Today the New York Times published an editorial on abolishing mountaintop removal, a practice we all know is killing eastern Kentucky:

A bipartisan group of 119 members of the House recently reintroduced legislation that would redefine mining waste as a pollutant. In so doing, Congress would reassert the original intent of the Clean Water Act and end the practice of dumping waste in valleys and streams. Until that bill becomes law — if, indeed, it ever does — a great deal more damage could occur in Appalachia. Two companies that have been awaiting the court’s go-ahead have now said that they will resume mining operations.

The Obama White House can prevent that damage. Under the law, the Corps of Engineers can suspend the mining permits in the public interest. This in turn would give the administration time to review the rules and issue new ones that would be more protective of the environment. But the Corps of Engineers, always reluctant to reverse itself and historically friendly to industry, will not act without orders from on high.

Mr. Obama promised to find better ways of mining coal “than simply blowing the tops off mountains.” The time to do so is now.

Click here to read the rest…

So what can you do to stop mountaintop removal? In addition to considering solar power in your home or business, you can learn to “green” your life little by little. And a great way to do that is with Sustain in Louisville. We’ve written about and partnered with the store over the past few months but want to bring it to your attention yet again. It’s really a one-stop shop for sustainable living products and free education for how to change your life. They don’t just sell compost bins, they offer information and education on composting, provide newspaper shredding as a base for the compost and sell books on vermiculture, worm farms and provide sources for red wigglers.

Tons of stuff for water and energy conservation, kitchenware, bed and bath, children, pets, home decor, cosmetics, electronics, clothing, furniture. Everything.

This Saturday, March 21, Sustain will host its grand (re)opening. The entire day will be filled with seminars and presentations, activities for the kids, a happy hour (by Jarfi’s! win!) and some fancy and expensive give-aways. So stop in from 10:00 to 6:00 at The Vogue Shopping Center, 3724 Frankfort Avenue, 40207.

Read the rest and peep the schedule after the jump…

Here’s the day-long schedule:

• 12:00 – Green Cleaning with Bethany Mojica of Sustain
• 12:30 – Water Conservation with Mark Appleberry of Sustain
• 1:00 – Green Your Party with Michael Drane of ecosteward
• 1:30 – Sustainable World with Kenn Parks
• 2:00 – Composting with John Moody of WholeLife Co-Op
• 2:30 – Sourcing Local Food with Ivor Chadkowski of Grasshoppers Distribution
• 3:00 – YERT Highlights with Ben & Julie Evans of Your Environmental Road Trip
• 4:00 – Screening of FLOW with our pal Gill Holland & Happy Hour!
• 5:00 – Jazz Trio with Julie Evans

More on the give-aways: $500 shopping spree to Sustain, a Vers iPod Docking Station, a Voltaic Solar Backback, various other in-store prizes. You may register online for some of them and stop in the store for others. So you should enter. It’s a great way to do something about mountaintop removal. You can green your lifestyle, avoid coal use and win products– for free– that can help you leave the grid forever.