WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 9, 2013 VOLUME 120 ISSUE 38 Serving The University of Alabama since 1894
NEWS | SHEPHERD BEND
WATER FILTRATION PROCESS Proposed Shepherd Bend Coal Mine Site Alum
Carbon
(coagulation)
(taste and odor control)
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Birmingham’s Drinking Water Intake
Sodium Hydroxide
Chlorine (disinfectant)
(corrosion control)
B LAC IO K WA R R
Chlorine (disinfectant)
Black Warrior River
Coal
Settling Basin
Sand
STEP 1
Filter
PRE-TREATMENT
STEP 2
Reservoir
FILTRATION Potential Contaminants (Selenium, Mercury, Lead, Pyrite, Copper)
Drinking Water to Faucet
STEP 3 POST-TREATMENT
Normal Filtered Contaminants
DO YOU MINE? PUBLIC OPINION SERVES AS FINAL FACTOR
CW | Photo Illustration by Austin Bigoney, Graphic by Belle Newby *Information obtained from blackwarriorriver.org
By Samuel Yang | Staff Reporter
TODAYON CAMPUS Local culture WHAT: Moundville Native American Festival WHEN: 9 a.m.-3:30 p.m. WHERE: Moundville Archaeological Park
Student housing WHAT: Off-Campus Housing Fair WHEN: 10 a.m.-1 p.m. WHERE: Main Floor Ferguson Student Center
LGTBQ+ History Month WHAT: Queering the Classroom: Teaching, Research & Service with a Twist WHEN: Noon-12:55 p.m. WHERE: 344 Reese Phifer Hall
Quad puppies
Shepherd Bend Mine, the surface coal mine that would be situated near a Birmingham Water Works facility, does not technically exist yet. None of its land has been leased, but part of it has been permitted. And all of it has been the focus of, among other things, resolutions from Student Government Associations at all three University of Alabama System campuses. UAH, the last and least likely to be affected of the sister campuses, has joined UA and UAB in drafting an official opinion in opposition to the mine. “We just wanted to come alongside Bama and UAB and help them out,” Taylor Reed, a member of the UAH SGA who wrote and passed the resolution, said. “We want what’s best for all of our sister campuses.” He said it was important to take a stance because in this case, apathy can translate into support. “It’s not a rivalry; it’s a friendship,” he said. “It’s a whole bigger issue.” The issue has been the subject of debate, resolution and legal action after the mine was proposed in 2007. Since then, a 2010 permit
SEE MINE PAGE 7
Group petitions UA to affiliate with WRC
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WHAT: The Lumineers WHEN: 7 p.m. WHERE: Tuscaloosa Amphitheater
A fire broke out Tuesday in a garment factory in Dhaka, Bangladesh, during overtime hours killing at least 10 people and injuring about 50. In April, the collapse of another garment factory in that area killed 1,127 workers due to neglect of building codes. Around three-fourths of Bangladesh’s exports are clothing, and while the cause of Tuesday’s fire is yet undeclared,
WEATHER
Out on the town
By Ellen Coogan | Contributing Writer
company in the Dominican Republic that is the only garment producer on the college market that pays its workers a living wage and is monitored by the Workers Rights Consortium. The WRC is an independent watchdog organization that monitors factories to ensure workers are treated with respect and dignity. Students for Fair Labor’s current mission is to get the University to affiliate with the WRC. Other Southern universities, like the University of Kentucky, the University of Tennessee and the University of Texas at
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WHAT: Spanish Movie Night: ‘Miel para Oshun’ WHEN: 6:30 p.m. WHERE: 203 B.B. Comer Hall
working conditions in Bangladesh’s garment industry are notoriously poor. “Fair labor issues, I think, are important to students because virtually everyone works, and I think work is just one of those issues that everyone can get around because of the universal nature of it,” Mark Ortiz, president of the Students for Fair Labor organization, said. “In the case of the garment industry, students really have a direct influence over the workings of it.” Last semester Students for Fair Labor at The University of Alabama campaigned for and succeeded in getting the SUPe Store to offer garments made by Alta Gracia, a
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Students for Fair Labor support worker rights, safety
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the UA Board of Trustees to ban mining on the property in question. “We want there to be as much pressure on the UA system leaders as possible,” Scribner said. In this case, student government opposition from all three campuses creates a cemented argument for organizations like the Riverkeeper, which have been fighting on legal and public fronts. “I think there’s an extra element of excitement to UAH’s resolution because it completes a trifecta,” he said. “That’s an unprecedented level of solidarity across the three UA campuses. Considering how different the three colleges are from each other, yet they’ve all come to the same conclusion about this mine, I hope that gives the UA leadership something to think about in making this very important decision.” So far, UA maintains that it “has not been approached about leasing or selling the land and has no current plans to do so.” Cathy Andreen, director of Media Relations, said student opinion and interest in such issues is of value to UA.
NEWS | FAIR LABOR
WHAT: Puppy Break WHEN: Noon-2 p.m. WHERE: Quad across from Lloyd Hall
Briefs Opinions Culture
approving the mine issued by the Alabama Surface Mining Commission has been tangled in courts from Birmingham to Walker County. Milton McCarthy, ASMC deputy attorney general, said the “sum and substance” of the issue was whether the permit was appropriately issued. “Most people don’t want a coal mine in their backyard, so to speak, and we understand that. But that’s not the criteria for whether the permit is issued or not,” he said. “We just have to follow the black-and-white letter of the law.” Because the permit’s legality is separate from its public popularity, SGA resolutions and community petitions cannot singlehandedly stop the mine if UA leases the land and mineral rights for the property. Charles Scribner, executive director of the Black Warrior Riverkeeper, said the UA system is “in the driver’s seat” when it comes to the mine’s progress. “There’s no mining out there, and we want to keep it that way perpetually,” he said. “That’s where UA can end this.” Public opinion, which carries no weight during legal procedures, could potentially close the mine before it opens if it can sway
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