Opposing Mountaintop Removal.

    

You could ask yourself "do I take little things for advantage" and probably turn up with the answer of "no." When in all reality, you really don't know what you got, until it's gone...

     Mountaintop Removal is a form of surface mining that is also the leading form of coal 
removal in the Appalachian Mountains. It is done by first removing all topsoil, plants, and trees from the area that is to be mined. Explosives are then used to expose the underlying coal seams, often between 500 and 800 feet below the surface. Huge drills, called drag lines  dig deeper into the heart of the mountain to extract the coal. Coal companies prefer using drag lines when excavating coal because it requires much less human power to run these machines than traditional methods of excavation. The coal is then cleaned for safer burning and usage. The waste from cleaning the coal, however, is stored in what is essentially an open hole in the ground. The mountain is then reshaped into a plateau and grass is planted. Though minimal efforts are taken to reshape and replant what was lost, the mountains and surrounding communities are severely affected by MTR and are never left the same. Bills such as the Appalachia Restoration Act aim to protect mining communities from the harm of MTR by regulating waste dumped into sources of drinking water and reducing MTR itself. Support for such bills is necessary in order to preserve our natural environment, and protect the towns and people in the surrounding areas of the Appalachian Mountains.


One of the reasons Mountaintop Removal is such a popular form of mining today is because 
it is one of the cheapest and fastest ways of extracting coal. Michael Shnayerson, author of the 2008 book Coal River, states that miners are able to extract one hundred percent of the coal from the seams of rock as opposed to only seventy percent of the coal in underground mining. Debra Glidden, in her Environmental Encyclopedia article titled "Surface Mining," suggests that capital costs of surface mines are at least half of what the development of underground mines cost. 

Though MTR may be more productive in producing coal, it is imperative to look at how MTR is negatively affecting the environment and at other alternatives to obtaining coal. One must then ask if the pros of Mountaintop Removal mining outweigh the damaging effects it has on the environment and our people. MTR produces a huge amount of waste and debris that pollutes surrounding communities. After using explosives to blast away the sides of mountains, debris coats the towns in valleys below. MTR also produces large amounts of sulfur from the coal. In 2009, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) stated that "exposure to high concentrations of sulfur dioxide can include effects on breathing, respiratory illness, alterations in pulmonary defenses, and aggravation of existing cardiovascular disease." In addition, sulfur emissions from coal mining can cause damage to historic buildings. 

In addition to the debris that falls over the towns, MTR pollutes nearby rivers. Solid waste from mining is literally dumped into the valleys and streams below. Many harmful toxins such as iron, arsenic, and lead contaminate the rivers and streams. According to Glidden, one of the products of Mountaintop Removal is acid. The acid and minerals from the runoff contaminate the water supply and make it extremely unsafe to consume. Many residents of nearby communities suffer from "liver and kidney problems, various forms of cancer, and skin rashes" as a result of long-term exposure to such minerals and acids. Other organisms are also directly affected by MTR. Another statement by the EPA said that pollutants in the water from MTR had a "negative impact on fish and macro invertebrates leading to a less diverse and more pollutant tolerant species". The forests are being torn down before blasting. 

Compared to the hundreds of years it takes to grow such a forest, man cuts it down in less than a few months. Some animals are forced out of the way, migratory patterns of birds are disrupted, and the organisms that can't move out of the way quickly enough are killed. Although it is mandated by the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 that miners must restore vegetation after reclamation of mining sites, the leveled mountains are often used as grazing pastures for animals. The trees are replaced by grass which not only does not produce as much oxygen as trees, but also does not grow as well because of the acidic soil. The effects of MTR on all life in the surrounding areas are devastating.

Another extreme danger of Mountaintop Removal is that the liquid waste produced by MTR is stored in what is called a coal slurry impoundment. The waste is whatever material is leftover from the coal cleaning process, often a mixture of "water, coal dust, clay, and toxic chemicals such as arsenic, mercury, lead, copper, and chromium" One impoundment can hold billions of gallons of waste from a single facility. Sometimes, due to lack of care to the structure of these dams, the impoundments will breach and flood entire the community. On February 26, 1972, 132 million gallons of coal sludge flooded Buffalo Creek Hollow in Logan County, West Virginia, with disastrous results: "125 were killed, 1,100 were injured, and 4,000 were left homeless". Because impoundments are often located less than a mile away from mining communities, many towns are in danger of seeing similar disasters. Mountaintop Removal mining is not worth risking the lives of innocent bystanders. 

MTR miners worry that if we discontinue Mountaintop Removal, they will lose their jobs and not have any way to pay bills and care for their families. However, one of the reasons coal companies look to MTR as the preferred method of mining is because it does not require a large labor force. If we reintroduce underground mining to Appalachia, miners will find there will actually be a higher demand for miners. Not only will there be more jobs, but miners will also earn a higher salary. Surface miners average a salary of $42,000 while underground miners average $73,000 (Surface miners; Underground Miners). 

Combining the development of renewable technology and using more environmentally-friendly forms of mining will create overall better lifestyles for mining towns in the Appalachian Mountains. It is important to realize that the effects of Mountaintop Removal mining do not only affect the Appalachian Mountains. Although this form of mining is predominately used in the east, the streams and rivers flow all over the United States. Any area that the contaminated water feeds will be  poisoned with the heavy metals and toxins of MTR. All areas of the United States are equally affected  by MTR.