Coal miner supports DeWeese
I have been an underground coal miner for 29 years and am a proud member of the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA). I write because I am disheartened by those who oppose our state Rep. Bill DeWeese. We who depend upon mining for employment, or who even indirectly benefit from the coal industry’s presence here, should at least try to recognize the hard choices our legislator must make. It was not easy to vote against the original version of Act 54 or to finally support the present law. There were many jobs at stake, but also the fear of the impact on surface owners had to be considered. It is tragic when jobs are lost by mine closures, and understandable when disheartened homeowners are dissatisfied with DeWeese’s best efforts to intervene on their behalf.
We live above some of the richest coal reserves in the country and must mine this coal to relieve ourselves from relying on foreign energy suppliers who contemplate harm against us. DeWeese also supports alternative energy sources, but right now, they are burdened by the time and funding needed to be developed and become affordable to most of us.
Recently, DeWeese sponsored a resolution designating Dec. 19 as “Coal Miner’s Day.” That date memorializes the deadliest accident in state mining history when 239 miners perished in the Darr Mine in Westmoreland County in 1907. Our district has had its own share of mining tragedies; the second-worst in history occurred in Mather, Morgan Township, where DeWeese helped the community dedicate a miner’ memorial to be later relocated at the site of the reclaimed Mather pile, a project on which he continues to ride out the bumps that come with such a complex environmental effort.
DeWeese understands the difficulty in balancing the needs for jobs, energy, security, worker safety, and community and environmental preservation. He may not be perfect, but he’s this miner’s choice to keep the 50 District in the Democratic leader’s seat in Harrisburg.
Rickie Polke
Hiller