This Side of the Mountain

This Side of the Mountain George Brosi On April 4, 2004, a segment of the popular television show, "60 Minutes," focused on the courageous actions of Jack Spadaro, the former head of the National Mine Health and Safety Academy in Beckley, West Virginia. Unfortunately, Spadaro's future is still in jeopardy, and he needs continued support from people throughout the country and the region. Here's the story: In October of 2000, a coal slurry impoundment of the Massey Energy Company in Martin County, Kentucky burst, sending approximately 300 million gallons of coal slurry containing toxic mercury and arsenic flooding downstream. It killed all aquatic life in over one hundred miles of streams all the way to the Ohio River. It was an environmental disaster generally conceded to be twenty-five times worse than the wreck of the Exxon Valdez off the coast of Alaska in 1989. Davitt McAteer, head of the Department of Labor's Mine Safety and Health Administration at the time, appointed Spadaro as second in command of the investigation into the incident. That team determined that a spill had occurred at the very same impoundment back in 1994 and that at least five officials of Massey Energy knew that a barrier they told the government was eighty feet thick was only twenty feet thick. The team found eight clear violations on the part of Massey and was preparing to delve more deeply into the causes of the disaster. Then, after the national elections, the Bush Administration took over; it replaced McAteer with Dave Lauriski, a former mining company executive. The new officials insisted that the investigation into Massey, a company which had generously contributed to the Republican Party, halt. Lauriski came into Spadaro's office and asked him to sign a new report which faulted Massey for two violations, not eight, and suggested a $110,000 fine for America's fifth largest mining company. By way of comparison, the Commonwealth of Kentucky, then run by Governor Paul Patton, a former coal operator, had levied a total of $3,500,000 in fines against Massey. Spadaro refused to sign what he considered a watered-down report and resigned from the investigating team. Spadaro, who has been working for the Federal Government in mine safety since the Nixon Administration, feels this is the most egregious misuse of federal power he has witnessed in his career. He asked the Inspector General of the Labor Department to investigate. The report which cleared MSHA of wrong-doing was issued with many lines and some whole pages blacked out. Subsequently, Spadaro's new bosses asked him to approve a contract worth $200,000 to their friends for providing training at the Mine Academy. The contract was broken up into 180 separate $1,025 contracts so that it would not have to be put out for bids. Instead of agreeing, Spadaro went public. So MSHA investigated Spadaro, alleging that he was guilty of abusing his authority, failing to follow procedures and using his government credit card without authorization—for a total of $22.50. Abruptly, one day last year, when Spadaro came to his office, it was padlocked, and he was told he was fired. Recently, he has been offered a new job in the agency, one in Pittsburgh for a $35,000 a year salary cut. He's not accepting. Instead he is suing. Jack Spadaro is a whistle-blower. He is exactly the kind of government official we need to protect coal miners and citizens of the coalfields. The more we support Jack Spadaro, the more likely others will be to take strong stands for what is right, even when their jobs are on the line. And thus the more likely we are to have safe mines and a more wholesome environment to enjoy. Hats off to Jack Spadaro! Check www.citizenscoalcouncil.org for the current status of the situation and to see what can be done now. ...