February 7

United Mountain Defense volunteers started working on compiling a comprehensive list of all of the video tapes they have recorded to date. UMD volunteer Tom Swinford has volunteered to start the task of converting the Mini DV tapes into DVD’s and has begun reproducing the DVD’s for distribution.

United Mountain Defense has the most comprehensive video documentation of TVA’s response to the Coal Ash Disaster of Dec 22, 2008. United Mountain Defense has more than 60 hours of footage including two aerial videos and hours of local interviews.

February 8

United Mountain Defense volunteers were tasked with getting more medical release forms from residents who got free heavy metal exposure screenings. Their medical results are being analyzed and will be released as an anonymous pool of data. UMD volunteers got two more residents to sign release forms.

UMD volunteers also video taped the changes to the disaster site. It was a mostly quiet day with only a few machines working at the disaster site.

One of the most shocking bits on knowledge UMD volunteers learned today was that workers on site have been having uncontrollable and repeated nose bleeds since beginning to work at TVA’s coal ash disaster site.

February 9

For the past week United Mountain Defense volunteer Tom Swinford has been making copies of the video documentation of the TVA coal ash disaster. Thank you Tom!!

UMD board member and volunteer coordinator, Bonnie Swinford worked on balancing UMD’s budget by going through the stack of receipts to figure out what the state of the organization’s financial situation. It appears to still be in the black.

Matt Landon, UMD volunteer staff person continued to work on the catalogue of disaster videos. 

February 10

Tonight there was a meeting of the TN Coal Ash Survivors Network(TCASN). Volunteers from United Mountain Defense traveled to Harriman, TN to help facilitate this organizational meeting. One of the goals of the evening meeting was to choose an organizational structure. The group chose to continue using the consensus based decision making process. Next TCASN decided on goals for the group. They came up with a list of 5 goals and decided on one goal to add to the website immediately with the others to be discussed over the next week and decided on at the next organizational meeting. The one goal they decided on was to “Support and help evacuate families with health impacts directly related to TVA’s Coal Ash Disaster”. The group then decided on some various tactics they would use. They then decided to work on their first fundraiser. TCASN has been very successful to date in making group decisions and using the consensus process.

The next meeting is set for next Tuesday at Penny Dodson’s house.

There is no shortage of a need for project funding. United Mountain Defense is a 501c3 and we are seeking funding or co-sponsoring organizations to help fund personal protection equipment, bottled water, independent air and water monitoring, and real time web cams.

If you are a resident impacted by TVA's coal ash disaster please contact us at 865 689 2778.

If you can make a donation of money or other resources please send a check to United Mountain Defense P.O. Box 20363 Knoxville, TN 37920 or use our PayPal account at www.unitedmountaindefense.org

Ed note:  Matt Landon, a full time volunteer with United Mountain Defense, is reporting from the ground in Harriman, TN.  Because of his chaotic schedule, we receive batches of diary posts intermittently, and we'll continue re-publishing them in chronological order. Here are all of his posts.