardship while also taking into account the economic realities of people living in regions like Appalachia. However, the end of the article highlighted hope in that West Virginians are creative and want to find a way to move forward in a way that takes the environment into account.

2025-01-26 21:01:51 UTC

Coal mining is a big part of West Virginia’s culture. For many generations it has been their source of income and has given many families jobs. The people feel connected to the coal mining industry despite its problems

adagostino15 — 2025-01-26 21:02:06 UTC

It continued to show they go hand in hand with one another. If the environment is doing good, the economy is doing good. If the environment faces tribulations, then the economy will follow. Which can cause even more problems when measures created to fix the issue only address the surface level problems.

mloftin3 — 2025-01-26 21:02:59 UTC

Nuclear power, hydroelectric power

ngphanuyen — 2025-01-26 21:03:05 UTC

I think being conservative to changes is a common issue most of us have as we grow up with the tradition and rules that have been there for a while. Making changes can be scary but might be necessary.

2025-01-26 21:03:12 UTC

Based on the article and video and what I know about climate change, the balance between economic development and environmental stewardship is currently not in balance and the article/video reinforced this idea. But also gave hope that more people than I thought do want this balance and are striving for it.

A grim joke in the state goes that people have overtaken coal as West Virginia’s top export.

jmoniz2_1 — 2025-01-26 21:03:25 UTC

2025-01-26 21:04:08 UTC

The information in the article challenges my view that clean energy should overtake other sources of energy. In the case of WV, a lot of work and change must be put in place to sustain clean energy, which is definitely not easy for the people of WV. However I still believe that slowly the economy can turn to more sustainable energy sources