“They reach out and flip the switch and the light comes on. Well, there’s not a magic electricity fairy . That electricity comes from a power plant that feeds on coal”
Eugene Mooney, past commissioner of the Kentucky Department of Natural Resources

Coal produces more than half of U.S. electricity, according to the Federal Department of Energy. The energy policy currently before Congress identifies coal as a "cheap, dependable, and increasingly clean" source of energy. The Electricity Fairy will be an hour-long public television program that examines America's national addiction to fossil fuels through the lens of electricity.

Just one in three Americans know that most of our electricity is produced by burning coal. By contrast, some 36% believe that hydroelectric power provides most of America’s electricity, and a majority believes our electric power comes from sources that do not pollute.
National Environmental Education and Training Foundation report

West Virginia , Tennessee, and Kentucky export both coal and electricity. Exploitation of natural resources for power generation makes the impact of the nation’s electricity consumption highly visible in these three states. The Electricity Fairy will creatively combine present day documentary footage with old educational films and an animated folk tale to reveal the hidden costs of America's major source of electricity.

Project Status
The program is currently in production and will be released in early 2009 by Appalshop Films.

A short Quicktime clip about electricity. VIEW CLIP

thansell@appalshop.org