Episode Details

In this episode of The Gravity Well podcast, you hear about the environmental and health impacts of coal mining with Dr. David Swan, Dr. Norm Campbell, and Dr. Brad Stelfox. The conversation highlights the significant health risks, including selenium toxicity, increased cancer rates, and respiratory issues, lifestyle degradation as well as the environmental damage caused by coal mining. The guests emphasize the need for a comprehensive (cumulative) assessment of energy and land use, prioritizing renewable sources and reducing overall consumption. They ask you to demand stronger political action to protect Alberta’s natural resources and ensure a sustainable future.

Introductions to Brad, David, and Norm

Alex:

Welcome to The Gravity Well Podcast with Alex and Jenny. Here you break down heavy ideas with us to understand their complexities and connections. Our mission is to work through your dilemmas with you in conversation and process making our world a better place for all.

Jenny:

We acknowledge that we live on the traditional territories of treaties, 4, 6, 7, 8, and 10. The ancestral homelands of diverse First Nations, Inuit, and Metis. Peoples whose ancestors have walked this land since time immemorial and whose histories, languages, and cultures continue to influence our vibrant communities. We pay respect to indigenous people through our ethical relationship building efforts. Our community agreement asks for genuine conversations, real hearts, open minds, and different perspectives in conflict. Let’s rely on our six W system and live participant feedback. What matters most is finding common ground.

Alex:

We dedicate this podcast to our children, nieces, nephews, grandchildren, and all future generations. The gravity well is on YouTube and streaming wherever you get your podcasts. Join us at thegravitywell.net.

Jenny:

Welcome. I am thrilled to have Dr. David Swann, Dr. Norm Campbell and Dr. Brad Stelfox here today to talk about coal mining; the harms of coal mining, both on our health and on the environment. I’m excited to know David Swann quite well. We have an opportunity almost every week to meet, we discuss as a group of, I was just saying we should change our name to Concerned Canadians on Climate Change. We meet weekly basically as a therapy session first and foremost, but then work through the things that we’re trying to help inform, educate, or take action in our community. I’m grateful for all that I’ve learned from you, David, and I appreciate you helping me co-host today. I’m going to go ahead and let you guys introduce yourselves, Norm and Brad. I’ve had the opportunity to meet with Norm through CAPE, the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment.

We were in a meeting recently trying to work through this coal mining issue and also just trying to take action together in the environmental space, which is great. And I had the opportunity to hear Brad back in, geez, I want to say it was the summer of last year, down in Brag Creek talking about cumulative impacts on the landscape, which was really valuable to see and hear, to witness a large group of people learn how tremendous this problem is. I’m going to stop there and let you guys introduce yourselves properly. Norm, if you wouldn’t mind going first. Thank you.

Norm:

Sure. I’m Norm Campbell. I’m a retired professor of medicine from the University of Calgary. Relevant to this podcast, I drafted a report for the Alberta Medical Association on the adverse health effects of coal mining. Most of my work in my career was developing coalitions of health and scientific organizations around public health issues to create unified fronts. I’m a very keen outdoors person, love the Alpine in particular, and when I