JACKSON, Ky. — Before strip-mining came to Breathitt County, about the only two industries were welfare and government jobs.
Then came the coal boom of the 1970s, which revived Jackson, a remote, rural county seat that is home to a Honey Festival and two new shopping malls.
Since then, the boom has "peaked out and it's on the decline now," said Breathitt County Judge Executive Cecil Clair. But for this insular Appalachian community, the single worst blow may lie ahead.
Three statewide environmental groups, as well as the University of Kentucky in Lexington, are trying to block an attempt by Arch on the North Fork, the county's largest employer, to strip-mine a 105-acre parcel of land adjacent to Robinson Forest.
The 14,500-acre, university-owned forest contains what is called "big coal" - 97 million tons of it, the richest seam east of the Mississippi River.
Environmentalists say that any mining in the forest's watershed would not only disrupt the scenic beauty of the area, but would also impair the university's forestry and water research. A legal battle could drag on for years, both sides say.
But Arch, which is seeking to mine only its small tract, says that if opposition continues and no compromise is reached, it will leave town in November, subtracting as many as 1,900 jobs and $50 million a year from the county's economy.
Meanwhile, the people of Breathitt County - 41 percent of whom already live below the poverty level - are "caught in the middle," said Jackson Mayor Lester Smith.
"No matter . . . if Arch gets to mine this or if they don't get to mine it, I think it is very unconstitutional that you can't do what you want to with your own damn land," Smith said.
Anger at intrusions by outsiders - in this case, the Sierra Club, the
Kentucky Resources Council and the Kentucky Conservation Foundation - is a powerful theme in the history of Eastern Kentucky, where environmental concerns frequently have been shunted aside by the pressing need for jobs.
Here in Breathitt County, garbage pollutes Troublesome Creek, and the spring floods have washed diapers and plastic milk containers into trees. Still, county residents say, they do care about the mountains and the streams that frame their modest brick ranch homes.
"We're all environmentalists," said Louise B. Hatmaker, editor of the weekly Jackson Times. "If you want to see people who love the land, buddy, this is it." But, as for the Sierra Club, she said, "they can go climb a tree as far as I'm concerned."
