Sandra Diaz: Canoeing Into Tennessee Coal Sludge (VIDEO)

December 26th, 4:30pm - 4 days after the 1 billion gallon toxic coal ash spill in Harriman, TN. I'm on the phone with Donna Lisenby, the Upper Watauga Riverkeeper in North Carolina, who was planning to travel to the TVA coal ash spill and collect water samples along the Emory River. I wanted to make sure she had connected with United Mountain Defense, an organization who was in the Harriman area taking water samples and talking with and providing drinking water to local residents. She assured me she was and then offered me an opportunity I hadn't known I was looking for. She asked me if I wanted to go with her on the river. I paused and thought hard for a moment. It seemed like something tangible that I could do. And it seemed important to go. So at 11 a.m. the next morning, I found myself paddling up the Emory River. We quickly discovered a sheer film on the water 2 miles from the spill site. As we made our way to ground zero, the damage became more apparent. We encountered numerous ... (link)