Changing History

July 18, 1978
It was 35 years ago that the U.S. House of Representatives voted to deny eminent domain to coal slurry pipelines.
It was my first environmental victory, at age 21.
I had just published "The Big Sluice," an 11,500 word article on coal slurry pipeline in Crossroads Magazine (formerly Coal Patrol), published by Appalachian coalfield activists formerly associated with the reform wing of the United Mine Workers of America.  "The Big Sluice" helped inform veteran coalfield reporter Ward Sinclair of the Washington Post, who published an article complete with a map showing that pipeliners intended to build thousands of miles of coal slurry pipelines (shipping crushed coal mixed with water), to be built across across privately owned land, demanding Congress vote to allow pipelines to take land by compulsion, by force of government eminent domain powers.
Big oil, coal and construction companies almost euchred Congress.
But the two articles helped avert violation of private property rights for private gain -- a grant of federal eminent domain powers to private pipelines, whichcould never be "common carriers" (obliged to take all shipments). 
The two articles helped avert an environmental disaster that would have stolen Wyoming's scarce water and shipped it with coal in slurry form to Arkansas coal fired powerplants owned by Middle South Utilities.  This would have not only depleted dry Wyoming's Madison Formation but left gazillions of gallons of dirty water -- contaminated with coal and hexavalent chromium -- to be disposed of in Arkansas.  Hexavalent chromium (chromium six) is used as a pipeline flocculent. It is the same poison that hurt all the California residents portrayed in the movie, Erin Brockovich.
The two articles helped avert antitrust, labor and transportation crise by protecting railroads from unfair competition from pipeliners and coal companies -- 30 year transportation contracts dovetailing private pipeline construction with 30 year coal supply contracts for powerplants -- illegal, antitrust law violating "tying agreements."  that would have destroyed union jobs and wrecked Western railroads.
"The Big Sluice" was reprinted in the Congressional Record (all but the bits about campaign contributions, which were excised) with an insert by Rep. Joe Skubitz (R-Kansas) opposing coal slurry pipeline eminent domain.
While researching the article, false rumors were started about me by aggressive pipeliner lobbyists, led by a former Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives, and Bechtel, the world's largest construction company. 
I was threatened by Bechtel's head Washington, D.C. lobbyist: "If you write this artcle, you'll never get a job at the State Department."  (She knew I was an undergraduate student in the Georgetown University Edmund a. Walsh School of Foreign Service).  I was happy to tell Bechtel's head Washington coal pipeline lobbyist, "Ma'am, I don't want to work for the State Department."  [Three years later, Bechtel executives encumbered the jobs of Secretary of State (George Schultz) and Secretary of Defense (Caspar Weinberger)].
No "public interest" existed for condemning private property for cartelists' polluting coal pipelines. Thus, the vote in the House of Representatives was not even close.
A coalition of environmentalists, farmers, ranchers and railroads defeated a sinister group of electric power companies, oil companies and pipeline construction companies, which wanted Congress to let them take private land using government eminent domain powers.
The House of Representatives defeated this noisome special interest bill by overwhelming vote.
The lessons: Ask questions. Think big. Don't let big things or bad people scare you.  The Bible says at least 50 times: "Be not afraid." (First words in the first homily of the late Pope John Paul II as Pope).  Learn from others (I learned a lot from my late college roommate, Ed McElwain, who researched coal pipelines for Senator Gary W. Hart; from Lloyd Duxbury a/k/a "Dux," Vice President of Burlington Northern Rwy. (Republican, 43rd Speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives); Coal Patrol Editor Thomas N. Bethell;  Washington Post reporter Ward Sinclair; and a host of experts, activists and percipient witnesses in Washington, D.C. and the West. 
Remember, as Margaret Mead once said, "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world.  Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."
Yes we can! Keep askin' questions.  (By the way, this anniversary of our coal slurry pipeline victory also happens to be Nelson Mandela's birthday. How cool is that?)