OVEC and our coalitions have been busy the last month, and, rather than regale you with our stories, we wanted to give you a chance to see them yourselves. So pop some popcorn and put on your cozies, it’s time to binge watch some environmental justice work!

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First up is organizer Alex Cole, who shows up around the 22-minute mark in this House Committee on Natural Resources Environmental Justice Now: Appalachia Forum. The whole video lasts about an hour but is definitely worth watching for testimonials about how folks from around Appalachia have been affected by extractive industries. (Content warning, you will hear Appalachia pronounced App-uh-LAY-shuh, so proceed accordingly.)

Next on the binge list is OVEC comms specialist Sarah Carballo, who was a speaker at the 5th Anniversary of the Paris Agreement: A WV Celebration alongside the national organization Corazón Latino. This spectacular event with musical guests also features a number of friendly faces known throughout our region, so make your bingo cards in advance.

Next up is one of the coalitions OVEC helps lead, West Virginia Citizens for Clean Elections. They, along with coalition partners, put on the We Demand Democracy Virtual Town Hall, a short but moving event centered around HR1, the For the People Act, and the John R Lewis Voting Rights Act. The panelists particularly explored how the bill would affect West Virginia’s marginalized and disenfranchised. Give this one a watch if you want to feel the fire, then sign the petition here.

Moving right along, the next binge-worthy OVEC sighting is the Remembering the WV Water Crisis panel event, commemorating the anniversary of the 2014 MCHM spill in the Elk River that left so many without access to clean water. Hear testimony from those affected and reflections on the work ahead.

And last but certainly not least is the recent community meeting hosted by CORR and OVEC to address the Mountaineer Storage Facility, a proposed series of natural gas liquids underground storage sites along the Ohio River. When you’re finished with this one, check out the fact sheet for any questions you may have, and don’t forget to submit a comment to let the ODNR know that this plan is a no-go. There’s one more phase of permits left, so look for more about this in upcoming Action Alerts.

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We hope you enjoyed this binge of OVEC’s work over the last month. If you crave even more content, check us out on social media or at our website: ohvec.org, where you can sign up for our action alerts and join some of the upcoming events in real time. Keep up the good fight!

Thank you for your support,

Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition